Imagine if one of your relatives disappeared into thin air.
You search and hope for their return for five years, and then one day, they simply stroll back into town as if nothing happened.
You’re stunned, overjoyed, and shocked that they’re alive. You’re certain this is the same person you lost all those years ago.
But they say it’s not them.
This just happened to a Port Alberni family.
Brandon Cairney disappeared at age 31, and was found alive and well in Burnaby a few weeks ago. Fingerprints confirm the man is indeed Cairney. The only catch is, he insists this isn’t him.
This naturally leads to a lot of speculation. Was he converted by a cult? Abducted by aliens?
The imagination runs wild. But the answer to this mystery is actually pretty straightforward. And it’s a lived experience for more people than you’d think.
Throughout high school, Cairney was a star athlete. He played basketball, soccer, and competed in track & field. He also reportedly had a huge love of art and music. Overall, he was a well-rounded kid with a lot of life ahead of him.
After graduating, though, he was in a car crash. He suffered a brain injury that changed his whole life.
His emotions were magnified, and the injury affected his short-term memory. It left him with constant headaches, and he was unable to keep a job leading up to his disappearance.
He would often go for long walks to help him relax. When he disappeared, no one knew where he could have gone.
Now, he says he’s a completely different person. An American with a new name. He’s been living in the States for the past five years.
Yes, this sounds wild. But it happens. Brain injuries can cause a lot of different symptoms, and dissociation can be one of them.
Brainstreams is an online education and networking site for the Brain Injury Community in BC and beyond. “Often memory may be impacted, especially short-term memory,” they say.
“The person may have difficulty with judgment and decision-making. The person may perseverate or get ‘stuck’ on a particular topic or activity. There might be some disorientation and confusion around date, time of day, and location. The person may also exhibit impulsivity—acting before they think things through”
Neurologists call brain injuries the ‘silent epidemic.’ In BC, between 21 and 38 people get a brain injury each day.
So while this story might sound like a soap opera, regular people can probably relate. It sounds similar to the lives of many folks and their families who deal with brain injuries in BC.
If you’d like to hear the full story, you can tune into Laura Palmer’s update from the family on her podcast, Island Crime.
