After someone suffers a traumatic brain injury (TBI), perhaps in a car accident, family members may say that the person seems to have changed. Maybe their personality has changed. Maybe they just never seem like their old self again, even as they progress in their physical recovery from their injuries.
The reality is that a TBI can often cause long-term and short-term changes in an injured individual. It’s important to understand what complications or limitations these can create as the person heals and recovers. Below are a few examples of potential changes that someone may experience after suffering a brain injury.
Cognitive challenges
Some people have trouble with thinking skills and cognitive abilities. They may struggle with making choices or understanding information that would’ve been easy for them to grasp before they got hurt. This may cause them to feel frustrated, because they can tell that those connections just aren’t being made.
Emotional changes
Suffering from a brain injury can be a very emotional experience, and a patient may have more trouble controlling their emotions after their injury. In fact, there is sometimes a link between depression and a TBI. Other times, family members will say that a loved one has become more irritable or aggressive.
Impulse control
A similar concern is impulse control, which may decrease after a TBI. Someone may not stop to think before saying something or they may just be more likely to act on instinct. This can cause them to make mistakes or poor choices, and it may sometimes seem like they are acting irrationally.
Loss of specific skills
Finally, it’s important to note that some people lose specific skills because a certain part of their brain has been injured. They may struggle with mobility, for example, or with their memory. Every situation is different because both the area of the brain that is injured and the severity of that injury play a big role in how TBI symptoms manifest.
Seeking financial compensation
For someone living with a brain injury, life may never be the same. They may also be facing financial challenges, like lost earning capacity and extensive medical bills. It’s important that they know how to seek financial compensation from the party responsible for the harm in question accordingly.