As a Wounded Warrior Program Peer Mentor I've been saying this for years to my mentees, and then through writing this book it's become one of my most powerful mantras. Be brave and DO THE WORK.  Stay on the path.  You either walk the talk or get your ass off the path.  If you’re listening, getting off the path isn’t an option.  You’re alive.  Others aren’t. Part of my resolve with getting through my initial anxieties was the promise to myself to do the work, to nip this in the bud.  I remembered how my father struggled with his nightmares and I didn’t want that to define my future. 

The Brain Pain is always there, but my new activities act as noise, drowning the pain with natural serotonin and adrenaline.  Life is hard enough, working through the day-to-day challenges, but when you can’t think clearly, it becomes overwhelming.  All my life, my standard was operating and multitasking with a healthy and good brain.  Now, post injury, my standard has changed.  Practicing new skills puts me out of my element, forcing me to do the work, exercising the neural pathways in my brain.  Constantly making new predictions and choices challenges me.