Get the right therapies for your brain injury: It matters

After a traumatic brain injury, there are several methods you might use to get yourself back on your feet. There are medications. There is physical and occupation therapy.

Overall, though, the way you recover is highly reliant on the injury itself. If you have a mild injury, you’ll recover faster and with fewer difficulties than someone with an acute brain injury.

Why is it important to know the severity of your brain injury?

The measured severity of your brain injury is something you need to know. It seems specific, but it’s only with specifics that your medical provider can help you get back on the right road to recovery.

For instance, if you hit the back of your head, you might have trouble with your sight. In that case, your medical provider may need to encourage glasses for correction, therapy treatments to help with peripheral vision or even work with you to get a service animal that can help you get from place to place. On the other hand, an injury that impacts your strength in your right arm would require physical therapy and medications, potentially.

As you can tell, each injury has its own symptoms, and that’s why knowing the symptoms you have and the severity of those symptoms is so important.

What should you look for in a treatment program?

In treatment programs, the most important thing to look for is that they’re individualized. No treatment center should provide a one-size-fits-all solution to brain injuries, because there isn’t a single solution.

The amount of function you’ll get back after a brain injury varies based on the factors in your case, but being in the right treatment program makes a huge difference. The treatment center should provide:

• Access to information that is accurate and up-to-date
• Social supports that encourage the patient as well as supports in the community
• Access to service networks with machinery or treatment methods that can teach the patient skills or provide tools that compensate for the patient’s losses
• A responsive approach that considers what is and is not working for the patient

As someone with a brain injury, your goals matter. Recovery from a brain injury, particularly when serious, can be a lifelong process. You will need a support system, access to the best medical care and treatments, and the financial support to continue accessing these therapies. It’s best to file any claim necessary to make those things happen.