The type of traumatic brain injury military personnel can suffer often leads them to look for help and support. TryMunity is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping people who have suffered traumatic brain injuries. If you have suffered a traumatic brain injury such as a concussion, you may find yourself experiencing strange symptoms that can persist long after you have been released from medical care and returned to your normal life. Here are some issues that can accompany a traumatic brain injury military experienced by personnel after coming home.

 1. Changes in Behavior

After a brain injury, you may find yourself getting angry or combative for seemingly no reason. Even people who were calm and gentle before their injury sometimes experience rage and anger related to the brain injury.

 2. Sleep Disturbances

Brain injuries can also lead to disruption of your sleep cycle. You may have persistent insomnia or difficulty falling asleep. Conversely, you may fall asleep normally but then have trouble waking in the morning, even if you have slept well.

 3. Persistent Headaches

Headaches are a common side effect of traumatic brain injuries, and they can persist long after the actual injury to the brain has healed. Sometimes people do not connect their headaches with their injury because the headaches occur in a different part of the head.

 4. Vision Problems

Traumatic brain injuries can affect the eyes and the vision centers of the brain. Problems can be physical, such as pupils that have difficulty contracting or dilating. They can also be in the brain itself, in the form of visual hallucinations or black spots in the field of vision.

 5. Forgetfulness

A period of forgetfulness is common immediately following the type of traumatic brain injury military personnel typically suffer, but sometimes forgetfulness can persist for months or years. You may find that even simple information like the names of family and friends is sometimes difficult to recall.

For help and support while recovering from the type of traumatic brain injury military personnel suffer, join the TryMunity community today. You are always welcome here!

At TryMunity, we know that babies are incredibly precocious and have a very strong desire for exploration and autonomy. While it is important to allow these characteristics to mature within a child so that they remain thirsty for knowledge and adventure, it is also important to ensure that some preventative measures are taken. While it is not practical to cover your home in bubble wrap, there are a number of things that you can do to help your child avoid suffering from a baby head injury. Traumatic Brain Injury, or TBI, can happen to anyone at anytime, so while babies are often referred to as being incredibly durable for their size and stature, they still require watchful supervision.

Preventative Measures Are Helpful

Since falls make up 35 percent of all traumatic brain injuries, it is important to consider where your child may be able to fall from. Many children who sleep in a crib will sometimes try to climb out, and while they are able to pull their bodies over the top of the crib, they are not always able to easily climb down. In order to avoid a fall from a crib that results in a baby head injury, make sure that you use a crib that has enough depth to prevent your child from climbing out. If they still have enough ingenuity to make an escape, make sure to listen closely to a baby monitor to ensure that they are sleeping and not attempting to climb out. Any time your child is engaged in play activities, make sure that you are taking part or closely supervising. This way, there is still the opportunity for exploration and for climbing, but a reduced risk of a fall taking place.

Community Support Is Valuable After a Traumatic Brain Injury

At TryMunity, we offer information and support for the families of loved ones who may have suffered from a traumatic brain injury, including those with a baby head injury. If you are in need of information and support from those who are familiar with traumatic brain injuries, join our online community.

If you are suffering from a brain injury, or know someone who is, you are probably aware of the struggles that go along with it. From memory loss to trouble focusing, the list of symptoms can be extensive. However, acquiring a slight and transient brain injury or a traumatic brain injury does not mean that you or those suffering from the injury must stop living life. At TryMunity, an online community full of support groups and health information, we believe that healing and life are very possible after brain injuries.

Understanding a Brain Injury

One of the most common impairments of the brain is a slight and transient brain injury, otherwise known as a concussion. Unfortunately concussions are occurring more frequently in athletes and industrial workers. Anyone suffering from a concussion should receive medical care immediately. Some of the most common symptoms of this type of brain injury include:

• Headache or cranial pressure
• Amnesia surrounding the trauma
• Seeing stars and feeling dizzy
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Dazed appearance
• Great fatigue

If you ever notice anyone exhibiting these symptoms, it is imperative that they receive immediate medical care. Untreated concussions can lead to more serious health problems down the road as bleeding in the brain can be fatal.

