Well That Hit Different

One moment, you’re driving to work like any other morning. The next moment, your car is rolling down the highway, and everything changes.

In this episode, Sarah shares the story of the accident that caused her traumatic brain injury and the long recovery that followed. From the immediate aftermath of the crash to months of rehabilitation, including physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, neurofeedback, vision therapy, and more, this episode explores what traumatic brain injury really looks like beyond the moment of impact.

Sarah and Crystal also break down the science behind TBIs, common misconceptions about concussions, why symptoms are often invisible, and why recovery is rarely a straight line. They discuss how brain injuries affect cognition, emotions, identity, and daily life, and how family members and friends can better support someone during recovery.

This episode was created in recognition of Traumatic Brain Injury Awareness Month and aims to increase understanding of injuries that often go unseen but deeply affect the people living with them.

Helpful Resources:

- Brain Injury Association of America – https://biausa.org
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention TBI resources – https://www.cdc.gov/traumaticbraininjury
- American Academy of Neurology – https://www.aan.com

Disclaimer

This episode discusses personal experiences and psychological research related to traumatic brain injury. The information shared is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or replace professional medical or mental health care. If you believe you may have experienced a traumatic brain injury, please consult a qualified healthcare professional.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Welcome back to the dollhouse.

SPEAKER_00 0:01

I'm Crystal and I'm Sarah and we are in a doll.

music 0:25

I didn't believe uplauding your wicked little plan.

SPEAKER_00 0:32

Sometimes your life changes in a matter of seconds. One moment you're driving to work thinking about normal things people think about, and the next moment your car is rolling down the highway and you're wondering if you're about to die. In March, we recognize traumatic brain injury awareness month. When people hear the term brain injury, they often imagine dramatic scenes from movies or professional athletes getting concussions. But the reality is that brain injuries happen in everyday moments, in ordinary moments to ordinary people. This episode is about traumatic brain injury. It's about what happens to the brain during a crash, why symptoms are often invisible, and how recovery can affect not just the body, but memory, mood, and identity.

SPEAKER_01 1:15

Before we begin this episode, I want to provide a brief content warning. Today's episode discusses traumatic brain injury and includes a personal account of a serious car accident. The story contains descriptions of a motor vehicle crash and the moments immediately following the incident. Listener discretion is advice, especially for anyone who may be sensitive to discussions of accidents, trauma, or medical emergencies. This episode is intended for educational and awareness purposes as part of the Traumatic Brain Injury Awareness Month. We will be discussing research and psychological concepts related to brain injuries, but this podcast is not providing medical or clinical advice. If you have experienced a traumatic brain injury or believe you may have symptoms related to one of these, please consider speaking with a qualified healthcare professional.

SPEAKER_00 2:08

Before we get into the science of traumatic brain injuries, I want to start by sharing what happened to me. This is a Facebook post shortly after the event. I wrote to help get my thoughts and feelings out in case I needed it for later. I was on my way to work around 4 a.m. when I saw you were about to merge into my lane. I tried to move to the left lane. I figured you didn't see me, but all I saw was your headlights. In crunch, you hit me. I started going to the barrier, but I tried to adjust to the right to stay on the road, and next thing I know, I was rolling. In my head, all I can think was, oh my god, this is it. I pressed my knees to the dashboard to help push myself against my seat in hopes it would stop me from hitting my head on the hood. I was staying alert to how far the hood was coming in on me. My hands never left the steering wheel. I thought about my boys and how I might never get to see them growing up, and then my car stopped rolling. I was laying on my door and the car was still running. I quickly pressed the brake and put the put it in park and then turned it off. Tried to find my phone, but it wasn't attached to the cord, and I had turned it off prior to leaving the house because it wouldn't connect to my music. I stopped looking for it and stood up and tried to push open the passenger door. Glass in my hair, all the airbags deployed, and I can feel the glass in my teeth, but the door wouldn't budge. I looked towards the back of the car where I saw Lucas and Quinn's car seat and thanked God that they weren't with me. I sat back down because I knew going through the back would nearly be nearly impossible with all the debris and not knowing if the car was leaking any fluids. I put my feet on the edge of the windshield, one at the bottom left corner and one at the top facing my door. With all my strength, I kicked it using my seat as leverage with three good kicks I gave loose and I was able to bend it open like a door and quickly crawled out. In that second, all I thought was, Oh my god, I hope the other car is okay. I need to find them and make sure they're fine. I rushed out around my car and quickly realized I was alone and no cars in sight. I yelled out, fucking bastard. I checked my car and saw nothing leaking, so I went and tried to find my phone, grabbed out my gym bag and purse, but couldn't find it. I heard a car coming and hoped it was them coming back, so I ran out to the road and tried to flag them down. No one stopped for 10 minutes. Finally, I saw a little car pull over at the center of the road on the opposite way, and as he came out of the car, I yelled, Do you have a phone? Call 911. I was hit and they left. While he called the cops, I went looking for my phone, panicking because I had the keys to open our building for work and no one would be able to get in and open. And I didn't have anyone's number due to my phone being missing. I used the phone I used his phone to contact my husband and let him know I would need to be driven to work to drop off my keys. And at that time I didn't feel pain, I just needed to get my keys to work. I Googled the base security forces number on the cop's phone and called them to get my shirt's number. Called him to get a hold of someone else since I couldn't open. Two other people had pulled over before the cop came, and one happened to be a nurse. She was telling me that I shouldn't be walking around in a sit-down, and my body was probably in shock. She seemed surprised I was even alive. Finally, paramedics came and I almost turned them down because I needed to get my keys to work. But they insisted that I came to verify I didn't have any internal injuries, and that my leadership was handling it. Even in one of the worst situations of my life, I still cared about the others' car safety, making sure my co-workers weren't stranded in and that Airmen would be able to eat in time for breakfast. I cried in the hospital when they wouldn't let my husband back because he had the boys and they couldn't come back either. This was post-COVID. I just almost lost my life and I couldn't have my family with me. Fortunately, my manager came to see if I was okay and watched the boys so my husband could come back. My husband had gone to the site and took pictures, found my phone. It wasn't even shattered, and grabbed the other items I would need for work. I fortunately didn't have severe injuries and would most likely need to see a chiropractor and possible physical therapy psych for things that didn't heal properly. My husband told me they found your bumper with the plate and ran it. I have your name, I found okay, this is me t trying to talk to the actual person because that kind of switched sounds for weird. And I keep in mind I was post accident, so. I had your name, I found you on Facebook. I know your birthday was the night before you hit me. I assumed you were drunk and didn't bother to look before merging into me. You have a family too. I wish you would have cared the slightest before leaving me in a bashed up vehicle to die. Fortunately for someone fortunately for me, someone was with me that night and kept me safe for the circumstances. It's a miracle I survived that accident. I rolled multiple times and time moved so slow. My life matters. My husband almost lost his wife, my kids a mother. I dedicated my life to the military and deployed three times and served almost twelve years at that point. I honestly don't know how to feel because it is so surreal, just like a nightmare, but with real pain. Knowing you're out there with no care while I'm here, hope hoping insurance really does cover my rental, the loans that I still have out on it, the bank holds true to the gap insurance, the cops know who you are and are starting an investigation, so it's a matter of time before you get caught. Have a lot to do in the next couple of days to get my life together and back on track. Hope your birthday was fun, and I hope to see you behind bars on your next. I had to write this somewhere for my own healing and reflection to move forward. I pray you get the justice you deserve.

