Helping Others Overcome Obstacles

When Cosmopolitan decided to write a story about women and concussions, the largest-selling young women's magazine in the world contacted Daneen Brooks. She's the Accessibility Coordinator in Onondaga Community College's Office of Accessibility Resources. Brooks has the unique perspective of someone who continues to deal with a traumatic brain injury while helping others in similar situations. "I don't want what happened to me to happen to anyone else. I want people to know there is hope, they're not going crazy, their symptoms are real, and there are solutions."

Brooks life changed forever on a clear, crisp autumn day in October of 2006. She was headed to work, looking forward to an open house OCC was hosting for prospective students later that morning, when she was involved in a car accident. She struck her head on the dashboard but had no visible signs of injury. She was transported to the hospital, examined briefly, and sent home to rest. 

Prior to the accident, Brooks was very athletic. She was a member of the Track & Field team at Jamesville-DeWitt High School, and running every morning and night remained part of her daily routine well after she graduated college and began working at OCC. After the accident, her life became dominated by concussion-related symptoms such as headaches, difficulties with concentration, memory, balance, mood, and sleep. Despite her seemingly obvious symptoms, she was never properly diagnosed. "I was definitely treated differently because I am a woman."

The symptoms were so overwhelming Brooks was taken to the hospital by ambulance four times, including once from OCC. "They put me on a gurney in the hallway. A student was there and called me 'professor.' The entire nursing station looked up and all of a sudden I got help. My privilege showed through an intersectional lens as a black female with a disability."

Brooks road to recovery began that day, five years after the accident. As her condition improved she became active in related organizations such as the Brain Injury Coalition of Central New York which she is now President of. She also became a board member of a national organization, PINK Concussions, which focuses on pre-injury education and post-injury medical care for women and girls with brain injuries.

Through social media, Brooks connected with Katherine Snedaker, CEO and Founder of PINK Concussions. Snedaker invited Brooks to speak at a conference of young doctors and people going into health professions, and she took advantage of the opportunity. "I told them my story and how I wanted things to change in the medical field. It was a great opportunity to teach medical students and young professionals to listen and be mindful across cultures."

It was also through PINK Concussions that Brooks connected with Hannah Chubb who wrote the story for Cosmopolitan Magazine. "We talked back in March for an hour on Zoom, and then she scheduled a second hour with me. We had great conversations. It had been so long since we spoke I wasn't expecting to see a story."

The beginning of a new semester brings Brooks new opportunities to help students in OCC's Office of Accessibility Resources. She's at peace with where her journey has taken her, and feels fortunate to be where she is. "I'm so blessed to be doing what I'm doing. I feel I can connect with anyone because I listen and I'm present. I know this is my calling. This is where I'm supposed to be."