Personal Injury | June 23, 2021 by JOSHUA D. ANDERSON
Do Traumatic Brain Injuries have Emotional Effects?
A traumatic brain injury could change how injured individuals feel and express their emotions. They can also suffer from various kinds of emotional and psychological issues. After a TBI, learn about your legal rights from a Bonney Lake brain injury attorney.
The emotional effects following a traumatic brain injury (TBI) are among the most complicated secondary injuries to deal with. A TBI could make people suddenly aggressive, angry, or apathetic. As a result, these emotional effects can change how injured individuals interact and communicate with the people around them. The following are some common emotional and psychological effects that may occur with TBIs. If you suffered this type of injury, consider reaching out to a Bonney Lake brain injury attorney right away.
Emotional Lability or Mood Swings
For example, your injured loved one may be joking with you and happy one minute and then start crying suddenly. Their emotional states may likewise be more extreme than usual, such that they may get very upset about something that they would’ve usually brushed off before they got injured. Some people may even react to situations with unsuitable or inappropriate responses, such as laughing when they hear bad news.
Personality Changes
In most cases, the impact of the TBI makes injured victims unaware of what exactly happened to them and the extent to which they’ve been affected. Likewise, if they don’t present physical symptoms, it’s very difficult to determine or be conscious of the personality and cognitive changes that they’re experiencing. This could leave the victims and their families, especially small children who don’t understand what suddenly happened to their injured parents, feel extremely isolated.
Anxiety Disorder
A lot of people who develop anxiety after a brain injury will find that it can rule their daily lives and negatively impact their recovery. Injured victims with less severe TBIs may feel anxious about their recovery because of all personality and cognitive changes they’re experiencing. Those with more severe TBIs usually feel enduring anxiety because of the long-term or permanent effects of their injury. Some may even develop obsessive actions and thoughts.
Depression
Depression might be a result of damage to the emotional control regions of the injured brain but could likewise be related to the individual realizing the effects on the TBI. Following a TBI, an injured victim may lose many things, perhaps forever. Consequently, the individual may feel sadness, confusion, guilt, and anger about this.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
PTSD is a serious psychological reaction to specific traumatic events. Basically, people suffering from PTSD may experience unwanted and recurrent distressing memories of the event that traumatized them. They may also experience flashbacks and nightmares or dreams of the event. In turn, this can result in severe physical reactions and/or emotional distress when something reminds them of the traumatic incident.
Other emotional and psychological effects that may be related to TBIs include:
- Delusions, hallucinations, and psychosis
- Difficulty understanding and unawareness of social norms
- Inflexibility and rigidity on certain things
- Mania is characterized by periods of extreme euphoria, excitement, hyperactivity, and delusions
Talk to Our Experienced Bonney Lake Brain Injury Attorneys Today
For more information on traumatic brain injuries and pursuing compensation through a brain injury claim, contact the Bonney Lake brain injury attorneys of Anderson Law, PLLC. You can call us at (253) 862-1811 or fill out our quick online form to arrange your consultation today.
The information contained on this website is intended for informational purposes only, and is not legal advice. Nothing in this website establishes an attorney-client relationship between us. Different facts can dramatically affect a legal opinion. You should consult an attorney for legal advice that pertains to your personal situation.
Joshua D. Anderson
Attorney Joshua D. Anderson grew up in Enumclaw, Washington with a close-knit family who instilled in him the values of faith, family, and hard work. Since a young age, Josh knew he wanted to be an attorney so he could advocate for others and always knew his focus would be personal injury. He completed his undergraduate degree at the University of San Diego and graduated Cum Laude from Seattle University School of Law. While pursuing his degree, Josh served as an extern for the Seattle City Attorney’s Office.