SPEAKER_01 8:20

After hearing that story, I think the first thing most people would assume is that if someone survives a crash like that and is able to walk away, then the worst part is over. But that's actually where a lot of misunderstanding starts with brain injuries, because we tend to think of injuries as things we can see: a broken arm, a cut, something that shows up immediately and clearly. Brain injuries are different. A person can survive something incredibly violent, like a rollover crash, and still look relatively normal on the outside. They can talk, they can walk, they can even go home the same day. But that doesn't necessarily mean their brain didn't experience trauma. And that's part of why traumatic brain injuries are often called invisible injuries. You can't always see them happening, and sometimes the symptoms don't show up right away.

SPEAKER_00 9:11

MART is recognized as traumatic brain brain injury. Well, I do have a brain injury. MART is recognized as traumatic brain injury awareness month. And the goal of that awareness campaign is to help people understand just how common these injuries actually are. Millions of people experience traumatic brain injuries every year. Some are caused by falls, others by car accidents, sport injuries, or physical assaults. And many of them are classified as what Madison calls mild traumatic brain injuries, which include concussions. But the word mild can be misleading. In medical classification, mild refers to the initial presentation of the injury, not necessarily the long-term impact on someone's life.

SPEAKER_01 9:55

That's something I think a lot of people misunderstand. Because when people hear the word mild, they tend to assume it means the injury isn't serious. But in reality, it just means certain clinical criteria were met at the same time of the injury. Someone can still experience weeks or months of symptoms after what doctors call a mild traumatic brain injury. And that's where awareness becomes really important because if people assume someone is fine just because they survived the accident or because they weren't unconscious for a long time, they may not recognize the symptoms that can come afterwards.

SPEAKER_00 10:30

Traumatic brain injury occurs when an external force causes the brain to move rapidly in the skull. The brain is not fixed in place. It sits in cerebral spinal fluid, which can help cushion it. But during a sudden impact or rapid acceleration and deceleration, like in a vehicle crash, the brain can shift inside the skull. That movement can stretch or damage delicate neural connections. And those connections are responsible for how we think, process information, regulate emotion, and coordinate movement. So even if there's no visible external injury, the brain may still be experiencing microscopic changes that affect how those symptoms function.

SPEAKER_01 11:06

Which is why someone might leave the hospital looking physically okay, but then starts noticing changes later. Maybe they feel more fatigued than usual, maybe they're having trouble concentrating, maybe sounds or lights suddenly feel overwhelming, or their emotions feel harder to regulate. And those experiences can be confusing because from the outside, everything may appear normal, but internally the brain is still recovering from the trauma it experienced.

SPEAKER_00 11:33

Understanding traumatic brain injury means recognizing that recovery isn't immediate and it isn't always visible. The brain is an incredibly complex organ, and when it experiences trauma, the effects can extend far beyond the moment of the accident itself, which is why awareness matters, because recognizing the signs early can help people seek appropriate care and support during recovery.

SPEAKER_01 11:55

So before we talk about symptoms or recovery, it probably makes sense to start with the basic question. What happens to the brain during a traumatic brain injury?

SPEAKER_00 12:04

A lot. A lot.

SPEAKER_01 12:08

So when people hear the words traumatic brain injury, I think a lot of us imagine something very dramatic. We picture someone hitting their head extremely hard or losing consciousness immediately. But what surprised me when I started learning about this is that a brain injury doesn't always require a direct blow to the head. It can happen simply because of the force of motion and something like a car crash, especially a rollover, the body and the brain are in experiencing rapid acceleration and deceleration. Everything is moving violently in different directions in a very short amount of time. And the brain, even though it's protected by the skull, is still vulnerable to that movement. So someone might walk away from the accident thinking they're okay, but they didn't necessarily hit their head directly. But the brain itself may still have experienced trauma inside the skull.

SPEAKER_00 12:59

A traumatic brain injury, often abbreviated as TBI, occurs when an external force disrupts the normal functioning of the brain. That force can come from a direct blow, a sudden jolt, rapid acceleration, or penetrating injury. In vehicle crashes, especially high impact collisions or rollovers, the mechanism is often what we call acceleration de-acceleration injury. The brain is suspended inside the skull in the cerebral spinal fluid. The fluid acts as a cushion, but it doesn't completely stop movement. During a sudden impact, the skull stops moving much faster than the brain does. As a result, the brain can shift, rotate, or strike the inside of the skull. This movement can stretch or tear delicate neural connections known as axons, which are responsible for transmitting information between brain cells. When those connections are disrupted, communication between different parts of the brain can be less efficient.

