美国国家公共电台 NPR Domestic Violence's Overlooked Damage: Concussion And Brain Injury

 

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

Studies of traumatic brain injury have revealed links to dementia and memory loss among veterans and athletes. It's also linked to PTSD among current and former service members. And another group maybe suffering so largely in silence, survivors² of domestic violence. Will Stone of member station KJZZ in Phoenix³ brings us this report.

WILL STONE, BYLINE⁴: Hundreds of survivors of domestic violence have come through the doors of neurologist Glynnis Zieman's clinic in the past three years

GLYNNIS ZIEMAN: Domestic violence patients are the next chapter of brain injury.

STONE: Zieman begins every new patient visit with a simple question - what are the symptoms you hope I can help you with? For most, it's the first time anyone has ever asked even how they may have gotten injured in the first place.

ZIEMAN: I actually heard one patient tell me, the only person who ever asked her if someone did this to her was a paramedic as she was being wheeled into an ambulance. And the husband was at the foot of her stretcher.

STONE: In fact, about 70 percent of those seen in the emergency room for such abuses are never actually identified as survivors of domestic violence. It's a health crisis cloaked in secrecy⁵ and shame, one that Zieman is uncovering through her work at the Barrow Concussion⁶ and Brain Injury Center in Phoenix. She runs a first-of-its-kind program dedicated⁷ to treating traumatic brain injury for survivors of domestic violence.

ZIEMAN: About 81 percent of our patients had so many hits to the head that they lost count, which, when you compare that to athletes, is astronomical⁸.

STONE: Domestic violence is estimated to affect 10 million people each year. Head and neck injuries are some of the most common. And Zieman is showing just how much traumatic brain injury is a part of that. The lack of recognition has left many survivors in the dark without a diagnosis⁹, often blamed for their cognitive¹⁰ impairment.

ZIEMAN: They've been labeled for so long with all these horrible things. And in the end, it's not only not their fault but there is a true medical reason behind these issues. And there's some things that can be done.

STONE: Zieman works with local domestic violence shelters to identify women who may be suffering from brain injuries. Workers will send them to her clinic where their physical symptoms, like headaches or dizziness, can be treated along with the cognitive and emotional effects of their abuse. Ashley Bridwell, a social worker at Barrow, works hand in hand with Zieman to help survivors manage life with a brain injury.

ASHLEY BRIDWELL: These long histories of emotional and physical abuse - and then you couple that with the cognitive impairment that a lot of these survivors face.

STONE: Bridwell helped start the program six years ago after doing outreach to the homeless community and realizing many had traumatic brain injuries because of domestic violence.

BRIDWELL: Some of these simple things like filling out an application or remembering an appointment - it's close to impossible considering what they're experiencing.

STONE: Patients will sometimes arrive at their clinic with a constellation¹¹ of seemingly unexplainable symptoms. Bridwell remembers one who lost her job because of her difficulties with memory. The woman thought she had Alzheimer's.

BRIDWELL: And for her to come in and get some information about how multiple hits to the head can impact your memory, your attention, your concentration, your speed of processing - it was incredibly validating¹² for her.

STONE: While many patients initially¹³ seek out the clinic because of physical symptoms, Dr. Zieman says their research shows anxiety, depression and PTSD usually end up being the most severe.

ZIEMAN: The significance of the mood symptoms in this population far exceeds what we see in our other patients.

STONE: Zieman says we're still in the early stages of understanding the effects of repetitive brain injury and how we can better treat it. The trauma¹ of domestic violence only complicates¹⁴ the picture. But the survivors she sees remain her favorite to treat.

ZIEMAN: We can make the biggest difference for these patients.

STONE: A difference that can start with a diagnosis and lead to a new life.

For NPR News, I'm Will Stone in Phoenix.

CORNISH: This story is part of a reporting partnership¹⁵ with NPR, KJZZ and Kaiser Health News.

1 trauma   

n.外伤，精神创伤

参考例句：

• Counselling is helping him work through this trauma.心理辅导正帮助他面对痛苦。
• The phobia may have its root in a childhood trauma.恐惧症可能源于童年时期的创伤。

2 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

3 phoenix   

n.凤凰，长生(不死)鸟；引申为重生

参考例句：

• The airline rose like a phoenix from the ashes.这家航空公司又起死回生了。
• The phoenix worship of China is fetish worship not totem adoration.中国凤崇拜是灵物崇拜而非图腾崇拜。

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 secrecy   

n.秘密，保密，隐蔽

参考例句：

• All the researchers on the project are sworn to secrecy.该项目的所有研究人员都按要求起誓保守秘密。
• Complete secrecy surrounded the meeting.会议在绝对机密的环境中进行。

6 concussion   

n.脑震荡；震动

参考例句：

• He was carried off the field with slight concussion.他因轻微脑震荡给抬离了现场。
• She suffers from brain concussion.她得了脑震荡。

7 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

8 astronomical   

adj.天文学的，（数字）极大的

参考例句：

• He was an expert on ancient Chinese astronomical literature.他是研究中国古代天文学文献的专家。
• Houses in the village are selling for astronomical prices.乡村的房价正在飙升。

9 diagnosis   

n.诊断，诊断结果，调查分析，判断

参考例句：

• His symptoms gave no obvious pointer to a possible diagnosis.他的症状无法作出明确的诊断。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做一次彻底的调查分析。

10 cognitive   

adj.认知的，认识的，有感知的

参考例句：

• As children grow older,their cognitive processes become sharper.孩子们越长越大，他们的认知过程变得更为敏锐。
• The cognitive psychologist is like the tinker who wants to know how a clock works.认知心理学者倒很像一个需要通晓钟表如何运转的钟表修理匠。

11 constellation   

n.星座n.灿烂的一群

参考例句：

• A constellation is a pattern of stars as seen from the earth. 一个星座只是从地球上看到的某些恒星的一种样子。
• The Big Dipper is not by itself a constellation. 北斗七星本身不是一个星座。

12 validating   

v.证实( validate的现在分词 )；确证；使生效；使有法律效力

参考例句：

• His politics at home were validating his efforts in the hemisphere. 他的国内政策也有效地支持了他对本半球所做的努力。 来自辞典例句
• A number of different experimental approaches have aided in validating the concept. 许多不同的实验方法，有助于确证这种概念。 来自辞典例句

13 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

14 complicates   

使复杂化( complicate的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• What complicates the issue is the burden of history. 历史的重负使问题复杂化了。
• Russia as a great and ambitious power gravely complicates the situation. 俄国作为一个强大而有野心的国家，使得局势异常复杂。

15 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。