Coming Home

CNN has a profile of a married couple and their struggle to maintain their marriage after the husband returned from Iraq with a spinal cord injury. As you might expect, they’re experiencing a range of emotions; guilt, anger, depression, and the like. As someone with a congenital disability, it’s difficult for me to imagine the sense of loss and (sometimes) bitterness that accompanies a newly acquired disability. I’ve never known a life without disability. The man in the article will have to learn to adapt to an entirely new existence. Here’s an idea for a documentary; pick a small group of soldiers returning from Iraq with various disabilities. Examine the immediate aftermath of their injuries, their rehab, the effects on their families. Then follow up with them every 3-5 years. See who’s thriving, who’s not, and explore the reasons why. It could be modeled on the Seven Up series that is being done in the UK. If we ever get our hypothetical disability network, that might be an idea worth exploring.
Not sure how much blogging I’ll be doing while in DC. One of my nurses is bringing his notebook and I’m hoping the hotel will have WiFi. If I do post, it will be very brief. We’re going to be running from meeting to meeting during most of our visit.