SPEAKER_01 13:51

So the brain is essentially being shaken inside the skull. And even though the skull itself might not be fractured, the brain tissue and the connection between neurons can still be affected. That helps explain why someone might not have obvious physical injuries but can still experience cognitive or emotional changes afterwards. Because the brain isn't just one structure, it's an entire network of systems that have to communicate with each other constantly.

SPEAKER_00 14:21

TBIs are generally classified into three broad categories: mild, moderate, and severe. The classification is based on factors like the level of consciousness, neurological symptoms, and the duration of confusion or disorientation after the injury. A mild traumatic brain injury, which includes most concussions, may involve a brief change in mental status, confusion, dizziness, or memory disruption. Moderate traumatic brain injury may involve longer periods of confusion or loss of consciousness, and severe traumatic brain injury often includes extending unconsciousness or significant neurological impairment. However, it's important to remember that these classifications refer primarily to initial clinical presentation, not necessarily the long-term experience of a person who was injured.

SPEAKER_01 15:04

Because someone might hear the term mild brain injury and assume that the effects will also be mild. That isn't always how recovery works. Some people recover quickly while others may experience symptoms that last weeks or even months. And sometimes the most challenging part isn't the injury itself, it's understanding what happens afterwards. Because the symptoms can be subtle at first. You might just feel tired or foggy or like something is slightly off. And if you've just survived a major accident, it might be hard to tell which feelings are normal stress and which might actually be related to the brain recovering from trauma.

SPEAKER_00 15:40

In addition to the initial mechanical injury, the brain can also experience what is known as secondary injury processes. These are physiological changes that occur in the hours or days after the initial trauma. They can include inflammation, changes in blood flow, metabolic disruption, and chemical imbalances within the brain cells. After a TBI, the brain may temporarily struggle to regulate energy efficiently. Neurons require large amounts of energy to maintain normal function, and when those symptoms are disrupted, the brain may become more vulnerable to overstimulation or fatigue. This is part of the reason why cognitive tasks like concentrating, processing information, or making decisions can feel more difficult during recovery.

SPEAKER_01 16:24

So it's a it's not just the moment of the crash that matters. There's an entire biological response happening afterwards as the brain tries to stabilize itself, which helps explain why symptoms sometimes appear later rather than immediate. So it might feel relatively okay at first, but then hours or days later start noticing headaches, difficulty concentrating, or unusual fatigue. And that delay can make it harder for people to connect the symptoms to the injury.

SPEAKER_00 16:53

The days after my stuff started with mental fog, and I just kind of want to talk about the symptoms just a little bit for me before I jump into the education piece. I had mental fog, I had a lapse in memory. Like people I worked with every single day for like the last couple years, I was forgetting what their names were. And then I was just I was sore, of course, from the actual accident and all that stuff, but I just kept noticing that I was having a hard time concentrating, having a hard time paying attention. I was very sleepy, very tired. Assumed it was from the accident. Obviously, it was from the accident, but you know what I mean, like just normal ouches or soreness. Because I've been in an accident before that. But, anyways, when I actually went to the hospital, I almost had like strolly symptoms. I could barely talk, I was like drooling on myself, barely walk, and it was it was really rough. And that's one of the reasons education and awareness is so important. Recognizing the mechanisms of the brain injury helps people understand that recovering is not always immediate and that symptoms may evolve over time. Understanding what happens biologically can also help reduce the confusion, frustration many people experience during the early stages of recovery. And I'm gonna tell you, I had the hardest mental health, roughest months during the following months after that, because I went from being somebody who was very independent to barely being able to get clothes on. I could barely walk straight. I if you talked to me, you probably would have thought I was higher drunk like all the time because of just how bad my speech was. Like it's funny, it's funny retrospectively, yes. And I'm okay with you, it's okay. Because I mean it's it's funny now, but like at the time, it's like the I was I was wishing I did not make it sometimes, and that's sad. Um to be honest.

SPEAKER_01 18:37

In case you needed to know that.

SPEAKER_00 18:39

Yes, it's it was it's hard, it's a hard recovery.

SPEAKER_01 18:42

Yeah, and and that leads into another major part of traumatic brain injuries that people often misunderstand. A lot of the most common symptoms aren't visible at all from the outside. Someone may look completely normal, but internally their brain may still be dealing with the effects of the trauma. So the next thing we should probably talk about is the symptoms that people don't see. And one of the things that makes traumatic brain injuries so difficult for people to understand is that many of the most common symptoms aren't visible. When someone breaks a bone, you can see the cast. When someone has stitches, you can see the wound. But with brain injuries, someone might look completely normal from the outside. They may be able to walk, talk, hold a conversation. And because of that, people sometimes assume that the person must be okay. But internally, the brain may still be trying to recover from major neurological disruption. And that recovery can affect things people rarely associate with injury. Things like memory, attention, emotional regulation, and sensory processing.

SPEAKER_00 19:47

Many symptoms of TBIs fall into several broadcast, or I'm sorry, broad categories: cognitive, physical, emotional, and sensory. Cognitive symptoms can include difficulty concentrating, slow thinking, memory problems, and what many people describe as brain fog. The brain relies on networks of neurons communicating rapidly with one another. When those connections are disrupted, even one at microscopic levels, the efficiency of that communication can change. As a result, tasks that previously felt automatic may suddenly require more effort. Reading, processing information, and multitasking can become mentally exhausting. And I'm gonna tell you, like right after the accident and I was finding out that it is a TVI, I wasn't even allowed to really be watching TV. That's where I actually started doing and getting into art and like redoing, started getting into making cups and stuff. Because I wasn't able to watch TV and I listened to a lot of things and started listening to more podcasts. So here we are. You're welcome.

