[aneeta]

My mother met with an accident last month and suffered head injury which caused brain contusion . Now she is undergoing treatments. So I wanted to get more details on it. I would like to talk to persons with same experience.

Given below are her present conditions

She can walk without support
She talks to us, but there is some problems with language
She can realize most of the persons come to her
She can't remember the things in the past
Always tired and feeling sleepy
Frequent urinary infections is there (giving medicines for it. She is a ADPKD patient too.)
Not ready to eat solid food
Only water, milk and juices are drinking


Now our concern is if she doesn't eat food it will affect her health. Is it common to have less appetite after TBI ?

Please help.

[Yehuda]

Hi Aneeta,

I am really sorry to hear about your mother. Loss of appetite is one of the after effects of a brain injury. the same for language problems and loss of memory. Consult with a dietitian with regards to which kind of fluids she needs to take in now and when she would be ready to take in more solid foods. All the best.

[MicroMan]

Hi Aneeta,

Sorry to hear your mom is challenged with this. Memory issues and even speech problems can be problematic following a brain injury. As stated above, weight loss can also occur. I know for me I lost weight for about 4 months following my brain injury.

Regarding the urinary tract infections, these are not likely related to the brain injury, but perhaps might be influenced by some of the other aspects your mom is currently dealing with.

Best of luck with everything.

[Bud]

Aneeta,

Best wishes to your mom and family.

My appetite decreased and changed drastically.

I like dessert after all 3 meals and after my accident, pie meant nothing to me. I lost 20 lbs., which I liked. I believe the weight loss was due to a better diet and less at each meal. For some reason I have had much better dietary habits and they definetly happened after my accident.

I do still stutter when under pressure, nervous or tired.

Bud

[hermanator90]

Hi Aneeta,

Just wanted to drop a quick note here. I too had major loss in appetite after my mild TBI. I think it is a common symptom.

In my case, I am realizing it is driven mostly by anxiety though, as on days that I feel less pressure, and perhaps more hopeful, I end up feeling a normal amount of hunger. Not sure if this is similar for others, but felt it might be helpful to share.

Good luck and my best to you!

[Lara]

The senses of taste and smell can also be disrupted after a TBI and that can affect appetite.

[aneeta]

Hi All

Thanks a lot for reply.

It is exactly 2 months after the incident.

Can I know how long it will take her to come back to her normal life. Is 100% recovery possible? (She is 60 years old now. Also she has polysystic kidneys and taking medicines to control hypertension)

How long it will take her to have interest in eating food?

[Mark in Idaho]

There is a saying, "If you've seen one brain injury, you've seen ONE brain injury." Every brain injury progresses on its own schedule. Try to be patient and support her in her daily needs without being anxious for the future. In time, things will improve. Two months is a short time in recovery from a brain injury.

Depression is also a common symptom of brain injuries and can cause loss of appetite. She may be struggling with that too.

[Headbanged]

Hi Aneeta. I'm so sorry to hear about your mom!!!

From EVERY peer-reviewed paper and study I've read, every video seminar I've viewed from the nation's top neuro experts, such as this one by Dr. Rober Cantu on YouTube entitled "Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy," by "UWTV," the absolute most important thing you can do for your mom is let her brain rest - much as one would do for a "broken leg/arm," etc.

The less stimulus your mom's brain has right now, the better chance she'll have in the long run. (Hopefully she's seen someone specifically for the concussion?) He says, in part: no TV, computer, smartphone, etc. Let the brain heal. It'll take time AND patience!

In addition to the above-noted 'personal research,' I speak to this specific element of head trauma from terrible, first-hand experience, wherein I not only did NOT rest my brain after each (several) blunt-force trauma concussions - one where I slammed my head so hard into a scaffold that it herniated three discs in my neck - I continued life (or TRIED TO) as if I only "banged my head a little."

This is, in effect, like trying to walk on that broken leg, or pitch with that broken arm. As others have already advised, give your mom time. It's been three years since my last two, BAD back-to-back concussions (both falls on to rocks while hiking - five days apart; the second, I'm sure, a product of the first), and I still suffer from weight loss/frequent nausea, bad memory issues, terrible depression, 'anger/behavioral' issues, 24/7 ringing in both ears so loud . . . I can't even describe it, the total inability to fall asleep and/or stay asleep w/out just the right dosages and types of medications, central sleep apnea, anxiety attacks - and more. Only through finding the right doctor in May and five more months of PATIENCE with trying the many meds, have I been able to at least 'modify' some of these issues. I'm sleeping 4-hours a night now (yes, that's a very big deal for me, and have thus gained part of my appetite back, putting on 11 lbs in the past two months. I'm still 25 lbs off what I weighed before 2009. Before May of this year, I was often getting only 1-2 hours sleep every-three-days; eating the equivalent of only a half-sandwich in the same time period.

Less than 15 months before an auto accident in Aug, 2009 - wherein my head struck NOTHING - I came in top of my graduating class from the fastest-paced/accelerated bachelor degree program Grand Canyon University and the State of Arizona "had" to offer (5-week-each, classes), with a 3.97 GPA, banging out 4,000-word papers per-week like it was nothing. Fifteen months AFTER that accident, I was unemployed. Approximately nine months after my two back-to-back falls/concussions in late-2012, I was homeless and living in the desert for the next seven months. The whole time, Aneeta, not having a CLUE as to "'what' was wrong with me." But I 'knew I was "broken."' It's like living with a ghost in your brain . . .

