Brain Injury
This tells it like it is ! A Brain Injury can have a massive impact and is often called the ‘hidden disability'. There can be long term problems in thinking and behaviour, which are not as easy to recognize as many physical disabilities. It can be very difficult for friends and family to understand and accept a brain injury.
A brain injury affects everyone differently. It can leave you feeling very tired, sad and irritable. You can forget things very quickly and find it difficult to concentrate. Some people have dizzy spells and headaches, problems seeing clearly and can have trouble hearing things properly...just to name a few!
So, it's very important that we are all aware of these things. Someone with a brain injury needs their friends and family to be patient and supportive and non-judgemental. At school, kids with a brain injury who have supportive friends and understanding teachers seem to feel more comfortable in the classroom and do better in their studies.
Brain Injury is very serious and is not something to poke fun at, but in thinking about the effects a brain injury can have on us, the fictitious character below, who we are all familiar with may help us to remember…
….DOES HOMER HAVE A BRAIN INJURY?
Homer Simpson is probably the world’s best known cartoon character. He is also likely to be suffering from Acquired Brain Injury.
Homer has been hit in the head with countless objects, landed on his head repeatedly as he fell down a ravine (twice!) and became a boxer when it was discovered he could be repeatedly punched in the head without being knocked out, winning by default as his opponents wore themselves out and collapsed.
It doesn’t take a neuropsychological assessment to see that Homer exhibits most of the classic symptoms of a brain injury. There are the anger issues as he is constantly choking his son, Bart. He has a raging alcohol problem with too much time spent at Moe’s Tavern. And, impulsivity with his tendency to do anything to get his hands on donuts.
What about his memory problems, with always forgetting they have a third child, Maggie? Or lack of attention as he repeatedly ignores danger alarms as safety inspector at the nuclear power plant? What of his rapid changes in mood, inability to cope with multiple demands, low motivation and inappropriate social behaviour?
The strange thing is he still has plenty of friends, despite his many issues. The Springfield community shows a lot more understanding and compassion for Homer’s eccentricities than the real world does for survivors of a brain injury.
More information on brain injury is available at http://www.braininjury.org.au/
