Traumatic brain injuries typically take more than 18 months to recover. The patient has to go through several rehabilitation programs to bring his cognitive skills up to speed. Some of the common issues that are associated with traumatic brain injuries are:
Physical problems loss of coordination, swallowing, movement, and strength.
Thinking problems difficulty in concentration, problem-solving, judgments, language, and memory.
Emotional problems impulsiveness, irritability, and mood changes.
Sensory problems disturbance in hearing, vision, tactile touch, and smell.
Traumatic brain injury rehabilitation
The rehabilitation program of a TBI patient is designed depending on the severity of the injury. The professionals involved in offering rehabilitation will judge the condition of the patient and decide whether he/she will be able to cope with the 3-hour program that they usually start with. Of course, there are breaks in between the program. The initial phase of the program continues for 5 to 7 days a week. Along with the expert in charge of the rehabilitation, the patient will be constantly monitored by a physician.
Traumatic brain injury rehabilitation will include:
Speech therapy
Occupational therapy
Physical therapy
Rehabilitation team
There will be a multidisciplinary team working with the patient every day to monitor his/her progress. Depending on the stage of recovery, the different members of the team will play different roles. They will meet at the end of the week to discuss how they should go about with the rehabilitation program. One of the essential members of the team is the occupational therapist. He/she is responsible for introducing the patient back to normal life. In this rehabilitation program, the patient will get training on different day to day activities such as taking a shower, grooming, dressing, and eating.
For patients who already crossed this stage, the occupational therapist will try to involve the patient in outdoor activities, including horse riding, hill climbing, canoeing, etc. This rehabilitation aims to assess your orientation, problem-solving abilities, reasoning, concentration, and attention. It keeps the patient engaged in managing complex activities like money management, meal preparation, and various community activities.
Recreation is a significant part of traumatic brain injury rehabilitation. The professionals providing this service are trained in nonprofit organizations where they learn about how to handle different patients with traumatic brain injury. If you want to be a part of someones recovery, you too can enroll in one of these courses and become a professional therapist.