Injury victims who suffer a broken bone, a burn, or a serious wound deal with significant and obvious pain and limitations. Their friends and loved ones can see visible evidence of the injury, disability and pain. Serious concussions or mild traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are equally significant injuries, but with an important difference – traumatic brain injuries are not always immediately visible or obvious to anyone other than the person living with traumatic brain injury. Traumatic brain injury victims often suffer from the skepticism, doubt or lack of understanding of their friends, family members, co-workers, and even physicians. TBI victims can appear outwardly healthy while inwardly they suffer from pain, neurological disorders, light or sound sensitivity, balance issues, memory issues, cognitive difficulties and changes in emotions.
When doctors use the term “minor traumatic brain injury”, they are referring to an injury that is not “minor” in the way that term is normally used. Victims of a minor traumatic brain injury often have significant disturbances in how their brain works. Early symptoms include headache, dizziness or vertigo, lack of awareness of surroundings, nausea, memory dysfunction, and/or vomiting. Later symptoms may include irritability and a low tolerance for frustration, persistent low-grade headaches, poor attention, inability to concentrate, lightheadedness, anxiety or depressed mood, ringing in the years or tinnitus, light sensitivity, sound sensitivity, difficulty focusing vision, short term memory loss, and excessive fatigue. Victims often have learning difficulties and communication difficulties.
Recovery from a mild traumatic brain injury is a slow process. Often, even the doctors cannot determine how completely a patient will recover until 18 to 24 months after the injury. Moreover, recovery from a mild traumatic brain injury is not a steady, consistent process. Victims will have good days and bad days. This is a normal part of the recovery process.
Victims of a mild traumatic brain injury will almost always require more rest. Over-stimulating the brain, getting back to work too quickly, or too much motion or activity may delay the healing process. Certain medications and drugs can negatively affect a traumatic brain injury victim or may delay the healing process. Even drugs such as alcohol, caffeine or nicotine can affect the patient differently after a traumatic brain injury.
If you or a family member is living with traumatic brain injury suffered as a result of the wrongdoing or carelessness of another, you should consider whether you need the assistance of a lawyer. If you need legal assistance, we are glad to help. Our firm has worked with many brain injury victims and understands the unique difficulties of these cases. We understand the difficulties our clients face and hope to help guide them through the process while focusing on making sure they get the medical care and treatment they need.