About TBI, Mild TBI & Concussion

A Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is caused by a bump, blow or jolt to the head or a penetrating head injury that disrupts the normal function of the brain. The Brain Injury Association of America estimates that 2.5 million TBIs occur every year— and that might be a conservative figure.

In our experience, the most common cognitive, behavioral and emotional TBI symptoms we have encountered include:

•   Problems with memory (especially short-term memory)
•   Problems getting started on projects or tasks
•   Problems with organization and planning
•   Losing one’s ‘filter’ when interacting with other people
•   More easily flooded or overwhelmed
•   Irritability
•   Impulsivity

In the Big Picture, there are a number of similarities between the symptoms of persistent Post-Concussive Syndrome (PCS), or mild TBI (mTBI), and those of moderate and severe TBI. They’re just subtler or milder, typically— or there are fewer of them.

The conventional wisdom is that mild TBI is less impairing and, almost always, temporary.

While this is true for most people, it is not true for everyone.

Persistent mTBI and PCS symptoms often are more subtle— and they are more easily missed by other people, including medical and mental health professionals. Real-world cognitive deficits in persistent mTBI and PCS often do not show up on neuropsychological tests in controlled laboratory conditions where cognitive loads and stress levels are lower, and where multi-tasking is minimal. Peristent mTBI symptoms also can be dismissed as merely symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Depression, general life stress, Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)— or even misperceived as a play for sympathy by mild TBI survivors.

It has been our experience that in at least some individuals who have experienced an mTBI or concussion, there are cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and practical effects that do not completely disappear after 6 months. We hope that as research and diagnosis in the brain injury field advance in the next 15 years, there will be more acknowledgment of that reality— and better treatment options for individuals with persistent mTBI, PCS and other mild brain injuries.

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