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Facilitator brings personal perspective to brain injuries

By Dan Roherty
Oshkosh Herald (oshkoshherald.com) - March 5, 2025

Mike Gephart’s ongoing journey to reinvent his cognitive life while gaining new perspectives on his personal identity after a traumatic brain injury is something he now shares as facilitator of a local support group.

“There’s an eternal struggle between my old me and new me,” Gephart said as he described his recovery path that’s unique to him yet similar to those of others in Oshkosh’s Brain Injury Support Group. “The people closest to me, to the old me, can either join me in my struggle or be part of it.”

Intended for survivors of brain injuries—acquired or traumatic—the monthly group invites individuals and their families every third Thursday at 3 p.m. to NAMI Oshkosh offices at 525 N. Main St.

The group previously met at Aurora Medical Center but NAMI now hosts the space and helps promote the discussions.

“The support group’s goal is to help everyone involved see a good way down their new paths to eternity,” said Gephart, who recently took over the group’s facilitator role.

Michael Anasthesiou led the group previously and along with Victoria Foston have kept the therapeutic discussions going for the past 25 years.

Gephart was in a fatal three-vehicle accident in March 2014 caused by an inattentive driver hitting another vehicle from behind at 61 mph and pushing it head-on into Gephart’s. Pronounced dead at the scene, he was revived twice on the way to the hospital where he was put on life support.

A ThedaCare neurological triage team treated him for nine days as his brain reinvented enough neuropathways for his autonomic nervous system to make his lungs take a second “first breath of life” and regain consciousness. Becoming cognizant again was Gephart’s next challenge.

“Cognizance is an entirely different thing and is the next step of existence in this reality. Just like when a baby cries uncontrollably and gets wrapped up with a diaper and a bottle until they can hold it themselves,” he said. “A 40-year-old man wakes up with a feeding tube to be removed and gets strapped down to his bed and seated until he realizes where he is, how he got there and what life is.”

A ThedaCare neurological triage team treated him for nine days as his brain reinvented enough neuropathways for his autonomic nervous system to make his lungs take a second “first breath of life” and regain consciousness. Becoming cognizant again was Gephart’s next challenge.

“Cognizance is an entirely different thing and is the next step of existence in this reality. Just like when a baby cries uncontrollably and gets wrapped up with a diaper and given a bottle until they can hold it themselves,” he said. “A 40-year-old man wakes up with a feeding tube to be removed and gets strapped down to his bed and sedated until he realizes where he is, how he got there and what he is.”

Nurses had a three-question test for Gephart every time they visited: Are you married? Do you have kids? Can pigs fly? Saying yes to the first two questions was accurate, but when he said yes to the third, it indicated he wasn’t in touch with reality.

“It took 14 days for me to reply no,” he recalled. “I often joke about that and say, ‘If they’d known what a Pink Floyd fan I was, a different third question might have proven my cognizance sooner.’”

Anastheiou eventually persuaded Gephart to take a psycho-neurological assessment after initially resisting that path and stopped joining the support group—something Gephart came to regret when his recovery slowed and his long-term disability coverage was canceled.

“I’ve found this support group to be full of people that get my stories,” Gephart said. “And likewise, there are stories that actually interest me because they’re second perspectives of the reality we all still share air in.

“The post-cognizance journey is the one I’m still on today.”

Acquired brain injuries (ABI) are those caused since birth such as a fall, accident, tumor, or stroke. Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) result from trauma to the head. Everyone else involved in a person’s brain injury recovery journey—family, friends, and caretakers—are welcome to meetings regardless of whether the survivor is in attendance.

Bob Poeschl, NAMI’s new executive director after Mary Jannes led the organization for the last eight years, said they recently offered the group its space as a meeting venue.

“NAMI believes that peer support groups like Oshkosh Brain Injury Support Group are vital to helping individuals build support networks and foundations that can improve their lives,” Poeschl said. “This is a good fit for our entities, as sometimes—but not always—brain injury and mental health issues can overlap. This allows us to work collaboratively to raise awareness about brain injuries and mental health issues.”

Oshkosh NAMI also welcomes a Family Support Group and Peer Support Group that meet twice a month.

Gephart said the group is there for people after taking all the necessary medical steps to get the help needed.

“Our goal is to help others find and take the next step down their new path.”