If You Are In A Relationship With A TBI Victim – What Should You Do?
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Over the years, my law firm has helped numerous TBI victims, and in this time, we have seen that relationship troubles are all too common.
We had one particular client that was a very young lady who suffered a traumatic brain injury due to a defective product smashing her head into the ground. As a result of her injury, she and her husband began to have troubles in their relationship due to all of the stress.
My office suggested they go to counseling and in fact, they’re still married and have two beautiful children. But why does this even happen?
The divorce rate for traumatic brain injury patients is much higher than for the normal population. This is because it can be very challenging for people or couples to get through this difficult time. The good news is that there are key steps that can be taken to strengthen your relationship.
Communication
It is really important is the person who is listening to the traumatic brain injury victim to really listen to what the TBI victim is saying and focus on things you agree on rather than things you disagree on. I know that sounds easier said than done, but it’s incredibly important.
Changing Roles
Role changes do not have to slow the recovery for a traumatic brain injury victim. Oftentimes, that may be one of the problems.
In some instances, putting a TBI victim in situations that they were used to prior to their injury can make the recovery process worse. It can add to the stress especially when other people have to interact with the TBI victim and have no idea that the person has changed.
In fact, the TBI victim can often become more frustrated or depressed when trying to accomplish old tasks with their new limitations. This is why you should change roles and ease the stress on the victim. The important thing is to try to be comfortable adapting to those new role changes.
Counseling
We suggest individual or couple’s counseling, whichever fits best for the couple. It is very important is to make sure that the therapist that you choose has some experience with traumatic brain injury patients.
Additional Resources Available
One of my favorite resources to recommend is the Brain Injury Association of America (www.bia.usa.org). They provide a lot of resources to help those who are in a relationship and trying to manage traumatic brain injury. You can even give them a call at 1-800-444-6443.
