The last thing you expect when going about a normal day is that you will get into an accident or learn that your loved one has been involved in one. But having a good understanding of the leading traumatic brain injury symptoms can save your life or the life of a family member by allowing you to identify a potential TBI and get medical help quickly.
We go over the top 10 symptoms to know below, plus how our law firm can help you go through the legal process of getting financial compensation after yourself or a family member has suffered a TBI.
Understanding the 10 Most Common Traumatic Brain Injury Symptoms
1. Headaches
Following a traumatic brain injury, victims frequently experience headaches that range from mild to severe. In both open and closed head injuries, this could be due to pockets of fluid that collect beneath the skull. With open head injuries, headaches are often exacerbated by post-operative pain.
2. Nausea and Vomiting
In addition to headaches, fluid buildup underneath the skull, after a TBI can also cause nausea and vomiting. Upset stomach following a brain injury is also thought to be related to induced dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system.
3. Ringing of the Ears
If a brain injury moves the small bones in the ear out of place, the victim may experience tinnitus, or ringing of the ears. This might sound like a buzzing or a high-pitched mechanical whine that can be either consistent or intermittent. In some cases, tinnitus can resolve on its own, but it can also be permanent if it persists for more than a year.
4. Poor Balance
Patients that experience tinnitus may also have dizziness and difficulty maintaining their balance even when standing still. This is called vertigo and can make recovering after an accident extremely challenging. Over-the-counter and prescription motion sickness medications can be helpful in reducing symptoms until swelling, fluid accumulation, and other issues can be resolved.
5. Seizures
According to the Epilepsy Foundation, traumatic brain injury and seizures have long been connected. Since bleeding, bruising, and swelling of the brain after an injury can disrupt its electrical activity, approximately 10% of people will experience seizures within a week of the impact. About 1 in every 50 victims will go on to develop post-traumatic epilepsy (PTE).
6. Mood Swings
If the brain’s limbic system is damaged in a TBI, this could result in emotional volatility, anxiety, and depression. The limbic system is located in the center of the brain and includes the hypothalamus, hippocampus, and amygdala. This is where emotions and behavior are controlled, so an injury in this area often causes severe and unpredictable mood swings.
7. Memory Loss
The limbic system also controls how emotions are processed and memories are stored. Individuals with a TBI often have a hard time remembering important details or new information and to compensate, the brain may “imagine” things that never occurred in an attempt to fill memory gaps.
8. Fatigue
The Brain Injury Association of America suggests that many patients report their most difficult symptom following a brain injury is fatigue. Even though the causes of post-TBI fatigue are still largely unclear, it is thought to be the result of the brain having to compensate for areas that were injured and are “offline.”
9. Restlessness
While some TBI victims struggle with fatigue and tiredness after an accident, others are faced with restlessness and psychomotor agitation. A study published in the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation reported that roughly 35% of patients with closed head injuries will experience mental and physical restlessness.
10. Changes in Speech Patterns
The area of the brain that controls language and speech is located behind and above the left eye on the left brain hemisphere. Injuries here can cause slurred speech, difficulty finding the right words, stuttering, and trouble following a spoken conversation.
How to Get Financial Compensation After a Traumatic Brain Injury
When you or someone you love are involved in an accident that results in a traumatic brain injury, Mazow | McCullough, PC can help you hold the at-fault party responsible. We will zealously advocate for you to receive the maximum possible settlement to ensure all of your expenses are covered, and you are fairly compensated for the pain and suffering you have endured.
Call us today to schedule your free initial consultation at (978) 744-8000 or toll-free at (855) 693-9084, or send a message online and we’ll contact you as soon as possible.
