Someone may suffer a mTBI and not even realize it. A mTBI or concussion left untreated can lead to long-term complications, such as chronic headaches, memory problems, vertigo, severe headaches, dizziness, mood swings, and brain fog that can last for months or years. Recent research and literature confirm that a mTBI can lead to the early onset of Dementia, Alzheimer’s, or other neurological-related deficits in severe cases.
Because any injury to the brain could have a lasting impact on your health and livelihood, it is vital to seek medical attention after any crash. The signs and symptoms of a mTBI may not display the same for every person. It is important to understand that adults and children may show signs differently. Many signs of a mTBI can be immediately apparent. However, some TBI symptoms may not appear for hours, days, weeks, or even months after a car crash.
According to the Mayo Clinic, the most common signs and symptoms of a car accident TBI include:
- Anxiety when driving or in a car
- Headaches, or pressure in the head
- Confusion or feeling “foggy.”
- Blurred or fuzzy vision in one or both eyes
- Mood swings – moody, irritable, sad
- Sleeping more or less than usual/trouble falling or staying asleep
- Difficulty concentrating or slowed thinking, Can’t seem to get your thoughts together.
- Lack of concentration and focus. When reading a book, you feel you have to read a sentence over and over again to understand it.
- Balance problems or coordination concerns
- Slurred speech
- Nausea and vomiting
- Loss of smell acuity – due to damage to the Olfactory Cranial Nerve
- Increased fatigue – Tired all the time despite getting enough sleep.
- Difficulty remembering new information
- Nauseous
- Day-to-Day Anxiety/panic attacks
- Dizziness, light headed, seeing floating stars
- Forgetfulness – Forgetting where you put things, forgetting details about a recent or past event.
- Lose your train of thought mid-sentence
Sometimes these symptoms may appear to get better on their own, but frequently the body learns to cope with the mental confusion, or the patient learns to live with it. If left untreated, a mTBI can manifest over time and develop long-standing severe mental and psychological difficulties, even Dementia or Altzheimers’s.