SPEAKER_01 20:50

And the evil, the evil origin stories.

SPEAKER_00 20:53

Right, exactly.

SPEAKER_01 20:55

And that can be really disorienting for someone who was functioning normally before the injury because suddenly things that used to be easy take more time or require more focus. You might forget small details more often, you might lose track of what you were doing, or you might feel mentally drained much faster than you used to. And from the outside, people may not realize how much extra effort it takes just to do ordinary things.

SPEAKER_00 21:22

Physical symptoms are also common after traumatic brain injury. These can include headaches, dizziness, nausea, balance problem, and sensitivity to light or sound. The vestibular system, which helps regulate balance and spatulorientation, can be affected during a brain injury. When that system is disrupted, people may experience instability, vertigo, or difficulty coordinating movement. Fatigue is another frequent reported symptom. The brain uses a significant amount of the body's energy to function, and during recovery, the energy demands may increase. As a result, individuals recovering from brain injuries often experience cognitive fatigue where mental activity becomes exhaustive. Sustained much more quickly than it did before. And that is that is accurate. Like for real. Coming from somebody who has one.

SPEAKER_01 22:08

And fatigue like that isn't the same as just feeling tired. It's more like your brain reaches a limit and suddenly it feels like everything slows down. Thinking gets harder, concentrating gets harder. Even conversations can become draining. And that can be frustrating, especially if the person recovering from the injury is used to being very active or mentally engaged, because they may want to keep functioning the way they did before, but their brain is still healing.

SPEAKER_00 22:36

Emotional and psychological symptoms can also occur after a traumatic brain injury. Changes in mood, irritability, anxiety, depression are not uncommon. Part of this can be related to the injury itself, particularly if the areas of the brain involved in emotional regulation are affected. The frontal lobe, for example, plays an important role in impulse control, decision-making, and emotional filtering. If neural pathways in these regions are disrupted, emotional responses may become more intense or harder to regulate temporarily. In addition, the experience of trauma such as surviving a serious accident can also contribute to emotional reaction recovery uh during recovery, excuse me.

SPEAKER_01 23:14

Which makes sense because surviving something like a rollover crash isn't just a physical event. It's also a psychological one. Your brain has to process the shock of what happened, the fear in that moment, and the realization afterward that things could have ended very differently. So the recovery process can involve both the neurological healing and emotional processing at the same time.

SPEAKER_00 23:36

Sensory changes are another category that people often don't expect. After a traumatic brain injury, some individuals experience increased sensitivity to light, sound, or visual movement. Busy environments, bright lights, or loud spaces may feel overwhelming. This occurs because the brain's sensory processing systems may be temporarily less efficient at filtering incoming stimuli. In other words, the brain may have more difficulty deciding which sensory signals are important and which ones should be ignored. After mine, I know I had a lot, I had a hard time with watching movies because at the at the theater, because there's so much going on. And I also couldn't play video games for a long time. I still have a hard time playing video games. I have a lot of action without getting a migraine or sick still. And it's been and that happened in May of 21. Anyways.

SPEAKER_01 24:23

And then when that filtering system isn't working the way it normally does, everyday environments can suddenly feel overstimulating. Something as simple as a crowded store or a noisy room might become exhausting, which can be confusing for people around you because they may not understand why something that used to feel normal suddenly feels overwhelming. And like just kids in general, too. That extra overwhelming noise.

SPEAKER_00 24:53

Oh yeah. And and I my boys were at the time, I think 21. Trying to do quick math, five and three. Oh yeah. So like that overwhelming just would have been over. Oh yeah, no. It was it was a lot. It was a lot. I'm still crying about it. And that's why traumatic brain injuries are often referred to as vis invisible injuries. The person recovering may look physically okay, but their brain may still be adjusting to changes and how it processes information, regulates emotions, and responds to sensory input, recognizing these symptoms is an important part of supporting recovery.

SPEAKER_01 25:31

Yeah, and when those systems change, even temporarily, it can affect something deeper than just physical symptoms. It can affect how someone experiences themselves. Because when the brain changes the way it processes emotions, decisions, and interactions, it can sometimes feel like your sense of identity has shifted too. So the next thing we should probably talk about is how brain injuries can affect personality and identity. One of the reasons traumatic brain injuries are misunderstood is because most of us learned about them from movies, sports highlights, or quick news clips. And in those situations, the injuries usually look dramatic. Someone gets hit, they lose consciousness, they wake up confused, and the story moves forward. But in reality, brain injuries don't always look like that. A person might never lose consciousness at all. They might stand up, talk normally, and even feel mostly okay in the first few minutes after the event. So people sometimes assume that if someone didn't black out or they were able to walk away, then the injury must not have been serious. But that assumption doesn't really match what we know about how concussions or traumatic brain injuries actually work.

SPEAKER_00 26:45

One of the most common misconceptions about concussions is that the person must lose consciousness for the injury to occur. In reality, many people who experience concussions never lose consciousness. I didn't. A concussion is considered a form of mild traumatic brain injury and is occurs when a sudden force causes the brain to move rapidly inside the school. That movement can disrupt normal brain function even without a direct impact to the head. So someone can experience a concussion simply from rapid acceleration or deacceleration, like what occurs during a car accident. That also includes like whiplash if you were to stop your car fast. Some people can end up getting a concussion just from like if you had to slam on your brakes, even if somebody doesn't actually hit you from behind or whatever, or you hit somebody.

SPEAKER_01 27:29

Well, just from jerking your neck can move your entire brain in there because your brain's basically just like floating in there, like a like a ship in a bottle, or like a rubber ducky in the brain.

SPEAKER_00 27:42

I didn't know, I didn't know before this, like that your brain can rotate too in there.

SPEAKER_01 27:47

And I was like, You can get internally decapitated. Yeah, I saw that. It just says it separates in there.

SPEAKER_00 27:53

All right.