I don't know if some, all or none of these symptoms would be present today had I just chilled out and RESTED MY BRAIN for a certain amount of time after each fall or the auto accident? We never, never know. What Mark from Idaho said: "If you've seen one brain injury, you've seen ONE brain injury," is so, so spot-on!!!!!!!! But I DO know your mom WILL have a better chance of 'some kind' of recovery if she rests her brain now.

Watch the video from above, and just insert your mom - or your mother's name - every time Dr. Cantu says the word "athlete," or "young athletes returning to play." It's the same thing with your mom.

In fact, when it comes down to it, non-athlete FALLS - especially people your mom's age, far, far outnumber the debilitating concussions that athletes from ALL sports combined, experience. Listen to what Dr. Cantu says about "returning to play." Just insert your mom's situation in there, and that might answer some questions for you. The talk is about CTE, which I'll let him describe (and I'm very concerned about for myself), but throughout a good part of the video, he explains how concussions play in to CTE developing later on in athletes' life. Don't worry so much about the CTE-aspect of the video; concentrate on the concussions and "return to play."

I wish your mom, you and your family all the best!
T

[seth8a]

This is all pretty interesting. I had a pretty bad concussion back in March of this year . . . and only took 4 days off work and really started back at my normal and full life almost immediately afterward. I still have a lot of issues remaining, 7 months down the road, although I did reduce my time at work, etc, a few weeks later. I didn't really give my brain much time to heal at all, and I really wish that I had.

I hope that I make at least somewhat of a recovery some day. Brain rest seems pretty key.

Originally Posted by Headbanged

Hi Aneeta. I'm so sorry to hear about your mom!!!

From EVERY peer-reviewed paper and study I've read, every video seminar I've viewed from the nation's top neuro experts, such as this one by Dr. Rober Cantu on YouTube entitled "Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy," by "UWTV," the absolute most important thing you can do for your mom is let her brain rest - much as one would do for a "broken leg/arm," etc.

The less stimulus your mom's brain has right now, the better chance she'll have in the long run. (Hopefully she's seen someone specifically for the concussion?) He says, in part: no TV, computer, smartphone, etc. Let the brain heal. It'll take time AND patience!

In addition to the above-noted 'personal research,' I speak to this specific element of head trauma from terrible, first-hand experience, wherein I not only did NOT rest my brain after each (several) blunt-force trauma concussions - one where I slammed my head so hard into a scaffold that it herniated three discs in my neck - I continued life (or TRIED TO) as if I only "banged my head a little."

This is, in effect, like trying to walk on that broken leg, or pitch with that broken arm. As others have already advised, give your mom time. It's been three years since my last two, BAD back-to-back concussions (both falls on to rocks while hiking - five days apart; the second, I'm sure, a product of the first), and I still suffer from weight loss/frequent nausea, bad memory issues, terrible depression, 'anger/behavioral' issues, 24/7 ringing in both ears so loud . . . I can't even describe it, the total inability to fall asleep and/or stay asleep w/out just the right dosages and types of medications, central sleep apnea, anxiety attacks - and more. Only through finding the right doctor in May and five more months of PATIENCE with trying the many meds, have I been able to at least 'modify' some of these issues. I'm sleeping 4-hours a night now (yes, that's a very big deal for me, and have thus gained part of my appetite back, putting on 11 lbs in the past two months. I'm still 25 lbs off what I weighed before 2009. Before May of this year, I was often getting only 1-2 hours sleep every-three-days; eating the equivalent of only a half-sandwich in the same time period.

Less than 15 months before an auto accident in Aug, 2009 - wherein my head struck NOTHING - I came in top of my graduating class from the fastest-paced/accelerated bachelor degree program Grand Canyon University and the State of Arizona "had" to offer (5-week-each, classes), with a 3.97 GPA, banging out 4,000-word papers per-week like it was nothing. Fifteen months AFTER that accident, I was unemployed. Approximately nine months after my two back-to-back falls/concussions in late-2012, I was homeless and living in the desert for the next seven months. The whole time, Aneeta, not having a CLUE as to "'what' was wrong with me." But I 'knew I was "broken."' It's like living with a ghost in your brain . . .

I don't know if some, all or none of these symptoms would be present today had I just chilled out and RESTED MY BRAIN for a certain amount of time after each fall or the auto accident? We never, never know. What Mark from Idaho said: "If you've seen one brain injury, you've seen ONE brain injury," is so, so spot-on!!!!!!!! But I DO know your mom WILL have a better chance of 'some kind' of recovery if she rests her brain now.

Watch the video from above, and just insert your mom - or your mother's name - every time Dr. Cantu says the word "athlete," or "young athletes returning to play." It's the same thing with your mom.

In fact, when it comes down to it, non-athlete FALLS - especially people your mom's age, far, far outnumber the debilitating concussions that athletes from ALL sports combined, experience. Listen to what Dr. Cantu says about "returning to play." Just insert your mom's situation in there, and that might answer some questions for you. The talk is about CTE, which I'll let him describe (and I'm very concerned about for myself), but throughout a good part of the video, he explains how concussions play in to CTE developing later on in athletes' life. Don't worry so much about the CTE-aspect of the video; concentrate on the concussions and "return to play."

I wish your mom, you and your family all the best!
T