BRAIN INJURY August-October 2020 Issue 50

BIW Newsletter

NEW STAFF

Welcome to the fist Brain Injury Waikato Newsletter, post Covid 19 Lockdown.

A number of changes have occurred over the last few months, so here is a quick update.

BIW and Parkinsons Waikato have both moved from Somerset Street, into the Dementia Waikato Building in Keddell Street. The move has coincided with a change of personnel INSIDE THIS ISSUE with Robin Slade our new Manager, after Ella resigned. We are very lucky that Ella is still Notices ...... 2 available to help on occasion as Robin gets to grips with his new role. Sponsor Acknowledgement ...... 2 Robin has previously worked at the University of Waikato as Disabilities Liaison for Aca- Research Report ...... 3 demic Services, and more recently was the Funding and Training Coordinator at Parent Upcoming Events ...... 3 to Parent. Liaison Officers Report ...... 4 Expect big changes at The Keddell Street Premises over the next two years with plans to Interest Story ...... 5 renovate the building to create what we hope will be a Neurological Hub for the Waikato. Membership Renewal ...... 6 Although it is hard to image what the building will look like at the end of the project, the architect's plans show it to be a welcoming , user friendly space for us all. SPECIAL POINTS OF INTEREST

END OF YEAR PICNIC • AGM Notice

Our End of Year Picnic will be in the Hamilton Gardens in the Rose Garden area on Fri- • Annual BIW Seminar day 27 November 11.30 till 1.30. Please advise of your attendance in advance. This has been really enjoyed by people in the last two years. We hope to have some live entertainment so we will keep you posted. All clients, family, support people and carers Disclaimer: All care has been welcome. taken in the preparation of this newsletter. We disclaim any liabil- ity for information contained within. It is of a general nature and to be used as a guide only. RELOCATION NOTICE

If you haven’t already caught up with park, look for the door next to the our relocation news, we have moved Neurotones and Dementia sign. along with our room-mates Parkinsons Waikato and now share office space Our phone number remains the same in what hopefully will become a neu- 07 839 1191 rological hub with Dementia Waikato Our postal Address remains the same Officially our street address is: PO Box 1168 Hamilton 3240 8 Keddell Street, Frankton All email enquiries; The closest entranceway to our office [email protected] space it off the Kent Street car-

“On the management front, we have bid Ella Scheepers a fond farewell. Ella has been a core part of the organisation for well over a decade.”

I am not my brain OUR SINCERE THANKS TO ALL OUR FUNDERS, injury (Christabella Braden) SPONSORS AND SUPPORTERS

"I am not my brain injury.

I am more than exhaustion.

I am more than headaches.

I am more than mood swings.

I am more than memory loss.

I am more than prescriptions.

I am more than doctor visits.

I am more than a disability.

I am strong.

I am alive.

I am a survivor.

I will not stop dreaming.

I will not stop hoping. 4Good NZ, A-Lectrics, C1 South, Compuhub NZ, D.V. Bryant Trust, Donny Charita- I will not stop praying. ble Trust, Glenice & John Gallagher Foundation, Grassroots Trust, Hamilton City I will not stop believing. Council, -Te Poi Lions Club, Jumble Around Inc Cambridge, Len Reynolds Trust, Ministry of Health, South Hamilton Lioness Charitable Trust, NZ Community I will stand strong. Post, Oosh Cambridge, Page Charitable Trust, Suzuki NZ, The Norah Howell Chari- I will move forward. table Trust, The Framing Workshop Cambridge, Waikato Lyceum Charitable Trust, Waikato Provincial Rural Women NZ, Waikato WDFF Karamu Trust. Because I am a survivor." 2 Thank you to everyone who has given a donation. UPCOMING EVENTS

Kirikiriroa Support Group Last Wednesday of each month (Sept 30th / Oct 28th) 10:30am Dr Kelly Jones, Senior Re- 8 Keddell Street, Frankton search Fellow, National Insti- Hamilton tute of Stroke and Applied Cambridge Support Group Neurosciences, AUT Universi- 3rd Tuesday of each month ty Sept 15th 10.30am Cambridge Health & Communi- ty Centre Seminar Room 22a Taylor Street Ph: 07 827 8246 Oct 20th 10.30am Community House