SPEAKER_01 27:58

It's probably not what they realize, but when we think about what brain injuries, we tend to picture someone hitting their head on something, like a rollover crash, the force involved are affecting the entire body and the brain at the same time. So even if someone didn't strike their head directly, the brain can still experience significant movement.

SPEAKER_00 28:20

I'm sorry, I kind of started laughing a little bit there because I just was thinking about how when I was rolling, I had my gym bag on the side, and that hit me on the way back, like when we were rolling. So like I was like, I didn't get my head hit on no, I didn't hit it hit my head on the window or anything, and I didn't go unconscious. But like I originally thought it was the gym bag that caused the injury, but I could be wrong. It could have just been the initial spin, anyways. But you know, who knows? It was always a jungle of jello in there. Yeah, I was gonna say I was getting egg beaten. They're making me into a cake, anyways. Another misconception is that if the brain image appears normal, then the brain must be fine, because that's what happened to me. Most concussions do not show visible dis listen to this, listen, listen, Lisa, listen. Listen, listen, Linda. Listen, Lisa, Lisa, listen. I got some I got some I got some stuffs for use. Most con concussions do not show visible damage on standard CT scans or MRI images. Say that louder for people in the back. That's because the changes occur in the brain after concussions are often microscopic or metabolic rather than structural. The injury can involve stretching of neural pathways, changing in how the brain cells regulate energy, and temporary disruptions are in communication between neurons. These changes affect how the brain functions, even if they are not visible on traditional imaging.

SPEAKER_01 29:42

So someone might go to the hospital, get imaging done, and hear that everything looks normal. And while that can be a reassuring in terms of ruling out things like bleeding or major structural damage, it doesn't necessarily mean the brain wasn't affected. It just means the type of injury may not be visible with those tools.

SPEAKER_00 30:02

They told me I bruised my brain. And I'm like, uh, that's internal bleeding, but what do I know? But I was fine, I was at home.

SPEAKER_01 30:09

Yeah, bruising is caused from bleeding, so that's uh I mean like broken blood vessels is is a bruise.

SPEAKER_00 30:16

It makes sense. So, but you know, some people don't catch things. You know, we're just we're just normal people doing a podcast. Uh another myth is that recovery from concussion should be quick and straightforward. Many people assume symptoms should disappear within a few days. For some individuals, that is true, but for others, symptoms can persist for weeks or months and is what is known as post-concussion syndrome. The symptoms can include headache, dizziness, cognitive fatigue, difficulty concentrating, mood changes, and sleep disturbance. Recovery timelines can vary depending on factors such as severity of the injury, previous injuries, and overall health, and the types of rehabilitation a person receives. I'm going to tell you from experience that mine is still obviously in recovery, and I've had to do a lot, which I'll talk about later. Again, the recovery time, it it varies. I was post-concussion syndrome for a while and still technically can be considered that.

SPEAKER_01 31:12

And I think that variability can be really frustrating for people because when there isn't a clear timeline, it can feel like you're waiting for something that you can't predict. Some days you might feel better, other days you might feel like you've taken a step backwards. And that unpredictability can make it difficult for both the person recovering and the people around them to understand what the process looks like.

SPEAKER_00 31:35

Another misconception is that concussions are primarily sports injuries. While sports-related concussions receive a lot of media attention, most traumatic brain injuries can occur in everyday situations. Falls is actually the most common, particularly among children and older adults. Motor vehicle crashes are another major contributor. Workplace accidents and physical assaults also account for significant portions of traumatic brain injuries as well. So while athletes often bring visibility to the issue, brain injuries affect people across all ages and environments.

SPEAKER_01 32:06

Which is important to remember because it means that it isn't just an issue for athletes or people in high-risk professions. It can happen to someone on their way to work early in the morning, it can happen during a routine activity, and when it does, the person experiencing it may suddenly find themselves trying to understand something that most of us have never really learned about. And that's where recovery becomes one of the most complicated parts of the process because brain injuries don't always follow a predictable timeline. Some symptoms improve quickly, while others take longer and linger. So the next thing we should talk about is why recovery from a traumatic brain injury is rarely a straight line. So when most people think about healing, they imagine a steady improvement over time. You get injured, you rest, and gradually things return to normal. But brain injuries don't often work that way. Someone might feel better for a few days and then suddenly experience headaches again. They might have a day where their thinking feels clear, and then another where the concentration feels much harder. So recovery can sometimes feel unpredictable, and that unpredictability can make people question whether something is wrong with their recovery when in reality it's a very common part of the process.

SPEAKER_00 33:25

Recovery from TBIs involves both neurological healing and physiological regulation. After an injury, the brain may experience what researchers sometimes describe as metabolic imbalance. Neurons require a significant amount of energy to function, and after trauma, the brain may temporarily struggle to regulate energy efficiently. At the same time, the brain is working to restore communication between neural networks that may have been disrupted during the injury. This combination can make the brain be more vulnerable to fatigue and overstimulation during that recovery period.

SPEAKER_01 33:57

So the brain is essentially doing extra work just to maintain normal function, which means that activities that used to feel easy might suddenly require much more energy. Something like reading, working on a computer, having long conversations, or being in a busy environment can be exhausting, much faster than it used to. And that doesn't necessarily mean the person is doing something wrong. It simply means the brain is still in the process of stabilizing.

SPEAKER_00 34:27

Yes, I feel like I definitely still like I used to be, I feel like more extroverted and extroversion in the sense of how much energy you get or take from a crowd. That's what extroversion and introversion is, by the way. If you're getting, if in this is just a little a lesson and a lesson. If you have a low dose of energy after going out in public, then you're more likely in the the rest, you're more likely an introvert. If you get excited and ready for an after party and get pumped up when you're in a crowded situation, you're more likely an extrovert. It's not somebody that's just not sociable, don't like people, stuff like that. But I feel like I became introverted a lot more because having conversations and having to think and do all these things mentally is it was like acrobat and very draining. Yeah. And cognitive fatigue is one of the most frequently reported experiences during brain injury recovery. Unlike physical fatigue, cognitive fatigue occurs when mental activity places too much demand on the brain's processing systems. This can lead to symptoms such as slowed thinking, difficulty concentrating, irritability, headaches, or sudden feeling of mental exhaustion. I get irritable so much more lately, and I really don't like it, but I'm working on it. I am working on it. And she knows because I with this too. I get count how many times in this thing you can tell well, we get irritated. How many times you too, because when you mess up on words and we have to go back, it's like you can hear a little bit like tone of voice. I don't know if you're trying to be emphasizing or if you're angry.

