Blog on Brain Injury

[barny1]

Hi all,

This is the link to my blog series on topics concerning brain injury. Here is my first blog: mybraininjurysite.wordpress...

As an aside, I'm running a half marathon at this year's Great North Run on September 11th to raise much-needed funds for The Brain and Spinal Injury Clinic (BASIC) who experts in rebuilding lives following brain injury. Please consider donating whatever you can by following the link to my Justgiving page. justgiving.com/fundraising/...

Here's the blog in full:

Brain injury or injured brain?

What does ‘brain injury’ mean? A term describing an injury that has occurred to the brain or a neurological condition resulting from an injury to the brain? In truth, the term is used when describing both scenarios – event and condition. So what? I hear you say. But, an injury is a finite phenomena with defined healing stages and timeframes. Once an injury has physically healed, it’s no longer an injury and at the very most it would be described as an old injury. So, why is the term applied to people who may have been brain injured five, the or even fifty years ago?

Among the brain injury community, the common thing people say to describe their condition is “I have a brain injury”, they can be forgiven but the phrase doesn’t do them or their condition any justice, unless they’re lying on a hospital bed. Would someone who broke their leg in childhood today say “I have a leg injury”? One cannot imagine. However, this is the only piece of rhetoric people have at their disposal to describe their state after having suffered trauma to the brain. It’s a catch-all phrase that applies equally to anyone who suffered brain damage of any description since birth from blunt-force trauma to tumour or even stroke.

Tell your doctor you’ve “had a brain injury” and they’re equally as puzzled as anyone else, tell them that it happened fifty years ago and they’re even more so. The invisible nature of the vast majority of consequences due to brain injury does no one any favours. It’s a very personal experience and not one that is easy to put into words (especially if your word-finding ability is impaired!) nor felt and understood by others. People only have appearances to go off, if you appear miserable you might have a mood disorder but you may also just be annoyed you missed your bus that morning or had to skip breakfast.

And so, the phrase is used to describe away conditions that have resulted from a brain event from epilepsy, to pain, to limb weakness, etc. It isn’t so hard for others fathom afflictions that have a physical nature, but what about those that are psychological, but have no less of an impairing impact on someone’s life, yet because they’re so, they’re difficult for others to grasp.

Take going shopping which can be an immensely complex psychological process to someone after having had a brain event when the very processes that non-injured people take for granted can go offline. You decide to buy a new outfit, there are several outlets where you may buy clothing, some offer cheaper deals than others, others offer superior quality, some are easier to travel to, others are more difficult to travel to but offer more choice. When you eventually decide on where to go, you then have to compare several styles, colours, patterns only to find they haven’t got your size. So, you try the next shop, trying to remember what you liked about the clothing so that you may find something similar, but they don’t have anything quite as appealing, however have items on sale, which may be worth considering and a shop assistant who asks you, “do you need any help?”. At this point, you’re growing confused and fatigued, the crowds of people, the noise, etc. are making you irritable, so much so that you’d rather not explain your shopping dilemma as it’d push you over the edge, you tell them “no thanks, I’m just looking” and escape with your sanity intact!

These hidden consequences aren’t likely to be considered when you tell people “I have a brain injury”, but they’re no less true or impactful. It’s difficult to imagine an event that has as much of a profound and far-reaching impact on the lives of those it affects as brain injury does. Perhaps, instead of stating the obvious all should have a little more patience so that the effect on people’s lives can be grasped at least a little better by all concerned.

[aqua4]

Hi Barny1, Great blog, thanks for sharing and good luck with the Marathon. K

[barny1 in reply to aqua4]

Glad you like you aqua, thanks!

[Julesgettingthere]

Hi Barny

Jules here - found the blog very interesting.

I panic when things go wrong for me in front of people who don't know me and I have to explain, or make an excuse up for my stupid behaviour. And, yes, like many others, I normally panic and apologise with 'I had a brain injury'.

In the early days it was different, it would be excuse excuse, and denying.

Look forward to reading more

Regards

Jules (night owl)

x

[barny1 in reply to Julesgettingthere]

Hi Jules...Glad you found it interesting! I think we all know what we mean when we say "I had a brain injury', but it doesn't mean much to anyone else. I don't tend to use it, but then again I don't always feel like explaining myself, even though I probably should! Food for thought.

[Julesgettingthere]

Hi Barny

Jules here - found the blog very interesting.

I panic when things go wrong for me in front of people who don't know me and I have to explain, or make an excuse up for my stupid behaviour. And, yes, like many others, I normally panic and apologise with 'I had a brain injury'.

In the early days it was different, it would be excuse excuse, and denying.

Look forward to reading more

Regards

Jules (night owl)

x

[AlexLu]

Hi, I had a head trauma which resulted in frontal bone fracture and maxillary sinus fracture which are currently being treated conservatively. The MaxFax team decided not to go for surgery but a small amount of "extra-axial" blood was found on CT on the day of the accident which was nearly 3 weeks ago. If totally honest I suffer of anxiety and am worried I might have brain injury although crowds do not bother me, never vomited blood and never had blood/double vision so far.

It's just some mild on and off lightheadedness that I am still experiencing and only been in hospital 48h during which been under neurological observations which all seemed to be fine.

On my discharge letter the word "brain injury" is not mentioned and from what I understand it's just the bones that are fractured and need to heal. Would you have any advice as to whether I shall consider this as brain injury?

[barny1 in reply to AlexLu]

That's difficult to answer, but as a general rule, if you lose consciousness, however briefly, you injure brain cells and the longer you're unconscious the more damage has been done. So, I put it to you, did you lose consciousness? Brain injuries are only obvious if you've had a scan that shows damage within the brain, or you've had neuropsychological tests done that show you're abnormally cognitively impaired compared to the general population. However, you've certainly had a head injury, which is serious in itself.

[AlexLu in reply to barny1]

I just spoke to one of the major trauma doctors from the hospital where I have been admitted and been told I haven't been diagnosed with brain injury or TBI and that it's just the frontal bone and left eye bones being fractured. I lost consciousness at the moment of the impact for about 30 mins but been perfectly conscious since I woke up in the ambulance, I remember the time 9.30 am and what I was doing before the accident. I have been told that it's just facial/skull fractures revealed by the CT scan but no damage to the brain whatsoever. Likewise I had neuro observance 48 hours after the accident consisting in some laser light being flashed in my retina every 1 hour or so and everything looked fine. Back of the eye tests done by eye casualty revealed no concerns or deficit and looks like both eyes are fine. Except the occasional mild lightheadedness I don't seem to experience anything else: no memory loss, speech or walking problems, no migraines (except the mild burning sensation where the frontal scar is). I'm thinking if I had TBI I would have been treated by neurosurgery and not by max facial who deal with broken facial bones so think in my case it's just skull bones being broken and currently on the mend.

[AliCathy]

Read it and almost cried, thank you I feel understood at last I'm not so lonely. Thank you.

[barny1 in reply to AliCathy]

I'm glad you could relate to it, but I don't mean to be make anyone feel sad. If you want to chat, you can PM me.

[AliCathy]

Thank you so much, I was experiencing a somewhat grim morning, doesn't happen to often, I felt supported and understood! Here is my attempt to share my strange life experience.

youtube.com/watch?v=S9wQQsp...(Not working as expected?)