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Tag Archives: effects of head injury
The Lasting Effects from Blows to the Head (Concussion)
Article Title: The Lasting Effects from Blows to the Head (Concussion) Submitted by: Craig Lock Category (key words): head injury, brain injury, effects of head injury, neuro-psychology, medical information, medical resources, brain Web sites: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=la_B005GGMAW4_sr?rh=i%3Abooks&field-author=Craig+Lock http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005GGMAW4 http://goo.gl/vTpjk The submitter’s blogs … Continue reading
LIVING WITH HEAD INJURY: What It Feels Like to Have A Head Injury?
LIVING WITH HEAD INJURY: WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO HAVE A HEAD INJURY?
THE EFFECTS OF HEAD INJURY
There are many misconceptions and a great lack of understanding about this condition, so here is some general information that I hope may be able to help others.
Extreme fatigue. This is my area of greatest difficulty and has shaped my entire adult life (from age 15). I wake up every morning feeling very tired and washed-out. Heavy -headed…and have felt like this all my life. So I do my most demanding “work” involving thinking early in the morning and structure my day around this. I am typing this at 5.45 am. (my “best time of the day”)
Apparently neurosurgeons say that the effects of fatigue can prevent many highly-intelligent head-injured people from functioning fully in the formal work force. Doctors don’t even understand… so how can employers be expected to? Many people assume head injured people to be simply lazy, whereas they are just conserving energy (well how else could they avoid making judgments, when people with head injuries look so normal). That’s why it’s often referred to as “the hidden handicap”.
I get very easily muddled- so break little tasks down. Often wonder what to do with two pieces of paper in my hand. Even putting one piece of paper away, then doing the next.
I always wondered why I never spoke much in class after my accident. I had great difficulty in telling a story (even a short one) geting muddled and confused, so I kept quiet. This is called “mild dypsphasia”. I find that I communicate way better through writing… so that’s what I do.
The only way I can tell a joke or do a short presentation in my working life is by rote and repetition… and this is the method I’ve used all my life. I found it difficult telling long stories and Marie always helped me, so I was very to the point.
I had a closed head injury of what is called the ‘acceleration’ or ‘decelleration’ type. This results in my poor balance, coordination and weakness in my left side. Now let us look at the most significant physical effects of head injury.
I had great difficulty in dealing with shapes and sizes, as evidenced by the tests in Perth measuring visual-spatial ability. But I’m nothing like as bad as Michael Crawford in the British comedy series ‘”Some Mothers do ‘ave ’em”, when he tried fitting things into various holes.
PPS
“Just because a brain has been damaged, does NOT necessarily have to affect the human mind…and so the quality and height of our thoughts!”
“Let’s not what we can’t do stop us from doing what we CAN do…best!”
“There are no perceived limits, just endless possibilities…horizons far and wide”
– craig Continue reading
What Impact Will Moderate or Severe TBI Have on a Person’s Life?
What Impact Will Moderate or Severe TBI Have on a Person’s Life?
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Brainline, cognitive effects, effects of brain injury, effects of head injury, fatigue and aging, TBI
1 Comment
You look fine, BUT…
then “Who Wants to be Normal Anyway!”
‘RUNNING ON EMPTY’: Living with Head Injury: What It Feels Like to Have A Head Injury?
THE EFFECTS OF HEAD INJURY
There are many misconceptions and a great lack of understanding about this condition, so here is some general information that I hope may be able to help others.
Extreme fatigue. This is my area of greatest difficulty and has shaped my entire adult life (from age 15). I wake up every morning feeling very tired and washed-out. Heavy -headed…and have felt like this all my life. So I do my most demanding “work” involving thinking early in the morning and structure my day around this. I am typing this at 5.45 am. (my “best time of the day”)
Apparently neurosurgeons say that the effects of fatigue can prevent many highly-intelligent head-injured people from functioning fully in the formal work force. Doctors don’t even understand… so how can employers be expected to? Many people assume head injured people to be simply lazy, whereas they are just conserving energy (well how else could they avoid making judgments, when people with head injuries look so normal). That’s why it’s often referred to as “the hidden handicap”.