SPEAKER_01 36:02

Both. Both a little bit.

SPEAKER_00 36:07

And honestly, this is why sometimes I don't edit out some of these little key keys because I have a brain injury and she's got ADHD most likely if she's not formally diagnosed. But but I don't. Um yeah, okay. I was like, but anyways.

SPEAKER_01 36:22

Ten years ago. I think you still have to like I think you have to go back and get like retested every so often, right?

SPEAKER_00 36:28

I don't know. That's no that's not a thing. That's not really how it works, but I mean you It's not how it works.

SPEAKER_01 36:39

You don't just heal from it.

SPEAKER_00 36:40

You don't, unfortunately. So you you help with the symptoms. Oh you get you help you do things for the symptoms. But anyways. When the brain reaches that threshold, continuing to push through the activity may temporarily worsen symptoms. For that reason, many rehabilitation approaches emphasize pacing and gradual reintroduction of cognitive tasks.

SPEAKER_01 37:00

Which can be difficult for people who are used to pushing through challenges. If someone has spent years being productive, active, and capable, suddenly having to slow down can feel frustrating. You might want to keep doing everything you used to do, but your brain may need time to rebuild the capacity for those activities. So learning to recognize those limits becomes part of the recovery process. Because you don't want to push yourself too hard because then you're just overdoing it.

SPEAKER_00 37:29

You know, it's yeah, you can make it worse. It's gotta take your time. I am who I am, so don't just recovery takes time. Oh I'm still trying to rush it. Yeah, you are. Overstimulation can also occur during recovery. The brain constantly processes sensory information, light, sound, movement, and visual input. After a traumatic brain injury, the brain may temporarily have difficulty filtering that incoming information. As a result, environments that are busy or noisy can feel overwhelming. This can include places like grocery stores, crowded restaurants, or even right office environments. Limiting exposure to overstimulating environments early in recovery may help reduce symptom flare-ups.

SPEAKER_01 38:09

And that can sometimes make recovery feel isolating because the environments we normally spend time in workplaces, social gatherings, public spaces, are often full of sensory input. So someone recovering from a brain injury might have to adjust their routine in ways that they never expected. They might need quieter environments, more breaks, and shorter periods of activities. And that adjustment can take time.

SPEAKER_00 38:35

Which is unfortunate because I was in the military, so you don't really slow down. I did fortunately get, I think that was two months before I could return to work, but even when I returned to work, I wasn't allowed to drive. Unfortunately, the military doesn't necessarily understand these type of injuries very well. You'd think they would, but if you're hurt, you're not really important to them anymore.

SPEAKER_01 38:56

They just toss me to the side like I was job flavored.

SPEAKER_00 38:59

They do. They get up. Unfortunately, unfortunately, like you joke, but like I was I was told after I'd gotten out or I was about to get out, or it that a lot of people that I worked with were saying, because I wasn't presenting like you think you would with an injury like that, people thought I was faking it and making it more than what it actually was, and it was not true. And you know how hurtful that felt after the fact, especially since the first thing that I thought about was getting the keys to them to make sure that we were able to open up on time, and then for them to just be like, hmm, nah, she's faking it. Yeah, because I rolling in my car three times isn't gonna cause any damage. Another important factor, though, is that the brain heals at different rates depending on the individual and the nature of the injury. Some people recover quickly while others may require more time and rehabilitations. Factors such as previous brain injuries, which I had, overall health, which I found out after the fact, anyways, overall health, age, and access treatment can influence recovery process. Because of this variability, recovery timelines are often difficult to predict.

SPEAKER_01 40:07

Which means comparing recovery to someone else's experience can sometimes be misleading. Two people could experience similar accidents and still have very different recovery paths. One person might feel back to normal relatively quickly, while another might need months of rehabilitation and support. And that difference doesn't mean one person is stronger or weaker. It simply reflects how complex the brain really is. So one thing I think surprises a lot of people about brain injuries is how many different parts of the body and mind can be affected. Because when we hear the word brain injury, we tend to imagine something very specific, maybe headaches, maybe memory problems. But the brain is responsible for so many systems at once. It controls balance, coordination, vision, emotional regulation, attention, speech, and even how we process sensory information. So when the brain experiences trauma, recovery may often involve working on several different systems at the same time. And that's why treatment for the brain injury often involves a team of specialists, not just a single doctor.

SPEAKER_00 41:18

Rehabilitation after TBIs is often described as multidisciplinary care. That means different healthcare professionals working together to address the various ways the injury may affect the brain and body. Depending on the symptoms someone experiences, treatment may involve neurologists, physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech language pathologists, vision specialists, mental health professionals, and other rehabilitation providers. I was seeing eight doctors a week. And that's not to count like where I had to do the physical therapy, balance therapy at least twice, maybe three times a week, depending. I think it was three times a week at first. So the goal of this approach is to help the brain gradually rebuild functions, strengthen neural pathways, and support individuals in returning to everyday activity as safely as possible, but having the team kind of communicating with each other. Fortunately for me, when I was in the military, I was able to be seen at the Intrepid Spirit Center on base, and it was absolutely amazing. There it was an amazing team. And I'm grateful to have that.

SPEAKER_01 42:23

And for someone going through that process, it can feel very different from what people imagine recovery looks like. Because recovery doesn't always mean just resting at home and waiting to feel better. It can involve structured therapy sessions, exercises, and strategies designed to help the brain relearn certain skills. In some ways, it can feel similar to physical rehabilitation after a major injury, except instead of retraining muscles, you're often retraining systems in the brain.