Tokoroa Support Group 2nd Thursday of each month (Sept 10th / Oct 8th) RESEARCH REPORT 10:30am Tolloch House, Gate One, Maraetai Road, Tokoroa. Tēnā koutou katoa, Yoga Sessions Well a lot has happened since my last update wishing you all a happy new year! We hope James Fowlie (Yoga Teacher), for gentle yoga. that you and your whanau have kept well during the COVID-19 pandemic that continues Every Thursday to impact us all in various ways. Well done to the team at Brain Injury – Waikato for 1:00pm 8 Keddell Street, Frankton being so flexible during this time. Marion and Wendy transitioned well to working from Hamilton home and offering client’s online or telephone-based support. Being flexible and quickly able to adapt to change was certainly key at this end. No doubt, the impacts of COVID-19 Waikato NeuroTones Every Tuesday at your end have been also been significant and varied. We wish you and your loved ones 8 Keddell Street, Frankton (parking all the very best going forward as we manage life (and all that entails) alongside a relent- available in Kent Street with en- trance to office) less worldwide pandemic. 10:30am Entrance fee: $3 On the management front, we have bid Ella Scheepers a fond farewell. Ella has been a core part of the organisation for well over a decade. It will take some time for everyone to Education Session September 15th adjust to this significant change. Ella’s enthusiasm and passion for her work was infec- 1:00pm tious. On behalf of the Board, we wish Ella all the very best for her future adventures. 8 Keddell Street, Frankton Hamilton Relatedly, we offer a warm welcome to Robin Slade who recently joined the team as the Sarah Lillas: Fatigue and Sleep new Manager. Robin has a wealth of experience in the not-for-profit space and we look following a Brain Injury, and how to forward to working together with Robin to continue to make gains during a challenging manage it.

environment. Next, many thanks to fellow Board member Amanda Straiton for nominat- Annual General Meeting ing myself to join the Brain Injury National Council as a representative of the Northern October 14th 10:30am region. It was my privilege to attend the Annual General Meeting in Wellington last week- 8 Keddell Street, Frankton end. I am excited to work with such a dedicated group of people who are clearly very pas- Hamilton

sionate about the work we all do to support those affected by brain injury. Thank you to Presentation everyone present for such a warm and friendly welcome. for Clients, families/whanau and providers (RSVP) Finally, as part of my work at AUT University, we recently had a practice run through of a October 15th 3:00pm new pediatric TBI wananga developed by myself and Safekids Aotearoa, with input from 8 Keddell Street, Frankton ACC. The team are excited to get on the road in the coming weeks with 8 wananga Hamilton Neuropsychiatrist Gil Newburn planned throughout the country. So, like you all, busy times ahead with lots of exciting presents a session on Relationships mahi! Take care. After Brain Injury.

Education Session October 20th Ngā mihi nui, 1:00pm 8 Keddell Street, Frankton Due to changes in funders’ cri- Hamilton Kelly Jones Wiremu Morris: The Keto Di- et. What is it and how has it made a teria, and a downturn in gam- difference in my serious brain injury journey ing funders revenue, we truly Annual BIW Seminar need your financial support to November 13th 8:00am Hamilton Garden Pavilion ensure we continue vital ser- Chartwell Room vices. (To Be Confirmed) 3 LIAISON OFFICERS REPORT UPDATE FROM WENDY Kia ora koutou Just a brief note from me, letting you know the latest develop- It was lovely to see so many of you here to say goodbye to Ella on 3 August. She was so ments from my side of things. grateful to have the opportunity. Thank you to everyone who came; to Nola and Shelley for your helping hands on the day, and to those who sent apologies. Ella is really enjoying working part time, in her husband’s accountancy office. I am really pleased to announce that we have a new Brain Injury Wendy and I have settled back into our new office after working from home during lock- Support Group starting in Mata- down. All our support and advocacy services continue as normal. It is finally warm after mata. an electrician did some necessary work. Frosty mornings were a bit rough for a while. Sue from Pohlen hospital has very kindly let us use a room at We welcome Robin Slade as our new Manager. Robin has been quietly learning the ropes the hospital once a month. in our back offices. Some of you have met him already. I am sure you will get to meet him at events we hold. You are welcome to drop in for a visit. We are still working on a start date and we will keep you posted Our Support Groups and Education Sessions with hot topics have resumed in July. The rooms we share for meetings with Dementia Waikato and Parkinson’s Waikato are very

comfortable and spacious. A calendar of our events is on page 3.

About Pohlen Hospital Along with our Education Sessions we are scheduling in a presentation by Neuropsychia- trist Gil Newburn, by popular demand, on Thursday 15 October at 3pm till 5. Gil will be talking on Relationships after Brain Injury.

For those who have not been to see us yet, please go to the Keddell st entrance and recep- tion will phone through to us. There is a back entrance off Kent St Car park for our group sessions.

