Brain injuries are already extremely challenging to face as a victim or a loved one. However, there is a darker side to brain injuries that are rarely addressed among victims: personality changes.
Research suggests that severe brain injuries cause subtle or pronounced changes within individual personalities, including aggression, impulse control and memory impairment.
Five of the most common personality changes
There are even cases where a person goes through a ‘good’ recovery process. They may feel behavioral effects from their injury. Some of the most common examples are:
- Lack of emotions – Some folks tend to lose their ability to express feelings and even express the wrong emotions. This is most common in the early stages of treatment.
- Emotional volatility – On the other end of the spectrum, victims may have overly strong emotional reactions, often inappropriate to the situation. Like, they may laugh during a stressful situation.
- Aggression – There are many circumstances where a head injury causes an aggressive change in a person’s personality. They may start being more confrontational or agitated by their surroundings.
- Poor concentration – An injury may cause a decrease in attention span and an overall problem with focus. The person may need a lot of repetition and little doses of information.
- Denial – Some victims live in a state of denial after an accident, including denial of personality changes. They may rely on denial as a coping mechanism to deal with the pain caused by their injuries.
Any of these personality changes could cause significant problems for victims. That’s why it’s critical to seek support from loved ones and deal with the emotional responses we have to physical injuries. Mental health is just as important as our physical health.