5 Ways to Protect Yourself & Your Loved Ones After a Traumatic Brain Injury
Welcome home! You are an American Hero! Your arrival may not have been celebrated by a ticker-tape parade, but your family and friends are showering you with love. Prayers for your safe return have been answered.
While deployed, however, you may have sustained the "signature injury" of Operations Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, and New Dawn: Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). If you sustained a TBI, you are now a candidate for Post Traumatic Epilepsy (PTE), even if your TBI was classified as a Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (mTBI). The greater the severity of the TBI, the greater the probability of developing PTE. Currently there is nothing that indicates whether you will or will not develop PTE. There is also no way of knowing when you will have your first seizure if you do develop this potentially life-threatening medical condition. So, how do you protect yourself and your family?
While deployed, however, you may have sustained the "signature injury" of Operations Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, and New Dawn: Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). If you sustained a TBI, you are now a candidate for Post Traumatic Epilepsy (PTE), even if your TBI was classified as a Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (mTBI). The greater the severity of the TBI, the greater the probability of developing PTE. Currently there is nothing that indicates whether you will or will not develop PTE. There is also no way of knowing when you will have your first seizure if you do develop this potentially life-threatening medical condition. So, how do you protect yourself and your family?
Here are 5 ways you can insure you and your family remain safe throughout your lifetime.
1. Get screened for TBI. Even if you were not struck in the head by anything, you may have suffered an mTBI (concussion). The energy blast alone from an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) can be enough to cause a TBI. At a minimum, use an online TBI screening tool to help you make an informed decision about whether or not you want to get a formal screening.
2. Know the symptoms of TBI. Also make sure your family knows and understands the symptoms and are able to recognize them. Review these symptoms with your family often. Remember, sometimes your family is better able to recognize when something is wrong than you are.
3. Know how to administer First Aid for seizures and make sure your family is well-trained in seizure First Aid. Many doctors are now asking that in addition to applying First Aid for seizures, someone should video the seizure. A doctor will be able to understand more about a seizure from a video than from someone's description of the seizure.
4. Know what resources are available to you. MAKE THE CONNECTION is a good place to start your research about resources available to veterans.
5. Develop an emergency plan for your family. Your emergency plan should begin with your immediate registration with the Department of Veteran Affairs. If you develop PTE, life will change for you and your family. You may not be able to return to work for an extended period of time. Create and fund an emergency financial account. America's financial guru, Dave Ramsey, suggests a financial emergency fund of 3 to 6 months of expenses. Your emergency plan should also include child care, transportation, and a home health care-giver. Your emergency plan should also include contacting and getting to know the Epilepsy Foundation that serves your area.
Remember...the more you know, the better prepared you will be. The more prepared you are, the greater the likelihood that you and your family will remain safe.
1. Get screened for TBI. Even if you were not struck in the head by anything, you may have suffered an mTBI (concussion). The energy blast alone from an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) can be enough to cause a TBI. At a minimum, use an online TBI screening tool to help you make an informed decision about whether or not you want to get a formal screening.
2. Know the symptoms of TBI. Also make sure your family knows and understands the symptoms and are able to recognize them. Review these symptoms with your family often. Remember, sometimes your family is better able to recognize when something is wrong than you are.
3. Know how to administer First Aid for seizures and make sure your family is well-trained in seizure First Aid. Many doctors are now asking that in addition to applying First Aid for seizures, someone should video the seizure. A doctor will be able to understand more about a seizure from a video than from someone's description of the seizure.
4. Know what resources are available to you. MAKE THE CONNECTION is a good place to start your research about resources available to veterans.
5. Develop an emergency plan for your family. Your emergency plan should begin with your immediate registration with the Department of Veteran Affairs. If you develop PTE, life will change for you and your family. You may not be able to return to work for an extended period of time. Create and fund an emergency financial account. America's financial guru, Dave Ramsey, suggests a financial emergency fund of 3 to 6 months of expenses. Your emergency plan should also include child care, transportation, and a home health care-giver. Your emergency plan should also include contacting and getting to know the Epilepsy Foundation that serves your area.
Remember...the more you know, the better prepared you will be. The more prepared you are, the greater the likelihood that you and your family will remain safe.