Writing Poetry to Improve Cognitive, Languistic and Emotional Functioning

Librarian Angela Hunt of Carver, MN tripped and struck her face on the sidewalk en route to work causing a TBI with loss of consciousness for about 20 minutes. When she attempted to return to work she had difficulty speaking, was unable to use a computer and no longer recognized long term library patrons. Hunt helped rehab herself by writing poetry. She found that the physical act of writing helped her brain make connections with language. Writing poetry helped her recover language skills and vocabulary.

It was also an outlet for expression and integral to regaining her emotional equilibrium. Hunt has published a book for TBI survivors titled “Am I Still Me? A Group of Words with Fundamental Questions for Those Struggling to Recover Themselves.”