Common difficulties after brain injury
- Physical
- Cognitive
- Executive
- Psychosocial, emotional and behavioural
Physical
- Paresis – paralysis, inability to move
- Hemiparesis – inability to move part of the body and/or reduced mobility
- Muscle weakness increased\decreased tone
- Ataxia – difficulties in coordinating movement and muscle tremor
- Sensory loss – loss of sensational feelings
- Hearing impairment or tinnitus
- Visual difficulties – diplopia (double vision), blurred vision an visual field deficit
- Loss of sense of smell and taste
- Balance problems
- Dizziness
- Headaches
- Fatigue
- Changes to circadian rhythm
- Poor stamina
- Epilepsy
- Decreased\increased sexual arousal
Cognitive
- Disorientation to time, space and person
- Memory impairment – short term, long term, working and new memory
- Attention difficulties
- Concentration
- Information processing
- Perception – making sense of what we see/hear
- Speech and language difficulties – receptive (receiving) and expressive (speaking)
Executive
- Difficulties in goal setting
- Difficulties in planning and sequencing
- Poor organisation skills
- Problem solving difficulties and flexibility
- Poor initiation
- Motivation difficulties
- Unable to self monitor or evaluate
Psychosocial
- Personality change
- Reduced tolerance
- Irritability
- Emotionally labile
- Mood swings
- Egocentric – selfish, lack of interest in others
- Anxiety, panic attacks, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
- Depression
- Disinhibition – sexual, verbal, physical