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The Life of a Sourdough Girl
After my brain injury, I had to stop sewing. It sounds small to some, but for me, it was huge. It was simply too difficult to continue sewing as every stitch made my PCS symptoms worse. Because I was a talented sewer before the accident, losing that hobby felt like losing part of my identity.…
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Everything you lose is a step you take
“Time won’t fly, it’s like I’m paralyzed by itI’d like to be my old self againBut I’m still trying to find it” All Too Well, Red For the last two years, I’ve lived inside those lyrics from Red‘s Track Five. Like Taylor, I’ve felt paralysed, constantly looking back, trying to find the person I used to be.…
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Am I allowed to cry?
For the last two years, I haven’t just been recovering from a concussion; I have been navigating the five stages of grief. Stage One: Denial “Just breathe, just relax, it’ll be okay” Electric Touch, From the Vault, Speak Now, Taylor’s Version My denial began the second the accident happened. At the time, I didn’t understand…
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hell was the journey, but it brought me heaven
“hell was the journey but it brought me heaven” invisible string, folklore Since I began struggling with concussion symptoms and vestibular issues, these words have felt incredibly literal – especially when it comes to going on holiday. There is a common assumption that because I continue to go on holidays with my family, it’s a…
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Soon You’ll Get Better
“Ooh-ah, soon you’ll get betterOoh-ah, soon you’ll get betterOoh-ah, you’ll get better soon‘Cause you have to.” Soon You’ll Get Better, Lover Soon You’ll Get Better, from Taylor Swift’s 2019 album Lover, focuses on themes of hope and desperation following her mother’s cancer diagnosis. Because the subject matter is so heavy, it is one of the few…
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I’m in a new hell, every time you double-cross my mind
Since starting my concussion recovery, I’ve found that so many of Taylor Swift’s tracks resonate with the complex feelings I carry regarding my medical treatment. While I’ve been fortunate to work with many compassionate professionals who have been vital to my recovery, I have also faced treatment that left me feeling silenced and dismissed. Dealing with post-concussion syndrome…
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Write what you know, looking backwards might be the only way to move forward
“And the years passedLike scenes of a showThe Professor said to write what you knowLookin’ backwardsMight be the only way to move forward” The Manuscript, TTPD Recently, my psychologist, my own personal ‘Professor,’ gave me the same assignment Taylor describes in The Manuscript. She told me to write what I know. So, here I am, ‘looking…
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Ask me what I learned from all those years
The lyrics that have inspired this post are from Swift’s Karma song. Karma is such a cheerful, fun, and upbeat song from her Midnights album, in which she talks about the satisfying feeling that karma will reward those who do good while punishing those who cause harm. It’s also a song about self-reflection, showing that…
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I find it dizzying
“I find it dizzying (yeah, oh, yeah)They’re bringin’ up my history (yeah, oh, yeah)But you aren’t even listening (yeah, oh, yeah)” Lavender Haze, Midnights Like for many of us who live with ongoing post-concussion symptoms, dizziness has been one of the most present and most debilitating symptoms that I have struggled with, as well as…
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loml
“And I’ll still see it until I dieYou’re the loss of my life” loml, TTPD At the end of 2025, I was forced to walk away from the love of my life – my teaching career. I didn’t leave because I wanted to; I left because my employer ‘took me to hell,’ failed to support my…
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take me to the lakes
“Take me to the lakes where all the poets went to die (…)Those Windermere peaks look like a perfect place to cry.” the lakes, folklore When Taylor Swift released the lakes in the summer of 2020, I was beyond excited. My family and friends immediately started texting me because they knew she’d written a song…
