The Brain Injury Association of America is launching a year-long, nationwide, education and advocacy campaign in recognition of March being Brain Injury Awareness Month. The campaign launches this month and is called “A concussion is a brain injury. Get the facts.” The campaign will include radio and print public service announcements, awareness proclamations, special events, and a state advocacy effort to introduce legislation to train coaches and protect young athletes.

Many people do not realize that a concussion is a brain injury. A concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury (TBI). They are caused by a bump or blow to the head, many of times while playing a sport. Concussions don’t always mean you lose consciouness. This is why you should be aware of the symptoms of a concussion to ensure that you don’t have one after taking a blow to the head.

The symptoms of concussions include:

• Nausea (feeling that you might vomit)
• Dizziness or balance problems
• Double or fuzzy vision
• Sensitivity to light or noise
• Headache
• Feeling sluggish or tired
• Feeling foggy or groggy
• Confusion
• Trouble concentrating
• Trouble remembering

If you’ve had a concussion you should seek a health care professional immediately. A concussion is a serious injury and should not be taken lightly. A concussion is a brain injury. If you or a family member suffer a concussion while playing a sport or some other personal injury accident, contact our Michigan brain injury lawyers immediately to discuss your case. Call us now at (800) 606-1717.

Finding the best lawyer for your brain injury case may be the most important decision that you make.   The simple fact is that not all personal injury lawyers have the necessary expertise to represent a client who has suffered a traumatic brain injury.  To successfully represent a brain injured client, it is essential for a lawyer to have thorough understanding of the medicine and science behind brain injuries.  This is the only way to understand how the course of a brain injury victim’s life has been altered and how it has affected the family of the victim.  It is also the only way to attack and defeat the “hired gun” experts that will be hand-picked by the insurance company to defeat a brain injury claim.

A brain injury is any injury that results in brain cell death and loss of function.  A traumatic brain injury (TBI) is an external trauma to the head or violent movement of the head, such as from a fall, car crash or being shaken.  In fact, car accidents cause about 30% of the traumatic brain injuries in Michigan.

TBI is complex and unpredictable in its outcomes. Serious injury can occur without obvious physical disabilities. Both mild and severe TBI can result in lifelong impairments – requiring long-term care services.  In cases involving motor vehicle accidents, the brain injury victim is entitled to significant benefits under the Michigan No-Fault Laws.  These include lifetime medical expenses, attendant care services, lost wages, and even housing accommodations.

Our lawyers are members of the Michigan Brain Injury Association and the Michigan Brain Injury Provider’s Council.  We work closely with the team of doctors and specialists treating our brain injured clients so that we can best assist the client in their recovery efforts and to ensure that the client receives the best possible settlement in his or her brain injury case.

Not all lawyers do this, which can be a major mistake when it comes to assessing and evaluating a client’s case for settlement.  Without understanding the full impact of the injuries on a client’s life and how it will affect them in the future, a lawyer simply cannot provide the best representation to the client.

People can easily understand that there are chances of memory getting affected after a traumatic brain injury. But what they do not realize is that such injuries can also affect your emotions. Emotions are not something that float in the air and conveniently and occasionally plants itself in your head. They reside within the head, as do many things.

Two common changes that impact a person after a head injury are increased levels and sudden bursts of anger and depression. The affected person gets angry fast and the intensity of his anger can reach dangerous proportions bringing harm to those around him. Post-head injury anger is different in a way that it triggers as fast as it subsides. You tend to get angry with the smallest provocation and even when the situation has turned to normal, you continue to remain in a ‘bad mood’ for the rest of the day. It is also not uncommon to find people after a head injury bursting into tears for trivial reasons.

The unfortunate part of the story is that when a person suffers such emotional changes, many friends and families do not understand that this is the result of a physical injury to the brain.  They often do not realize that this was caused by damage to the brain and not just being overly emotional. Quite often the brain injury patient is incredibly frustrated by the inability to do things and live independently like before the accident and feelings of helplessness further foster these emotional changes.

For these reasons, it is often necessary for the patient to not only treat with a psychologist but to be involved in group counseling to share  and discuss their issues with other victims.  Many times, it is even helpful for the brain injury victim to attend therapy and counseling sessions with family members so they can better understand what has happened and how to deal with anger and depression issues.

An important aspect of brain injury treatment and recovery for traumatic brain injury survivors is often participation in support groups.   These are often very helpful for both the brain injury survivors and their families.   Meeting other survivors and their families who are experiencing or have been through the treatment and recovery process provides an excellent source of both understanding and comfort.

Support groups take a number of different forms.  They may assist in  providing and evaluating relevant information, relating personal experiences, listening to and accepting others’ experiences, providing sympathetic understanding of what each other are going through.  They can also establish social networks and can  work to inform the public or engage in advocacy.

The Michigan Brain Injury Association has a number of support groups throughout the State of Michigan for brain injury survivors and their families.  These groups meet together, usually monthly, to offer support and advice for each other.

In Ypsilanti, Michigan, the brain injury support group meets approximately once every two months.  Call for specific information.  The meeting are held at the Rainbow Rehabilitation Center, 5570 Whittaker Road, Ypsilanti, MI.  For more information contact Dr. Colin King at (800) 968-6644 or Dr. Mariann Young (248) 427-1310.

For more information about our Michigan Brain Injury Lawyers and the legal rights of brain injury victims in Michigan, contact our office at (800) 606-1717.

An important aspect of brain injury treatment and recovery for traumatic brain injury survivors is often participation in support groups.   These are often very helpful for both the brain injury survivors and their families.   Meeting other survivors and their families who are experiencing or have been through the treatment and recovery process provides an excellent source of both understanding and comfort.

Support groups take a number of different forms.  They may assist in  providing and evaluating relevant information, relating personal experiences, listening to and accepting others’ experiences, providing sympathetic understanding of what each other are going through.  They can also establish social networks and can  work to inform the public or engage in advocacy.

The Michigan Brain Injury Association has a number of support groups throughout the State of Michigan for brain injury survivors and their families.  These groups meet together, usually monthly, to offer support and advice for each other.

In Tip of the Mitt, Michigan, the brain injury support group meets the 4^th Monday of each month at 7:00 p.m., at Northern Michigan Hospital, Connable Ave., Petoskey, MI.   For more information, contact Harriet Graham at (231) 537-4697.

For more information about our Michigan Brain Injury Lawyers and the legal rights of brain injury victims in Michigan, contact our office at (800) 606-1717.