SPEAKER_00 42:55

Many individuals recovering from TBIs work with physical therapists. Physical therapists can help address balance issues, coordination problems, and dizziness related to vestibular systems. The vestibular system helps the brain interpret movement and spatulal orientation. And disruptions in this system can lead to instability or vertigo. Therapy exercises can help retrain those systems so the brain can more effectively interpret signals related to balance and movement.

SPEAKER_01 43:28

But when the brain is responsible for coordinating movement and spatual awareness, it makes sense that those systems can be affected. So therapy might involve exercise designed to retrain the brain's ability to stabilize the body and interpret movement correctly.

SPEAKER_00 43:46

Another important form of rehabilitation is occupational therapy. Occupational therapists focus on helping individuals regain the ability to perform everyday tasks. This can include activities like organizing routines, managing daily responsibilities. Or adapting tasks so that it places less stress on the recovering brain. The goal is to help individuals rebuild independence and confidence in their daily functioning.

SPEAKER_01 44:10

And that's something people might not realize either. Because when cognitive fatigue and attention issues are present, even normal tasks can suddenly require more planning and energy than they used to. So occupational therapy can help people find ways to manage those challenges while their brain continues to heal.

SPEAKER_00 44:30

Speech therapy is another rehabilitation approach commonly used after traumatic brain injury. While many people associate speech therapy with language or articulation difficulties in brain injury, it often focuses on cognitive communication skills. This can include memory strategies, attention training, problem-solving skills, and techniques to help improve information processing. Because the brain's communication networks may have been disrupted. Therapy can help strengthen those pathways through structured exercise and cognitive training. All the ones we are talking about, I have been through.

SPEAKER_01 45:03

So speech therapy isn't always about how someone speaks. Sometimes it's about how the brain processes information, organizes thoughts, and communicates effectively. Which again shows how complex brain recovery can be.

SPEAKER_00 45:19

Some individuals also receive treatment from neurooptometrists, which was me. I didn't wear glasses before the accident but to read, and now I have to wear them all the time. The visual system involves both the eyes and the brain working together to process visual information. After a TBI, some individuals experience change in visual processing, depth perception, or eye coordination. Neurooptometrist therapy can help retrain those systems and improve visual function.

SPEAKER_01 45:44

And that's something that can be surprising too, because someone might not have had vision problems before the injury, but afterwards they suddenly need corrective lenses or visual therapy. Which again shows how interconnected the brain systems really are.

SPEAKER_00 45:59

Other treatment approaches may include neurofeedback, which is a technique designed to help the individuals regulate patterns of the brain activity. By providing feedback about brainwaves activity in real time, neurofeedback training may help some individuals improve attention, emotional regulation, and cognitive stability. Nutrition can also play a role in recovery. Working with dietitians can help ensure the brain is receiving the nutrients it needs to support healing and energy regulation. Mental health support is also important as a component of recovery since surviving a traumatic event and adjusting to neurological changes can affect emotional well-being. Some individuals have benefit from art therapy, which provides creative outlet for processing trauma and emotions that may be difficult to express verbally. I did have art therapy. It was absolutely amazing. It did help me get back into being more creative, and I think it helped heal things faster and with the cognitive processes. And I wanted to kind of explain just real quick what neurofeedback is. So it's basically where they put a cap on your head that's got little holes in it instead of an EEG. It's the same as an EEG. They just put little like Proby bits. Like they don't put the probibits, they put a cap on you and then they inject this liquid into those holes that like connects to the skull basically and gets the feedback. Well, while it's happening, you listen to some sort of music, like a guitar. And I don't remember if you're supposed to close your eyes or keep them open, but it was either one or the other, so you could you weren't falling asleep or something. But it helps to like you if your neurons are acting right, it works kind of like a dopamine fix. If your neurons are working right, it plays the music. If it stops, if if the if it stops working right, it or it misfires, according to the EEG or the cap, then it stops the music, and your brain's like, wait, I liked that noise. Let me start working better. So that's basically the concept of it is to help reward the neurons for doing what they were supposed to, which is actually really cool.

SPEAKER_01 48:01

When you look at all those therapies together, it really shows how many different systems the brain controls: balance, vision, cognition, emotional regulation, communication, all those things involve the brain working properly. So recovery isn't just about healing one injury, it's about helping the brain rebuild stability across multiple systems. And when someone is going through that kind of recovery process, support from the people around them becomes incredibly important because brain injuries may not always be visible, but the person experiencing them may still be working very hard every day just to function normally. And one of the hardest parts about brain injuries is that many of the symptoms aren't obvious to other people.

SPEAKER_00 48:47

For the people on the back.

SPEAKER_01 48:49

So someone might look completely normal. They might be able to talk, walk, go about parts of their daily life, but internally they may still be dealing with fatigue, headaches, difficulty concentrating. And because those symptoms aren't visible, people around them may not realize how much effort it takes just to go through the day. And that can sometimes lead to misunderstandings. Someone might say things, but you look fine or you seem better now, without realizing that person recovery may still be working very hard just to function normal.

SPEAKER_00 49:21

Support from family members, friends, and coworkers can play a significant role in recovery after traumatic brain injury. One of the most helpful things people can offer is patience and understanding because the brain is healing. The person recovery may experience this change in energy levels, attention, or emotional regulation. Tasks that once felt automatic may now require more effort or more time to complete. Recognizing that these changes are part of recovery process can help produce frustrations for both the individual and the people supporting them.

SPEAKER_01 49:47

And sometimes that support someone needs is simply having their experience believed. When symptoms are invisible, it can be easy for others to underestimate what the person is going through. But validation can make a huge difference. Acknowledging that recovery is difficult and that symptoms are real can help someone feel less alone in the process.

