Head Trauma after car accident

[Dannii99]

Hi, my brother was hit by a car 3 days ago. They have done numerous CT scans and each time have confirmed more bleeding on the brain. He is very unresponsive but is not in a coma or having help with breathing. The whole family are worried sick. Drs just seem to keep observing and not doing much else. Is it not normal for him to not be opening eyes and communicating? We are all thinking that the longer he is left the bleeding will get worse. Please help. Thank you

[Hidden]

Please phone Headway and chat with them about this. They are the experts and can answer your questions. If you read previous posts on here, you will know that the brain, after an injury, needs time to heal. It will do this in its own time and in its own way. Gradually over the next few weeks, you will start to see an improvement as he begins to recover but be warned that it is going to be a long process.

Love and best wishes to you all. Keep strong and look after yourselves, he will need you to be strong for him in the coming weeks.

[Kirk5w7]

Watching and waiting will be critical at this point. The doctors will move fast if there is a need.

Don't be too ready for intervention. The body has processes to deal with traumas naturally and the doctors will be hoping this will happen without their intervention.

You cannot easily put a sticking plaster or other remedy to treat brain trauma. Your brothers own body will be trying to heal itself and it does that best whilst he is asleep, which is why coma is induced in some people. It concentrates the brains healing processes.

Do please continue to talk to him and reassure him so that as he awakens he will know where he is and what has happened, this is important to stop him being agitated and stressed.

All in good time, be strong. Love Janet x

[razyheath43 in reply to Kirk5w7]

Yes do give Headway a call,they are very good! Stay as postaive as you can and yes the brain takes time to heal,best wishes

[Dannii99]

Thank you for your replies. It means a lot to know that I can share and have another outlook.

We received more news this evening - because my brother hasn't changed, no signs of responding and constantly lying with his eyes closed - the Dr has indicated that he may slip into a coma voluntarily and then this will be the decider if to operate and to help alleviate the bleeding. Which they have confirmed is the size of his palm (approximately)

I genuinely am lost, as are my whole family and we have no idea what's going to happen.

We all had hope that with time he would come through this.

But is surgery now the only option? And what are the complications to this?

please please tell me that this isn't it

[RecoveringH in reply to Dannii99]

Hold him in your minds eye, smiling, perfectly well and happy. Send him this sentiment. Take photos of past good times to his bedside and look at them with smiles. He will be able to feel your sense of calm, happiness in his current state on an etheric level. A car accident is a shock let alone the injury he has sustained. He needs your reassurance to allow his body to take over. Stay positive. Perhaps you feel lost because he feels lost. Perhaps he cant find his way home to his body right now. Hum his favourite songs, keep him updated with the football scores of his favourite team. Talk to him as you would over a cup of tea. Keep it normal. Pull him back.

Best

[cat3]

Hi Dannii

There are risks with any surgery but of course brain surgery is a delicate procedure which invokes more anxiety in us than any other. But since such massive advances in medical technology, and with the expertise of the neurosurgeons for whom brain surgery has become very familiar ground, it's a much less precarious business for them then we can imagine.

I was lucky enough to be unaware of my coiling procedure to stem a bleed on the brain 5 years ago, but my family were where you're at right now and pretty terrified by a situation so unknown & beyond their control.

But apparently my demeanour improved radically a couple of weeks after the op and they soon became more confident of my survival and possible recovery. I was discharged 6 weeks later after rehab & occupational therapy and now live a fairly normal life, aside from fatigue, memory issues and slight mobility problems.

Your brother has a long recovery road ahead and you can reassure and inspire him with comforting words and physical contact.

Sincere best wishes for better days to come Dannii. Love Cat x

[Caroline4244]

My husband, aged 37, was in a car accident and appeared to be in a coma for 3weeks to a month, but it slowly lifted, and from squeezing my hand it grew to accepting food & drink and onward, through childrens' learning toys ( the best was fitting different shapes into the right holes. I talked to him relatively normally, and I think this helped, telling him what I had done, who L'd seen etc. after 3 or 4 months he was clearly comprehending bur not speaking. At 5 months I asked a Christian healer to visit him. Apparently no result. But the next morning, when I visited, he said "I woke up this morning in hospital - what has happened to me? I can't move my right side" What a blessing. He was out of hospital in the next 3 or 4 weeks, after being given physio for walking and speech therapy. Now, 36 years later, he's not quite the same as the rest of us, but in those years had a good like, went on holiday to USA twice, Greece, Egypt, Tunisia and managed fine. He had no "interventions". Nature heals itself better than we can do whilst we still don't know enough about the brain! Good luck, have faith and keep him stimulated!

[Dannii99]

Thank you!

You all have no idea how much reading your comments are helping! We are trying to remain positive and continue to talk with him, read to him, let him listen to music, we are desperately trying to pull him through to the other side.

The Dr said that today will be the most important as we will need to observe and wait for any little sign of improvement.

Does anybody know if there is a possibility that the bleed my brother has, will disappear?As in dry up or it will always be there??

He is only 21 years and has his whole life ahead of him, he is achieving so much at University and is such a wonderful person, that he needs to get through this.

Again thank you!

[cat3 in reply to Dannii99]

Dannii, although I don't understand the hows or whys, I know that some people can survive bleeds without intervention. I know of two women in the same family who had bleeds on the brain and were discharged without surgery.

One is in her late sixties and copes very well whilst her granddaughter, who also had a spontaneous bleed, gave birth to her first child 3 months later. So I suppose the answer to your query is yes.

And there are folk here on the forum who've had traumatic injuries with bleeding who've been discharged after rest and monitoring.

But these are issues which any of the nursing staff will have experience of, so never be afraid to ask about your brother's treatment. You can speak with your brother's consultant (get his secretary to set up a telephone appointment for you and have a list of questions ready) ; you can get the secretary's number from reception.

But if there's a need for intervention, there are minimally invasive procedures (mine was the fitting of a titanium coil via an artery, so no surgery to the head. But there are many considerations such as degree of bleeding, location of bleeds, accessibility etc., so the final decision will be made on the basis of safety for the patient.

It's a weird, unreal time for you isn't it Dannii ; I hope your brother's condition will be resolved, with relief all round before too long. Cat xx