Traumatic Brain Injuries cause challenges on many levels. Concerns are divided into the physical, cognitive, psychosocial, and behavioral-emotional levels.
A brain injury has long-term effects. It isn't temporary like a broken arm or sprained ankle. New research is showing that new brain cells may be able to reproduce but this research is only in the beginning stages. The following symptoms are quite severe but individuals with mild TBI may show some of these characteristics to a lesser degree.
If you know someone with a TBI, you are likely to see the following physical symptoms.
- Problems with walking, coordination, and the use of the limbs or body due to loss of muscle control and/or muscle weakness; paralysis; disrupted balance control
- Lack of strength, endurance, easily fatigued
- Problems seeing, hearing, smelling and tasting
- Difficulty eating and swallowing
- Difficulty speaking clearly
- Seizures
- Loss of Bowel and bladder control
- Loss of feeling and sensation
- Headaches
There are also cognitive concerns:
- Problems with attention, concentration, distractibility
- Problems with memory, both short and long term
- Executive functions: difficulty planning, initiating or following through on tasks
- Difficulty retrieving informaiton
- Difficulty learning new information and difficulty generalizing learning
- Slower thought processes
- More easily overstimulated; diminished tolerance to stimuli
- Problems with sequencing, organizing and prioritizing
- Inability to say what is meant or difficulty understanding others
- Difficulty with language/communication (reading and spelling)
- Difficulty with problem-solving; impaired judgement and reasoning
- Trouble following directions
- Concrete thinking; diminished abstract reasoning
- Difficulties with orientation
- Inability to manage time
And, there are the psychosocial and behavior-emotional concerns:
- Changes in personality
- Impulsivity
- Irritability; diminished frustration tolerance
- Restlessness, hyperactivity
- Depression, withdrawal, low motivation
- Anxiety
- Anger, aggression, verbal outbursts
- Lack of energy; fatigue and problems with endurance
- Lack of energy; fatigue and problems with endurance
- Rigid, inflexible
- Changes in control of temper, rapid mood swing
- Denial of disability
- Lack of self-esteem
- Apathy/Euphoria
- Problems controlling behavior in social situations
- Poor social judgement
- Poor social interaction
- Absence of sensitivity to others which leads to problems forming and maintaining relationships
Families often bring home a family member from the hospital after a car accident and wonder if they brought home a stranger. Next time we will discuss the problems this may cause in the classroom and some strategies for intervention.
Read more about TBI Statistics and Trauma by Sam Vaknin.
Read previous articles on Educational Issues.
Copyright article 2006 Barbara Pytel. All Rights Reserved.