Two Occupational Therapy Students are doing a Project with us currently. This year stu- dents are putting together a Brain Injury Navigation Tool. Many of our clients and fami- lies express the lack of a pathway on discharge from hospital, and or information given by their GP. The resource will be a guide on what services are available. It will be put on our website, and made available to hospital staff, medical centres, and community agencies. We hope it will be helpful for people, regardless of their injury category. Thank you to Nicola and Libby for their work. They will present the completion on 28 August.

Many of you will be aware of the changes in ACC client management system this year. These are being rolled out across the country. For some, the transition has been without many hitches. Others have found it difficult. This seems to mainly affect those who are now team managed rather than by a specific case manager. I am advised that “teething issues” are being addressed.

They are situated in the heart of If you are in Supported Recovery or Partnered Recovery you will have one person who , with lovely gardens and views of the Kaimai Ranges. can be directly contacted. You will also have some current rehabilitation/ treatment in place. In Assisted Recovery there is a team of staff who will deal with your claim. They They are a private 33-bed chari- could be in any region of the country. I am happy to help with any issues on the ACC pro- table trust hospital, with friendly cess. Here is a link to the current pathway from ACC website https://www.acc.co.nz/ professional staff who take the time to get to know you and your assets/47a29de570/Quick-reference-guide-Changing-the-way-we-work.pdf family, so your care can be per- sonalized. It is good to remind ourselves that despite difficulties, we are very lucky to live in Aotea- roa . Long may that continue.

Stay safe and well. Marion and Wendy

4 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING NOTIFICATION

Our Annual General Meeting is coming up in October. Please ensure you have renewed your membership or joined. Only financial members have voting rights.

When: Wednesday, 14 October

Time: 10:30am

Where: 8 Keddell Street, Frankton, Hamilton

New Format. Previously we have invited a guest speaker along with a topic of discussion. This year with the uncertainty Covid 19 has caused we are opting for a more simplistic format, diving straight into the core purpose of AGMs. Reviewing the year and electing officers.

Financial members are eligible to vote, if you haven’t already done so, renew your membership!

THE RESILIENCE PROJECT

This story is part of The Resilience Project, a Stuff Her anxiety worsened, and Sunday Star-Times investigation into how and she spiralled into people have survived life shocks. depression. Fortunately, loved ones offered sup- When the doctor first gave Annabelle Collins her prognosis, port, which made a she refused to believe it. "world of difference." "I thought 'no, that’s not happening'. It was definitely [a] Eventually Collins saw a surprise, a little bit of horror, like 'I can’t afford to lose this therapist, which gave much time. I’ve got things to do'.” her coping techniques like mindfulness. Keeping a journal A PhD student at the University of , Collins was also helped. in 2019 diagnosed with a brain injury and told it would take On especially tough days she would focus on all the beautiful her at least a year to recover. things in her environment, from the bark on a tree to the Originally from the UK, Collins moved to New Zealand in reflection of the sun on metal. 2017 for research, hoping to develop treatments for tubercu- But Collins quickly became bored. Watching TV gave her a losis. But her brain injury, believed to have been sustained migraine, so she occupied herself with reading, colouring in, in a serious car crash, left the 24-year-old effectively and walking to the playground. "illiterate". One of her favourite games to play with friends was Dun- The crash on Auckland’s northern motorway saw her walk geons & Dragons. She started 3D-printing and painting away with no serious injuries. But after she returned to pieces for the game, which used a spatial part of her brain home she slept for nearly two days straight. which was not injured. When Collins arrived at work the next week she couldn't Soon, Dungeons & Dragons fans were asking to buy her read the words on her computer screen. creations and Collins saw an opportunity. This year she She was told she likely suffered a brain injury when her launched her e-commerce business Modular Realms, which brain hit her skull as her head snapped forward and back- has been inundated with pre-orders. A Kickstarter page to ward during the crash. help fund the start-up has raised nearly $40,000.

The injury affected her memory. She had to relearn to read. During the coronavirus pandemic, she used her 3D-printing skills to make free personal protective equipment for medi- After taking three months' medical leave and on specialists’ cal professionals in the UK and New Zealand. advice, Collins made the "heartbreaking" decision to leave her PhD programme. That meant losing a scholarship worth Her resilience came from recognising when she needed help $27,000 per year – her main source of income. – "You don’t get points for having pride and once you (seek support), man it makes a difference” – and n hindsight, she Because the funding was not technically a salary or wage believed the change had been for the better. Collins did not qualify for ACC loss of income payments. 5 MEMBERSHIP - NEW / RENEWAL

Brain Injury Waikato empowers people and families affected by brain injury through the provision of advocacy, support and education to make informed choices in ways that create a long-term and sus- tainable difference in their lives. We also raise awareness and promote prevention of brain injury in the community.

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