Traumatic Brain Injury Takes Toll on the Victim and the Family

Jack Landskroner

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Traumatic brain injuries take a toll not only on the injured victim but also on the family and care-givers. When a person is injured in a car accident, a fall, a workplace injury or otherwise and experiences a closed head injury and/or brain damage, the recovery is slow and often incomplete. While the patient struggles to adapt, so too do those around the injured person. Uncontrolled emotions, indecision, fits of rage, frustration and confusion are all part of sequelae from a brain injury for a patient, but learning how to cope with these changes in persona are often equally as challenging and difficult for responsible loved ones.

Mike Kaplan, at the Brain Injury News Blog discusses this concern and a recent article in the journal NeuroRehabilitation

After a traumatic brain injury medical professionals tend to focus on the patient but research shows a great impact on family members as well. Studies in the 1970s began to recognize these issues, while other work in the 1980s documented emotional distress that persisted for up to seven years and many studies in the 1990s identified tremendous levels of stress on caregivers and family members.

The stark reality is that a traumatic brain injury is devastating for everyone involved. The injury is not just limited to the injured victim but to all those that play a role in the victims life.