I get very easily muddled- so break little tasks down. Often wonder what to do with two pieces of paper in my hand. Even putting one piece of paper away, then doing the next. Continue reading
Who Wants to be ‘Normal’ Anyway! [Kindle Edition]
Who Wants to be ‘Normal’ Anyway! [Kindle Edition] LIVING WITH HEAD (BRAIN) INJURY (from ‘MY STORY’) * A look into head injury, sometimes known as the “hidden handicap” and the effects on the person (casuality). In this “work” I’ll share … Continue reading
LIVING WITH HEAD INJURY: What It Feels Like to Have A Head Injury?
Article Title: LIVING WITH HEAD INJURY: What It Feels Like to Have A Head Injury? Submitted by: Craig Lock Category (key words): head injury, brain injury, effects of head injury, neuro-psychology, brain, medical information, medical resources, Submitter’s web sites: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005GGMAW4 … Continue reading
LIVING WITH HEAD INJURY: What It Feels Like to Have A Head Injury?
Even specialists, like neuro-surgeons will find it difficult to assess a patient’s prognosis (and their capacity) immediately following an accident, because the brain is such a sensitive area (and it depends which area has been damaged).. It is virtually impossible to ascertain the level they will reach in life, because every individual is so different. Also many subtle yet significant cognitive difficulties may only become apparent with time. However, the degree of a loved family member’s recovery will largely depend on their attitude and degree of motivation.. I believe simple, helpful and especially loving encouragement is the best support you can offer, as my parents did in a very traumatic time for all.
Hang in there in the dark times with faith and things WILL get better
Be happy too
craig
“In the midst of darkness, light exists”
– Mohandas (Mahatma) Gandhi
I “worked” on this article at 5 am (my best time!)…but my “window of opportunity” seems to be getting smaller!
“It’s always darkest before the dawn.”
“Let’s not what we can’t do stop us from doing what we CAN do…best!”
-me
Continue reading
The Lasting Effects from Blows to the Head (Concussion)
Article Summary: The brain damage sustained after a concussion is not always immediately apparent…and the effects can be long lasting A blow to the head that knocks a person unconscious can result in widespread loss of brain tissue …and this is why some people who suffer head injuries are never quite the same.
*
“Compare it (your head) to a jelly in a bowl. The bowl is the skull – a strong, protective container – and the jelly (the brain) is nestled within. The skull is able to withstand many types of blows; but the brain is vulnerable to sudden swirling or rotating movements. Shake the bowl and see what happens to the jelly.”
– Don Mackie, Emergency Specialist, Hutt Hospital, Wellington, New Zealand
Different mental abilities are located in different parts of the brain, so a head injury can damage some, but not necessarily all, skills such as speed of thought, memory, understanding, concentration, solving problems and using language. The cognitive effects of a brain injury affect the way a person thinks, learns and remembers. Brain damage leads to difficulty in making decisions, processing information quickly, problem solving and especially coming up with different solutions in a pressured environment of stress. (So I most like writing and “dealing with people” in a relaxed environment!).
The more severe the injury, the more brain tissue is lost. “There is more damage and it is more widespread than we had expected,” said Dr Brian Levine of the Rotman Research Institute and the University of Toronto, whose new study appears in the journal ‘Neurology’. Dr Levine studied brain scans taken from 69 traumatic brain injury patients whose head injuries ranged from mild to moderate or severe. Canadian researchers ran a computer analysis of these images and found that even patients with mild brain injuries with no apparent scarring had less brain volume. “When you have a blow to the head, it causes a neuro-chemical reaction in the brain cells that leads to cell death,” Dr Levine said. “The more cells that die, the less tissue you have. The amount of tissue loss seems to be related to the severity of the injury – how long the person was knocked out.”
Brain injury may prompt one area of the brain to be “reassigned” and take over the function of another. Professor Richard Faull from the University of Auckland (New Zealand ) explains simply: “Think of it as a sort of emergency breakdown service (‘We Fix Neurons — Fast!’). It is literally like a little highway; but instead of going directly from Auckland to Wellington, it goes to Whangarei, to Taranaki, then to Wellington! The route is highly distorted and there may be all sorts of reasons for that.”
Continue reading
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