Getting into a crash often has more repercussions than people expect. You face physical injury. You face mental and emotional trauma. And you also face a long, costly road to recovery.
If you suffer from a traumatic brain injury (TBI), you may also suffer from memory loss.
Why is short term memory damage common?
The Model Systems Knowledge Translation Center examines ties between brain health and memory. It is common for victims of TBIs to also suffer from some form of memory loss or damage. For example, many people do not recall the events surrounding their accident. If they do remember, it might just be bits and pieces. Why? Because the short term memory storage malfunctions during traumatic impact. Thus, it never stores the memories properly. You may feel like you cannot “remember”, but in reality, there was nothing stored to recall in the first place.
TBIs can also make it harder to code short term memory into long term memory. You may recall things in the short term, but your medial temporal lobe cannot process these memories. This results in things like putting your keys down and forgetting where you placed them, or missing appointments.
Severity and duration of memory loss
The severity and duration of your memory loss and damage varies from injury to injury and person to person. If you faced more severe trauma, yours will likely last longer. Additional issues may complicate recovery further. For example, if you lost spinal fluid, your recovery time will lengthen.
Make sure that you do what your doctors suggest when it comes to recovery. This may include long term rehabilitation or therapy. This is also why many people seek financial compensation, as it helps pay for medical bills as you recover.
