Jason and Meghan Learn How to Advocate for their Family and Other Veterans

Experiences of loss, recovery and unexpected benefits often weave into the story of veterans with traumatic brain injury. Jason Palmer's life has a mix of all three. Jason was in Iraq for a span of eight months. During that time he was exposed to blast injuries, but the IED explosion he remembers most sent the vehicle he was riding in up in the air. Everyone was ejected, and he was told later that he pulled another soldier to safety. He doesn't remember any of the events of that day.

"We have an interesting story," said Jason's wife, Meghan. The two connected through Match.com. PFC Picker, a friend in Jason's unit, kept pushing him to write a profile for the website after his divorce. Meghan had decided to start a correspondence with a soldier through the same site. Once they started writing, they soon realized they had both lived in Oregon and even had many friends in common. They had attended the same events, though they never met. There was also a sad connection. In one of her emails, Meghan mentioned to Jason that her good friend PFC Thomas Tucker was ambushed, tortured and killed in an attack. Sadly, Jason recognized Thomas' name right away—his unit received the radio call about the attack.

Jason was also under fire, and after surviving one large blast, she noticed his emails weren't the same. When Jason was headed back to Ft. Hood for a six-week leave, Meghan decided to meet him at the airport as a surprise. It was Veterans Day 2006, and their meeting began a romance that culminated in marriage. "We've been through a lot over the last several years. I had headaches and stayed in a constant state of high alert. It was a year before I was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury and post traumatic stress disorder," Jason said.

The couple learned about Operation TBI Freedom (OTF) at a focus group they attended. Along with all the physical challenges, they faced debt related to Jason's inability to work. "Meghan hoped Jason could get some help learning how to advocate for his needs," said Fredia Johnson, the Palmers' OTF care coordinator. "They wanted to learn all they could about brain injury, so I assisted their attendance at the Brain Injury Conference in Vail." She was also able to send them to the Road for Recovery Conference, where Meghan hoped Jason could meet others with brain injury, and The Sun Valley Adaptive Sports Ski Weekend.

Operation TBI Freedom focuses on helping people with brain injury make a smooth transition from military to civilian life. The Palmers had a chance to attend cultural events and parties for veterans where they connected to other families facing challenges similar to their own. They received an invitation to appear as guests on a radio show for veterans, and the appearance went so well they were given their own show, called "Walking a Walk" that helps veterans and family members find resources and cope with life changes.

The couple continues to work on behalf of other veterans while managing their own day to day ups and downs. "We go to counseling, and that really helps us communicate," Jason noted. Meghan leads a spousal support group for the Brain Injury Association of Colorado. The two also shared their story at a recent Denver Options Board Retreat, and they sat on a panel at the National Brain Injury Employment Conference hosted by Denver Options' CTAT training program. With help from OTF, Meghan recently attended a caregiver's conference in Nashville.

OTF continues to offer support to the couple as Jason explores education options through the GI Bill and gets support from Vocational Rehabilitation. Meghan is thinking about returning to school as well; she hopes to create a program to help homeless veterans. Despite the challenges ahead, the Palmers look forward to a positive future. "We have each other, and we have had lots of opportunities to help others while getting our own lives back on track," Meghan said.