What is Acquired Brain Injury?

Brain injuries, often referred to as Acquired Brain injuries (ABI), can be caused by a traumatic or non-traumatic event. Common traumatic causes include incidents on the road, assaults, and falls which cause violent movement of the brain within the skull.
Non-traumatic causes of brain injury include strokes, tumours, haemorrhage, aneurysm, asphyxiation and the effects of toxic substances. The effect of these processes is that the brain becomes starved of oxygen, causing irreparable brain cell damage (this is also known as hypoxia or hypoxic brain injury) that results in a need for brain injury help.

Common effects of suffering Acquired brain injury (ABI) –
Whether the brain injury is traumatic or non-traumatic, the physical, cognitive and behavioural consequences can be complex and difficult to manage. In these instances, the person suffering will often require brain injury rehabilitation from a specialist rehabilitation team in order to maximise their future quality of life and ability to function to their maximum capability.
The brain instigates all purposeful movement in the body and is responsible for co-ordinating movements. These can affect a person’s independence and lead to problems carrying out functional activities such as walking, eating and dressing. The lack of control can also extend to the muscles in a person’s face and throat, which can affect speech and swallowing.
A person suffering a brain injury can often struggle with their cognitive ability in the period following, which reduces the ability of the brain to function properly. This includes problems with memory, concentration, problem solving ability and self-monitoring.

Behavioural problems –
A person’s behaviour can become dramatically different following a brain injury or acute brain injury, which can be one of the most difficult aspects for family and friends to cope with during the recovery process. Impulses are often acted upon by sufferers and they will fail to understand the consequences of their behaviour. They may also become irritable, aggressive or even very placid. Mood swings are very common and people can find it difficult to express their emotions.

Support by Personalised 4 All
Our personalised approach and individualised support treats everyone as an individual. We know that everyone’s situation is different, which is why we ensure that everyone has a unique support plan to meet their needs.
We know that having predictable, consistent and structured approaches work well and enable individuals to work towards their goals and agreed outcomes. Our person-centred approaches put the individuals we support at the centre of their care and support.
We can provide support to the person within their own home or when access the community.