If you suffer a traumatic brain injury, it’s important to get medical attention quickly. These injuries can be quite serious, damage to the brain is often irreversible and many of these injuries get to be more complex and more dangerous over time. For instance, a brain injury that includes a subdural hematoma may start off mild and then become severe or even fatal.
So how can you know that you have a traumatic brain injury, usually called a TBI? You need to know what symptoms to watch out for.
Losing consciousness
The first thing to remember is that losing consciousness for any amount of time could signify a TBI. People haven’t always taken this as seriously as they should, especially if they just blacked out for a second or two. And while it is more detrimental to your health to be unconscious for a longer amount of time, even a short loss of consciousness shows that you’ve suffered a brain injury.
Feeling physically ill
Often, a traumatic brain injury can make the person feel like they are physically ill, as if they are becoming sick. People often talk about feeling nauseous or vomiting. You may have trouble standing up or feel like you can’t keep your balance. You may be highly fatigued and need much more sleep than usual. But the sickness isn’t due to any sort of disease or bacterial infection. It’s just that the damage to your brain has thrown off your equilibrium or led to other neural pathway issues that are causing you to feel sick.
Changes to cognitive abilities
After that, you just want to look at it for any changes to your cognitive abilities that may mean your brain is not functioning perfectly after the injury. For instance, many people struggle with memory issues. Others have trouble finding the right words or putting sentences together. Still others have sensory issues, such as an extreme sensitivity to light. If the symptoms are not getting better or are even getting worse, it’s definitely time to seek medical attention.
Seeking compensation for your medical bills
As you know, this type of medical care is often incredibly expensive. If someone else’s negligence led to your traumatic brain injury, then it’s time to determine if you can seek financial compensation.
