Media
Everything you need to cover Kris Picker and her memoir, After The Impact. Photos, bios and the media release are free to use with credit.
Story angles
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You look fine. Your brain isn't.
Kris looked recovered to everyone around her, but inside she didn't recognise her own mind. She talks openly about the part of brain injury nobody warns you about: the fatigue, the identity loss, the grief for your old self, and the guilt of "at least you survived". A strong fit for health, wellbeing and lifestyle features, and for Brain Injury Awareness coverage.
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The beach, the board, and rebuilding who you are.
More than 15 years after a traumatic brain injury, Kris strapped on a yellow helmet and paddled out for the first time. Now the ocean is her world. A visual, hopeful story about starting again at any age, with striking surf photography available. Ideal for weekend features, TV and lifestyle pieces.
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Port Kembla author launches memoir at Port Beirut, 13 December.
Local author Kris Picker launches her memoir, After The Impact, at Port Beirut, 38 Wentworth St, Port Kembla, on Sunday 13 December from 3pm to 5pm. Books will be for sale and signed on the day, and the community is welcome. Media are welcome to attend, photograph and interview Kris on the day.
Bios
Kris Picker is a traumatic brain injury survivor, author, coach and speaker from Port Kembla. Her parents were told if she recovered, she'd be severely brain injured. More than 15 years later, she learned to surf. Her memoir, After The Impact, is about losing herself and finding her way back.
Kris Picker is a traumatic brain injury survivor, author, coach and speaker from Port Kembla, NSW. Her brain injury happened while she was living in England. While she lay in a coma, her parents were told that if she recovered, she'd be severely brain injured. What followed was the part nobody warns you about: looking fine on the outside while feeling lost on the inside. Rebuilding her identity took years. More than 15 years after the accident, Kris paddled out for her first surf, and the ocean has been her world ever since. Her memoir, After The Impact, is an honest account of the injury, the invisible struggle and the long road back to herself. Today Kris coaches survivors who are asking "Am I still me?", drawing on her lived experience and her work as a gut health coach. She speaks to workplaces, health teams and communities about invisible injury.
Photos
Free to use for coverage of Kris and After The Impact. Please credit photographers where listed.
Need a larger file for print? Email hello@krispicker.com.au.
Media release
After The Impact: a true story of losing yourself to an invisible injury, and finding your way back
Port Kembla author Kris Picker will launch her memoir, After The Impact, at Port Beirut on Sunday 13 December, from 3pm to 5pm.
After a traumatic brain injury while living in England, Kris spent time in a coma, and her parents were told that if she recovered, she would be severely brain injured. She did recover, but the hardest part was the one nobody could see: looking fine on the outside while feeling lost on the inside.
After The Impact is Kris's honest account of that invisible injury, the identity loss nobody warns you about, and the long road back to herself. The story ends somewhere she never expected. More than 15 years after the accident, Kris paddled out for her first surf, wearing a yellow helmet.
"So many people with a brain injury are told they look fine, and they quietly wonder if they're still the same person," Kris said. "I wrote this book for them, and for the families who love them. I want them to know they're not alone, and that it's never too late to find yourself again."
Kris now coaches brain injury survivors, speaks to workplaces and health teams about invisible injury, and has created a free workbook, "Am I Still Me?", for survivors and their families.
The launch is free and open to everyone. Books will be for sale on the day and Kris will sign copies. It is a BYO event, held in the back courtyard at Port Beirut, 38 Wentworth St, Port Kembla.
Interview
A starting point for interviews, podcasts and radio.
Media contact
Available for interviews, photos and features, in person in the Illawarra or by phone and video.
Email: hello@krispicker.com.au
Phone: 0412 844 527
Instagram: @krispicker
Website: krispicker.com.au