30 Years On And 25 Tips About Brain Injury

About Brain Injury Typed list with Red pattern behind

There is nothing new under the sun – just a newer version. Does this apply to strategies about brain injury?

Sometimes.

I found this list in my many boxes of information collected about brain injury. The list is having its 30 year anniversary (at least). As I reread it I thought – “this still has some good tips”.

At first I thought to give it all a 2016 sparkle up. When I went through it again I saw that while some attitudes have shifted, and terminology has changed. While parents have a different role and approach to other supporters. Many of the strategies were still solid. Let me know what you think?

How Did the List of Tips About Brain Injury Come About?

Australia in the 1980’s – there was little support, or practical information available for people with brain injury and their families, as they began to re-establish their lives.

A workshop was organized in Victoria, Australia by a wonderful woman, Pamela Threlfall. Pamela was committed to assisting people with brain injury and their families. She was a pioneer, there was little else available at the time she established a small group. This group grew into a large support organization – Headway.

Pamela brought a group of family members (mainly parents) together for mutual support. They shared experiences. They shared what they had discovered, what worked for them, and what did not.

The list below was one of the outcomes of this workshop. Today I thought I would share the original list. What do you think? What changes would you make or add to the list?

As you read, consider that this list was developed before strengths based practice became the norm. It came at a time when the medical model, and a more punitive approach to behaviour change was used.

The only change I make here is that I am giving it a 2016 kind of the title.The original list is simply headed ‘People With a Head Injury’. The term head injury is not used so much today. It caused confusion between superficial damage to the head, and damage to the brain.

 

From 1986 to 2016 – 25 Tips About Brain Injury

1. CONSISTENCY – from everyone, staff, family, friends

2. TREAT AS AN ADULT

3. ASSIST WITH RE-LEARNING

a. Educational not medical

b. Repetition

c. Demonstrate as well as request

d. Find out what interests him/her

4. PATIENCE

5. DO NOT OVER STIMULATE – be aware of fatigue

6. BE CALM – TRY NOT TO GET ANGRY

7. EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED

8. AVOID STRESS

9. BE FLEXIBLE

10. BE ALERT TO MOOD CHANGES

11. ALLOW FOR SLEEPS, REST PERIODS, BREAKS DURING THE DAY

12. DISCOURAGE ALCOHOL AND DRUG ABUSE

13. DO NOT CONFRONT OR CHALLENGE NEEDLESSLY

14. GROUP SUPPORT HELPS – join Headway

15. ALLOW TIME – don’t hurry people

16. DON’T EXPECT TOO MUCH – then you get a bonus

17. GIVE PRAISE AS OFTEN AS YOU CAN –stress success, don’t stress failure

18. WRITE DOWN THINGS TO HELP REMEMBER – assist him/her to get into the habit of writing down

19. USE OLD SKILLS – this fosters success

20. FOSTER INDEPENDENCE – do not help if not necessary.

21. WHEN AGITATED OR ANGRY

a. Change the subject – waste of time to argue

b. Reward the control, don’t punish the outburst

c. Tell him that you don’t like this behaviour but you like him

d. Continue to do this so that in the end he recognizes that this is anti-social

e. Stress that they can control.

22. TRY NOT TO BE HURT BY OUTBURSTS OR BAD LANGUAGE

23. DO NOT TURN OFF WHEN HE IS SELF-CENTRED OR SELFISH

24. GIVE STRUCTURE

25. LOVE AND SUPPORT BUT DO NOT OVERPROTECT.

 

As I wrote this list up I was again struck by how these families developed a list that on the whole talks about building on success, building from the positives. To anyone around at that time – please don’t tell me I am the only one! You would likely recall this was not the usual approach.

This Post Has 2 Comments

  1. Michelle Owens

    A really good list! So wish I could have handed one of these to my “Ex-friend”!

    1. Melanie Atkins

      Hi Michelle. I am pleased you found the list helpful though it sounds as though it might have come too late to help with a friendship – that I am sorry to hear. Friendships and relationships can more difficult than ever after brain injury especially when brain injury can be so easily misunderstood. Thankyou Melanie

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