ABI Victims: Character Trait Changes

Following a head injury, an individual will frequently experience changes in their normal personality. Brainline.org published an article examining how an individuals behaviour and emotions can be significantly altered after sustaining a brain injury even years after the injuries occurred.

Acquired Brain Injury can develop after of a single significant traumatic event or can be the result of a culmination of a number of repeated traumas to the head.

Professional sports are often the culprit of these injuries, both in terms of single and culmination event trauma. With respect to multiple event head traumas one can consider the example of a soft-spoken, gentle male who has suffered multiple concussions throughout his college football career who later develops uncontrollable aggressive outbursts of anger. These changes in character traits often occur later on in life, well after their sport career has ended. The challenge in coping with these injuries is that these behavioural changes need to be identified and addressed early by a professional. A physician can diagnose the individual case and provide appropriate coping solutions and strategies for the victim as well as for their family.

Depending on what part of the brain is affected by the injury, there will be different reasons as to why emotions and behaviours have altered. If there is damage to the frontal lobe, this often affects an individuals personality and impulsivity, which leads to changes in self-control, increased aggression and uncontrollable remarks.

Here is a list of common behaviour & emotional issues associated with ABI victims, as outlined in this article;

• Verbal outbursts
• Physical outbursts
• Poor judgment
• Impulsive behavior
• Negativity
• Intolerance
• Apathy
• Egocentricity
• Rigidity and inflexibility
• Risky behavior
• Lack of empathy
• Lack of motivation or initiative
• Depression or anxiety

The research done on ABI continues to demonstrate how important it is to monitor past and present brain injuries. Furthermore if these injuries are monitored regularly by a healthcare professional, any new changes will be addressed in a timely fashion. If you have any questions or concerns about your loved ones injury, please contact Gluckstein Personal Injury Lawyers for more information.

R E F E R E N C E S l

1. www.brainline.org