“Bringing Justin home was not an easy quest, and I had no idea where to seek insight on what, how, and when to make the transition,” Melissa explained.
Instead, Melissa demanded Justin come home, and spent weeks preparing and retrofitting the living room of their home to ensure his ability to live there. Justin was not a candidate for inpatient rehabilitation because his medical needs required he be sent to Long-term Acute Care (LTAC), which is essentially a step-down from a hospital’s Intensive Care Unit. Like so many others in similar positions, Melissa became an expert in fighting with her insurance company and with the agencies providing services to her son. They did have health insurance, but had difficulty getting many of the services Justin needed covered without a battle. In the first several months following Justin’s injury, the Shuman family experienced a great deal of change. “I think I scared myself more than anything, and the doctors didn’t have too much hope, so after a while I had to stop and just believe he would get better, and advocate for what would be best for him.” She spent her days coordinating nursing, therapies, feeding, bathing, and everything else in the living room of their home. It was exhausting, but who else was going to do it? That’s a mother’s job.” In addition to learning information, Melissa became Justin’s primary caretaker. “I had been rushing to find out all of this information on my own while he was in a coma. Recollecting on the first few days of her son’s fight to live, Melissa made it clear she felt like she was fighting just as hard. “Suddenly memories from the day before seemed like they were decades ago,” says Melissa Shuman, who has come to live with the reality of brain injury after her son, Justin, sustained an acquired brain injury (ABI) following an attempt at suicide. Decreased control over left-sided body movements.Loss of “the big picture” type of thinking.Altered creativity and music perception.
Left neglect (inattention to the left side of the body). Injuries of the right side of the brain can cause: Decreased control over right-sided body movements. Catastrophic reactions (depression, anxiety). Difficulties in speaking or verbal output (expressive language). Difficulties understanding language (receptive language). Injuries of the left side of the brain can cause: The traits of each side are detailed below: Left Side Traits Each side is responsible for different functions, and general patterns of dysfunction may occur depending on the side of the brain sustaining an injury. The right side of the brain controls the left side of the body, while the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body. If you split the brain down the middle into two equally-sized parts, they are not the same and do not carry the same functions. The functional sections (lobes) of the brain are also categorized by side – the right side and the left side. Individuals who have injured their parietal lobes may have trouble with their five primary senses.Īn injury to the cerebellum may affect balance, movement, and coordination.Īn injury to one’s occipital lobes may lead to trouble seeing or perceiving the size and shape of objects. Identification of Sizes, Shapes, Colors. Understanding Language (Receptive Language)Īn injury to the temporal lobes may lead individuals to demonstrate difficulty with communication or memory. The brain stem controls the body’s involuntary functions that are essential for survival, such as breathing and heart rate. The brain is divided into functional sections, called lobes:Įach lobe has an important and specific function, detailed below.Īn injury to the frontal lobes may affect an individual’s ability to control emotions, impulses, and behavior or may cause difficulty recalling events or speaking. Every brain is unique, ever-changing, and extremely sensitive to its environment. It is responsible for our ability to speak, to process and remember information, make decisions, and feel emotions. It coordinates and regulates our breathing, blood circulation, and heart rate. It controls our ability to balance, walk, talk, and eat. The brain is made up of many parts, each with a specific and important function. The human brain is magnificent and complex.
0 kommentar(er)