SPEAKER_00 50:09

Another helpful approach is understanding cognitive fatigue. People recovering from brain injury often have a limited amount of mental energy available each day. Activities such as concentration, problem solving, or being in busy environments can use that energy very, very quickly. When that limit is reached, symptoms may worsen. Encourage breaks and allowing flexibility and schedules can help individuals manage that energy more efficiently. And that is why we have been a little late with the pod stuff lately, because I have been having an uptick in my migraines. I have had upticks and other health issues. And I want to say thank you all for being patient with us so far. And for those that were subscribed, we did refund your money for February and wanted to thank you for those that said I didn't need to, but we're we didn't give you what you wanted. We said we were gonna give you, so it's we don't do that.

SPEAKER_01 51:05

It's not us being lazy. She's just a little slow. I'm a little missed. And that's something that can be hard for people to recognize if they haven't experienced it themselves. Because the person recovering may seem okay and then suddenly feel overwhelmed and exhausted the next. But that change isn't necessarily random. It may simply be the brain has reached the limit of what it can process at that moment.

SPEAKER_00 51:32

Communication can also be important. Some individuals recovering from traumatic brain injuries may benefit from slower-paced conversation, written reminders, or clear and structured instructions. Well, that was very clear, wasn't it? Instructed instructions. Structured instructions. In case you didn't catch that. These adjustments can make it easier for the brain to process information during recovery. Small changes in communication style can reduce stress and help prevent unnecessary frustration.

SPEAKER_01 52:03

And it's important to remember that the person recovering may also be adjusting to changes in their own abilities. They might feel frustrated that things don't work the way they used to. They might be grieving the temporary loss of certain skills or routines. So having supportive people around them who understand that recovery takes time can make a huge and meaningful difference.

SPEAKER_00 52:25

Encouraging individuals to follow their treatment plan and attend rehabilitation appointments can also support recovery. Therapies such as physical therapy, OT, speech therapy, and other rehabilitation approaches are designed to help the brain rebuild stability across different systems. Providing encouragement during that process can help individuals remain engaged with their recovery.

SPEAKER_01 52:45

And sometimes support means simply meeting someone where they are, not expecting them to return to normal immediately, not pushing them faster than their brain can heal. But understanding that recovery is a process that unfolds over time. And when you step back and look at everything we've talked about, the injury itself, the symptoms, the recovery process, it becomes clear that the brain injury affect more than just physical health. They affect how people experience the world, which is why awareness and understanding is so important. And when people think about traumatic brain injuries, they often think about the moment of impact, the accident, the fall, the hit. But what we've talked about throughout this episode is that moments of injury is really just the beginning of the story. Because the brain doesn't heal overnight. Recovery can involve weeks, months, or sometimes years of adjustment while the brain works to rebuild stability across different systems. Because the brain is basically a muscle. You have to like work it and use it and neuroplasticity.

SPEAKER_00 53:52

It's one of my favorite words. I love it. Because your brain is so complex, but it can heal itself. And that's pretty cool. That's the only organ that named itself. That's true. That's true. It is smart. It is running everything, the whole show. Yeah. Traumatic brain injuries affect millions of people every year. They happen in car accidents, falls, sports, injuries, and everyday situations that most of us never expect. But the impact of brain injury isn't limited to the moment it happens. It can affect memory, attention, emotional regulation, energy levels, and the ability to participate in normal daily activities. In many cases, the injury also affects the direction of someone's life. And that's I don't have my career because of it anymore. So I went back to school and now I'm educating y'all.

SPEAKER_01 54:38

To have a career.

SPEAKER_00 54:39

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 54:40

And to help people.

SPEAKER_00 54:41

I'm trying.

SPEAKER_01 54:42

I'm trying.

SPEAKER_00 54:43

I'm trying. I gotta help myself first.

SPEAKER_01 54:46

And that's something people don't always think about. Because when someone survives an accident, the assumption isn't often that things will simply go back to normal. But for many people recovering from a brain injury, the future they imagine before the injury may look different afterwards.

SPEAKER_00 55:02

For me, that reality included my career. I served in the military for almost 12 years and deployed three times. My plan had always been to complete a full 20-year career, or even more if I could have. But because of the medical care and recovery that followed the accident, I eventually became non-deployable. And in the military, deployability is essential. As a result, I was medically retired. I am grateful for the system. I am grateful that the system recognized the injury and provided that support, but medical retirement is different from completing a full career. You don't receive the safe benefits as somebody who reaches 20 years of service. So the accident didn't just change one morning of my life. It changed the path I thought my future would take. And that was really hard to adjust with. And I mean I still mourn it, but at the same time, I wonder if it's just a blessing in disguise, because I wouldn't be doing what I'm doing now had it not happened, but who knows where I'd be right now.

SPEAKER_01 55:54

And that's why awareness matters, because brain injuries don't always look dramatic from the outside, but they can affect the way someone thinks, feels, works, and lives their lives.

SPEAKER_00 56:06

If there's one thing I hope people take away from this episode is that traumatic brain injuries deserve understanding and compassion. The person recovering may look fine, but their brains may still be healing. And recovery often takes time, support, and patience.

SPEAKER_01 56:19

Brain injuries may be invisible, but the people living with them are not.

SPEAKER_00 56:24

I did want to end this episode on giving special thanks to my husband. I know he's probably not even gonna listen to this episode. And maybe he does, I don't know. But if you're listening, thank you so much for doing what you've done, for taking the risk, getting out when I was told I would get a position and had to end up going back to school and being able to take care of the boys and being a stay-at-home dad so I can do what I can do. I do appreciate you. I appreciate all the work you put in after the TBI, even though at the time it was probably one of the hardest times for us. But yeah, and I wanted to say to everybody, take care of your brain, take care of each other, and we'll see you in the next episode.

SPEAKER_02 57:04

Okay, thank you for listening. Please like and subscribe. Please follow us on social media. I just don't need to. Okay.

music 57:14

You tell the truth with always a lot. Make wrong so beautiful.