Coping With Personality Changes After A Traumatic Brain Injury
The personality of a survivor of a traumatic brain injury can change drastically following injury. This video helps explain how friends and family should try and act and care for their loved ones, as well suggest ways of dealing with the difficulties that arise.
For more information please visit http://www.brainandspinalcord.org
Step 1: Brain Injury Survivors
Hey. I'm Marcy from BrainandSpinalCord.org. Let's talk about how family, friends, and loved ones can cope with potential personality changes in brain injury survivors. Be sure to check the website for all relevant links and a recap of this article.
Step 2: Survivor's Personality
The survivor of a brain injury can face many challenges and changes. These challenges and changes can be cognitive, physical, or related to the senses. But while these changes can pose difficulty for both the survivor and his or her loved ones, the challenges and changes that are frequently the most difficult to deal with are those that relate to the personality of a survivor.
Step 3: Personality Changes
When does a brain injury survivor experience personality changes? Well there's no good answer to that question. It depends upon the location of the brain injury as well as the severity of the injury. Some personality changes are short-term while others persist. Personality issues following a traumatic brain injury might include things like impulsive behavior, explosive anger, frequent mood swings, poor concentration, apathy and lethargy, or lack of emotion.
A person who used to be calm and serene may suddenly appear explosive and angry, while an individual previously know for their high energy and ability to juggle a multitude of tasks may seem lethargic and apathetic. A person who used to be very helpful may be combative, while someone who used to be soft-spoken can be abrasive and harsh. Other times, the survivor's personality may be an intensified version of what it was before the injury.
Step 4: Support
If you are a friend or loved one of a brain injury survivor, you know how difficult these personality changes can be. Not only are they perplexing to the survivor, but friends and loved ones are left wondering if the person they used to know and love is gone forever.
Step 5: Patience & Understanding
Friends and loved ones can also feel anger towards the survivor when difficult behaviors arise as well as sadness because they miss the person the survivor used to be. Friends and loved ones should keep in mind that even survivors with a good prognosis will most likely go through some personality changes on the road to recovery. Patience and understanding is needed as well as a good dose of support.
