Take all brain injuries seriously. Let’s start there because the following will address the symptoms of a severe TBI, as opposed to a more mild TBI. But that is not to say that you should ignore mild symptoms and not get medical help. All brain injuries can have lasting ramifications and this is never something you want to take lightly.
With that said, here are some of the symptoms of a severe TBI:
- Slurring your words
- Having a seizure or going into convulsions
- Losing consciousness for a substantial amount of time — anywhere from a couple of minutes to an hour or more
- Becoming agitated and restless
- Feeling confused and unable to put things together
- Experiencing a lack of coordination, which could make it impossible to walk
- Experiencing tingling and/or numbness in your limbs
- Not waking up after you go to sleep
- Having a headache that just continues to get worse or will not stop
- Vomiting or feeling like you’re about to
- Having one pupil that is larger than the other or two pupils that are both enlarged
For yourself and bystanders, mental confusion is often the most frightening symptom. You may not know who you are, what day it is, what happened to you or who anyone else is.
One of the most common ways for people to get a head injury or a traumatic brain injury is in a motorcycle accident. This can happen even if you are wearing a helmet at the time of the crash. Make sure you know what legal rights you have to compensation, as you may need serious medical care.