Welcome back to our featured monthly articles! Each month, we spotlight a Brain Buddies member and share their inspiring journey. This month, we’re highlighting Marisa Kirk and her powerful story of overcoming a traumatic brain injury during the prime of her young adult years.
On August 9, 2021, my life changed in an instant.
I had a hemorrhagic stroke—something no 19-year-old expects. I spent five weeks in a neuro ICU, a place that became all too familiar. Then came a medevac flight to Phoenix, Arizona, where I underwent four brain surgeries to remove an arteriovenous malformation and have a shunt placed behind my right ear. Just seven weeks post-stroke, I woke up to a completely different world.
From there, the fight began. I spent another five weeks in inpatient rehabilitation, relearning the most basic of skills—how to talk, walk, eat, shower, and eventually drive. I was discharged the day after my 20th birthday. I entered a grueling nine-month outpatient rehab program where I trained nearly 8 hours a day, with another hour or two dedicated to home exercises. The doctors weren’t hopeful. I was bald from surgery, told to buy a wig, and informed that I’d likely never walk independently again—let alone return to school. But I was determined. My goals were labeled as unrealistic. I never believed them.
Four years later, I’ve graduated on time with my original class of 2020. I’m an active alumna of my sorority. I completed a 450-hour internship, I have a job I love, I travel solo—both for fun and work—and just recently hiked through Yellowstone National Park. That same hemiplegic hand, the one that was supposed to be permanently inactive? It’s coming back. Not quite the same, but it’s trying, and that’s a victory.
When I was recovering in Phoenix, I didn’t have much of a support network beyond my parents. I joined a local group similar to Brain Buddies, and it made such a difference. That’s why I was so excited when I found Brain Buddies through BIAMO. The friendships I’ve formed through this group are unlike any other—people who truly get it. Even if our experiences differ, there’s an unspoken understanding, a kindness and compassion that makes this community so special. I feel lucky to be part of it.
