Hi everyone. Hopefully, most of you know (and remember!) me, but for
those of you who don't, let me reintroduce myself and explain my absence.

My name is Patricia Williams and I am the founder of this website. I
know you all to be those who understand the issues and tribulations of
living with and after a brain tumor so I write the following words
knowing you will understand. I just want very badly to reach out and
pull this group back together with a clear direction.

I started this group due to a lack of follow-up after my brain
surgery. My story is already on the website so I will not say more
about that other than the fact that, as a registered nurse, I felt
compelled to do something to improve the level of follow up provided
to patients and families and to provide a forum for communication and
support to those of us taking this journey.

I miss all of you and am sorry for letting so much time pass without
participation. So let me explain.

About a year after my surgery in 1999, my husband left. I was not the
same person inside my head and everything from my habits to my
personality had changed. Instead of being the independent, type A,
"family coordinator", all of a sudden my husband found himself with a
person who needed assistance on many levels. In the case of my
husband, it was too much for him and he moved on; we divorced and
that's that story.

Bear with me... after remarrying in 2003, my life seemed to be
progressing in a positive direction and I was growing and relearning
skills I thought I had lost. I learned to read again, relearned
improved communication skills, relearned the ability to do math and
many other life skills I thought I would never have the joy of
experiencing again.

One thing never returned, however - my ability to multitask and handle
significant levels of stress without a price to pay. That price being
a lowered seizure threshold and having to stop one activity in order
to focus on a new one.

It is due to these deficits I have been unable to participate for
quite some time. About two years ago, I found out my new marriage was
over after finding out about many affairs my husband was having or had
had. I won't go into all the details, but having to deal with this
realization, along with managing through a divorce and all the
emotions and confusion associated with it, I find myself left with
very little energy to contribute to this group. I wasn't even getting
any of the posts because my email address had changed.

I have continued to do my fundraisers on a lesser scale, raising about
$4,000 for various non-profit brain tumor organization and I conduct
my annual fundraiser at the Florida Brain Tumor Association conference
each January.

Having now made it through this stressful period of my life, I am
ready to jump back in. I do miss being part of this community.

I hope many of you are still interested in continuing with this
website and exploring ways in which we can help each other as well as
those patients and families to come. I do feel we have made a
difference to many people as a group and look forward to continuing on
in this regard.

I look forward to discovering how many of you are still reading the
messages and if there is an interest on your part in continuing on
with this community.

I hope to hear from some of you soon!

Please forgive me for my absence and let me know what has been
happening!!! I will read back over the posts now and delete those
that are inappropriate (spam) from the archives.

Glad to finally be back,
Trisha