When someone experiences and is impacted by a brain injury, the whole family experiences this, too.
Family members feel a swirl of emotions and feelings after a loved one sustains a brain injury. The most common ones are disbelief, stress, grief/sadness and anxiety.
And in time, comes acceptance (and hope).
BEST families have all been there. One teen, who has a close family member with a brain injury, decided to share their thoughts on the topic through original artwork.
Erin Thompson, a Washington State high school student, young emerging artist and BEST volunteer, decided to represent the emotions and feelings that caregivers and family members go through when a loved one has a brain injury through art and she wanted to share this work with BEST survivors, family members and supporters.
Thompson has created an online art series of five portraits called, Path to Acceptance. Using the mediums of alcohol-based markers and pencils, each hand drawn portrait in the series depicts the emotions and feelings of disbelief, grief/sadness, anxiety, stress and hope/acceptance. Each portrait will be displayed on BEST social media (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube) and our website blog, one per day, during the week of July 31, 2017.
When asked about the portrait series, Thompson had this to say.
“It basically illustrates what caregivers and family members go through trying to accept their new life when someone in the family has a brain injury.”
About the artist: Erin Thompson has been drawing, painting and working with sculpture since she was a small child. Thompson aspires to pursue a bachelor of fine arts in college.
“Art is relaxing and fun. It allows you to express yourself in different ways,” shares Thompson.
