After a piece of airplane equipment fell during a flight and left her with a head injury, Air Force Master Sgt. Jill Westeyn sometimes forgot to look both ways when crossing the street, had trouble typing and often misplaced objects that she needed.
“I felt slower,” Westeyn said. “It took me twice as long to do everything.” Her brain scans were normal, but when it was time to mail Christmas gifts she sent the presents to the wrong family members. “I sent my mother Hello Kitty pajamas.”
Westeyn's memory, field of vision, sleeping and concentration have all improved after a year and a half of working out at the Brain Fitness Center, located in the Military Advanced Training Center, MATC, at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. “I'm processing faster now, and I'm much more productive at work. Things are working better now than prior to the injury,” said Westeyn, who gets married tomorrow.
The two-year-old Brain Fitness Center is open to any servicemember who complains of issues with their thinking, memory, decision making or other cognitive skills. So far, 135 servicemembers have used the center to exercise their minds and have come through a referral or they simply walk in.
by Otesa Middleton Miles
http://www.capflyer.com/article/20110708/NEWS17/110709979/-8216-gym-puts-brain-through-the-paces
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