Traumatic Brain Injury Symptoms and Recovery Can Last a Lifetime

PITTSBURGH, PA, October 01, 2012 (Press-News.org) Residents of Pennsylvania may be surprised to learn that while neurologists and psychologists have made great strides in brain science in the past few decades, much about the brain still remains a mystery.

Traumatic brain injuries can vary in severity, depending on how the injury occurred, and can also vary between people. Two soldiers may both suffer brain injuries when the Humvee they are riding in hits a bomb, but they may each experience those injuries differently. Symptoms of a TBI include short-term memory loss, amnesia, personality changes, and loss of the ability to speak and walk.

People who experience TBIs may find that skills that once came easily such as fine-motor skills (typing or using a computer mouse), talking and concentrating on work are now impossible. People with these symptoms who find that work is now impossible may need to apply for Social Security Disability benefits.

Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction

The movie "The Vow" tells the story of how a new marriage is challenged when the wife suffers a traumatic brain injury in a car accident. The injury leaves her with amnesia, which wipes out the previous five years of her life, including meeting, falling in love with and marrying her husband.

Truth is usually stranger than fiction, and the movie is actually based on a true story. The movie, however, leaves out that the real-life woman also experienced personality changes, which added to the challenge of her recovery and saving the marriage.

TBIs Can Change a Person for Life

The most well-known example of a person who was forever changed by a TBI is the medical phenomenon of Phineas Gage. Gage suffered a TBI when an iron bar shot completely through his head while he worked on a rail yard in the 1800s.

Even though co-workers could see through the hole in his head, Gage remained conscious while they carried him to get medical attention. He remained conscious throughout the entire ordeal and survived, but he was never the same. Everyone who knew him was struck by how he went from being an organized, hardworking perfectionist to being sloppy, irritable and unable to hold down a job.

Like Gage, many people with TBIs may be unable to work after their injuries and may need to apply for disability benefits. A qualified Social Security Disability attorney can help you find whether you are eligible.

Law Offices of Kenneth Hiller, PLLC
301 Grant Street
Pittsburgh PA 15219

Attorney Kenneth Hiller , of The Law Offices of Kenneth Hiller, PLLC, is dedicated to helping disabled clients obtain the Social Security benefits they need and deserve.

Website: http://www.kennethhillerlaw.com