ARTICLE: Brain Injury the Invisible Disability

By: Paul Steven

A traumatic brain injury is potentially one the most devastating disabilities. It not only affects the person suffering from the injury but can turn whole families upside down.

The range and severity of problems arising from a brain injury will vary significantly from person to person because every person's brain injury varies in the extent and location of the damage. Some of the affects of a brain injury are not immediately obvious and only become apparent as time progresses.

The following are pointers to look out for in a persons make-up if you feel they may be suffering from a brain injury after a nasty knock or have suffered a serious injury.

Cognitive changes
A brain injury can cause cognitive changes which affect the individuals ability to learn new things, to work and to be able to interact socially.

Lack of insight
Individuals with a brain injury can have great difficulty seeing and accepting changes to their thinking and behaviour. The individual may deny the effects of the injury and have unreasonable expectations about what they are able to do.

Memory problems
There may be problems in remembering people's names, passing on messages, or recalling details read in a book or a newspaper. They may forget what they are doing from one session to the next. Memory problems may cause the individual great difficulties in learning new things.

Poor concentration
A very common outcome is an inability to concentrate and to become easily distracted from what they are doing. This is usually because they are having difficulty concentrating.

Slowed responses
An individual with a brain injury may now be slower to answer questions or to perform tasks and may have difficulty in keeping up in conversations. Their capacity to respond quickly in an emergency may also be diminished.

Problem-solving
Individuals with a brain injury might have difficulty solving problems and planning and organising things they have to do. They may encounter trouble with open-ended decision-making and complex tasks need to be broken down into a step-by-step fashion.

Irritability
Individuals may also have a very low tolerance for frustration and can become easily agitated and may lose their temper quickly.

Socially inappropriate behaviour
People with a brain injury may no longer know how to act or behave in in social situations. This can be incredibly difficult for families to understand and cope with, particularly as they may no longer recognise their loved ones and not understand there behaviour.

Communication
A wide range of social skills may be affected by an a traumatic brain injury including the ability to have conversations, to interpret and respond to social cues, to show interest in others, to use humour appropriately, and to regulate the volume and tone of voice.

Depression
Depression in an individual with brain injury is a very common emotional consequence that usually comes some time after the injury. Signs of depression include lack of motivation, loss of sexual drive, sleep disturbance and tearfulness.

Headaches
There are multiple sources of head and neck pain, both inside and outside the head. Headaches arising from a brain injury can be caused by a number of reasons.

Visual problems
Vision and visual functioning is often adversely affected by brain injury. Some of the more common visual systems problems include double vision, rapid eye movement and near-sightedness.

Hearing problems
Hearing problems can occur for a number of reasons, particularly when the inner ear and/or temporal lobes have been damaged.

A traumatic brain injury is often called the invisible disability. As there are frequently no outward physical signs of a disability, effects such as fatigue, lack of initiation, anger, mood swings and egocentricity may be seen simply as bad personality traits by others. It is easy to see why a traumatic brain injury can be such a devastating disability, especially when the disability is not obvious to others.

Davis Law Group
2101 Fourth Avenue
Suite 630
Seattle, WA 98121

Toll Free: (800) 883-0265
Phone: (206) 727-4000