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Living With Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic Brain Injury Recovery and Realities

When someone suffers a traumatic brain injury, it’s common for that person’s loved ones to rally around him or her in any and every way possible. People will come to the hospital to visit; they will help that person’s family by babysitting or brining food over… A number of things can happen that remind everyone of the good that exists in people. Unfortunately, and despite people’s best intentions, living with a traumatic brain injury and TBI recovery is difficult in ways that people who have not been through it can hardly imagine. The person who survived the brain injury may go through some behavioral and personality changes that are impossible to foresee and almost as difficult to contextualize. The traumatic brain injury lawyers at Gomez Trial Attorneys would like to provide a bit of insight into what living with a traumatic brain injury is like below.

Traumatic Brain Injury Recovery – Don’t Dwell On What’s Lost

Unfortunately, people who suffer a traumatic brain injury, and their loved ones tend to focus immediately on abilities or skills that have been lost as a result of the trauma. These losses can be temporary or permanent in nature, and if temporary the duration of these losses can be impossible to define. What all of this leads to is a growing sense of uncertainty on the part of the person fighting for TBI recovery and his or her support system. Uncertainty in this regard breeds stress, and stress can lead to both internal and external conflict.

Clearly, someone who is fighting through a TBI recovery and his or her support system will need to take an accounting of what has been lost in order to put together goals for that recovery’s progress. However, people in these positions should not dwell on these losses or make them the focal point of every moment of every day. Instead, progress should be measured in small increments and positives should be stressed as much as possible. Neither the person dealing with TBI recovery nor his or her support system should concern themselves with timeframes, as this will only lead to negative emotions and perhaps negative reactions.

Traumatic Brain Injury Recovery – Maximizing Gains and Efficiency of Focus

Every traumatic brain injury is different. Every patient is different. Every prognosis is different. All of this means that every set of goals and measurement of progress is different. For many people dealing with TBI recovery, there will be some skills that will be lost permanently and others that can be regained over time. Every patient, his or her doctor and his or her support system will need to objectively define which skills can be regained and which ones cannot. Doing so will allow the patient to focus on those recoverable skills and not waste time and build frustration working towards regaining skills that will never be regained. This will allow for a system of maximizing gains and promoting positivity.

Stigmas Attached to Traumatic Brain Injuries

Sadly, the recent focus on traumatic brain injuries as a public health problem has also led to the development of certain stigmas that are attached to patients who are fighting through a TBI recovery. Many of these stigmas exist even though there is no malicious intent whatsoever present in those who are unknowingly furthering them. Examples of these stigmas include:

• The tendency to minimize the injury, since many TBIs cannot actually be seen
• Thinking that the TBI patient is simply dealing with “emotional problems”
• Assuming that a brain injury survivor simply “must be better by now, as it’s been a long time”
• Thinking that someone who suffers from a brain injury is simply “not right in the head”

If you notice any of these statements, feelings, or opinions, one way that you can support a person who is fighting through a traumatic brain injury is to help those people understand the scope, breadth, and gravity of the challenge before that patient.

Living With Traumatic Brain Injury Resources – Additional Information

The traumatic brain injury attorneys at Gomez Trial Attorneys have a very deep perspective when it comes to head trauma and TBI recovery. This perspective comes from both professional and personal experiences and struggles. We’d like to provide anyone who needs it with resources that can help them deepen their own perspectives when possible. As such, you’ll find the following information on the following pages:

• Traumatic Brain Injury and Family Members – TBI recovery can be very difficult for loved ones of the person who has been injured. Every family member wants to provide as much support to the brain injury survivor as possible but knowing what to do, what to say and when to do or say these things can be difficult.
• The Cost of a Traumatic Brain Injury – Even though every traumatic brain injury situation is different, there are certain costs and losses that the brain injury survivor and his or her family should be prepared to face. These losses generally concern medical costs, lost income, and several other financial challenges that will present themselves.
• Traumatic Brain Injury Diagnostic Tools – One of the scariest aspects of the traumatic brain injury problem is the number of people who never have them diagnosed. Way too many people are currently living with a traumatic brain injury and do not realize it. Unless the head trauma is correctly diagnosed, no recovery is possible.
• Treatments for Traumatic Brain Injury – The world of medical science is working tirelessly to advance its knowledge of the treatments for a traumatic brain injury. Progress is being made at an exciting pace, and here you’ll find the latest information regarding what types of treatments are being tried, which treatments are showing promise and the like.

Living With Traumatic Brain Injury – Help Fight Back

One of the best ways anyone can help a brain injury survivor and his or her family is to help them understand that there are options for fighting back if that person was harmed because of the faulty actions of someone else. If you or a loved one is facing this difficult situation, for this reason, contact traumatic brain injury attorneys who have been fighting successfully for people forced into this difficult situation for several years. Contact Gomez Trial Attorneys today to schedule a free initial consultation.