Around 1,700,000 Americans suffer from a traumatic brain injury each year, according to the National Library of Medicine.

One New Yorker who has dealt with debilitating brain injuries is now bringing awareness to them.

Lisa Sibley went to the hospital in March 2012 for what would become her first of seven brain surgeries.

“Sometimes, people with brain injuries, they look like they're OK, but sometimes they're not inside,” Sibley said.  

Sibley was born with a condition called Chiari malformation, which occurs when the skull is too small for the brain. She said this never caused her problems during her life until she fell in 2012. She needed surgery to shift her brain back in place.

“The doctors told me it was going to be excruciatingly painful, but I’d only be four days in the hospital, and that part of the surgery did go well,” Sibley said.

What was supposed to be a four-day hospital stay turned into eight months, with three of those in intensive care, as Sibley had contracted bacterial meningitis.

“That just started to eat away at my brain,” Sibley said. “They didn't know if I was going to make it the next 12 hours, but I did. I couldn't talk. I couldn't walk. I couldn't function. I couldn't think. I had to relearn how to do everything.”

Sibley also said she never regained memory of the first 40 years of her life.

“I have four children. I didn't remember having all those four children. I don't remember giving birth. I don't remember them growing up. So, it's made life very difficult in a lot of ways. I’ve lost a lot of the bonds that I had. They just weren't there,” Sibley said. “It was a very difficult time, but I was given a second chance.”

“Second Chances” would stick with Sibley to become the name of a support group she founded for people dealing with the impacts of brain injuries. It is open to anyone who has dealt with brain injuries and meets twice a month in Highland Falls.

“I was just struggling with everything that I was dealing with, and I was trying to find a support group to talk to,” Sibley said. “It's just a really comforting, comforting group.”

She recently began hosting "Happy Brain Days" to raise awareness for brain injuries with activities, such as arts and crafts, to keep the brain happy. Sibley also gives away donated bicycle helmets after seeing others in the hospital dealing with brain injuries from riding bikes.

“When I got out of the hospital, I wanted to make it my mission just to hand out as many bike helmets as possible for free, just to try to protect any child from having to go through what I’ve gone through,” Sibley said.

Sibley cares for children each day, as she babysits for her friends’ kids. She said it’s difficult for her to hold a steady job due to the lasting effects of her brain injuries.

“They've given me purpose," Sibley said. "They give me a reason some days to wake up when it's hard to wake up."