My husband had a TBI in June 2006. He is 49 and we live in England. He was in a bar when a drunk man saw him dancing "too close" to his girlfriend and got angry. He punched him twice, the second punch knocked him to the floor and left him unconscious, then he kicked him in the head.

My husband was in hospital for 5 days and it felt like I died a thousand times over at his bedside. He had a skull fracture, a bleed on the brain, temporal shear injury and inner ear damage. Fortunately the bleed stabilised quickly, although the inner ear injury has resulted in permanent deafness in one ear and balance problems.

He was sent home to recover and he spent most of the time sleeping. Headaches, balance problems, loss of taste and smell, frustration and memory loss are the lingering problems. He is dealing with these things on a day to day basis and is still improving.

He is only now realising just how serious his injuries were and that they were life-changing. The man who assaulted him was sentenced to 6 years in jail for the attack and I think that brought us both some closure. It also helped him realise that it was more than just the "bump on the head" he used to call it.

Every day when I wake up next to him, I thank God for the fact that he is here. It could have been far worse. Now we are looking to the future, knowing that things won't be quite how we thought they would be, but with a marriage that is stronger than ever because "in sickness and in health" we are survivors.