Finding Hope and Support

Even though a slight and transient brain injury can be serious, at TryMunity we are dedicated to helping you or your loved ones through the healing process. We offer a great network of support and encouragement alongside medical advice and latest research for understanding brain injuries. If you or someone you know is ready to begin healing from an injury to the brain, please come join our community. You can share your story, read up on the best in health care for brain injuries, and receive encouragement from around the globe.

Unfortunately, concussions are becoming rather commonplace, especially for those involved in contact sports. Since concussions are a type of traumatic brain injury, the TryMunity community offers support and education on the topic. If you have recently suffered a concussion and are still experiencing symptoms even after an extended period of time, you may be dealing with post concussive syndrome.

Signs of PCS

Concussions can cause significant trauma, which is why they are considered to be a TBI. The damage to your brain can result in symptoms that last for a long time and in some cases never go away. Signs that you may be dealing with post concussive syndrome include:

• Headaches
• Dizziness
• Noise Sensitivity
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Insomnia

It can be extremely difficult to live with these physical and psychological issues, which is why getting support from a community is so essential. Some of the symptoms may last a lifetime, while others can be treated with medication.

Dealing With PCS

There is no cure for post concussive syndrome at this time, only treatment of the symptoms. It can be extremely frustrating to think that you may have to withstand years of pain and a life change as the result of one injury. Trying to deal with your diagnosis on your own can obviously be very difficult, but turning to the TryMunity community can help in a great many ways. Our community is full of like-minded individuals who want to both learn and educate people about PCS and other traumatic brain injuries. Visit community.trymunity.com today to join.

Spring is around the corner and so are the scooters, skateboards and bikes that young children often love to play with as the weather warms. As children spend more time outside and do more physical activities, it is important to take safety precautions to prevent toddler head injury. At TryMunity, our goal is to educate about and support those affected by head injury.

Helmet Safety

Children are never too young for helmets. Whether they are riding a tricycle or pushing a scooter, young children need to wear a helmet. Toddlers may be at an even greater risk of head injury because they lack some of the motor coordination and strength that older children have. Some activities that require a helmet include:

• Horseback riding
• Biking
• Skateboarding
• Scooter riding
• Rollerblading

Helmet safety also includes wearing a helmet properly. Ensuring a snug fit and secure chin straps helps to prevent a toddler head injury if a fall occurs.

Age-Appropriate Activities

Another toddler head injury prevention measure is to provide young children with activities that are age appropriate. Getting young children involved with activities that are designed for older children (e.g. playing on more advanced playground equipment, riding a motorized bike or scooter, etc.) could put them at risk for accidents.

Head injuries in children can be prevented. By taking a few simple safety precautions, the risks for head injures associated with physical play and activities can be managed. To learn more about head injuries or to join our TryMunity online social community, please visit our website at community.trymunity.com.

Motor vehicle accidents, collisions, assaults, and falls can all result in a traumatic brain injury. At TryMunity, we’re here to help you realize that there is hope after one of these injuries changes your life. Recently, a new study revealed that the blue dye similar to the dye found in sports drinks, candy, and fabric may help improve the recovery time for those that have sustained a TBI.

The Power of Blue Dye

The damage directly following a brain injury that occurs as the brain attempts to heal within the skull is the most threatening to people that have suffered from traumatic brain injury. A recent study funded by the National Institutes of Health sought to discover whether the presence of the dye brilliant blue G could lead to blocking this immune response and prevent swelling in the days following a brain injury.

There are several benefits of using this blue dye to stop swelling in the brain after an injury. First, according to an investigator on the study, it’s clinically safe. And, it’s easy to store and relatively inexpensive. As far as the researchers can tell, the only side-effect it has had on the mice they are testing is that they temporarily take on a light blue hue.

We’re Here for You

Although many strides in traumatic brain injury research, like this study, are being taken, a complete cure doesn’t exist yet. If you suffered from a concussion or another type of brain injury and are having difficulties coping with the effects, join the TryMunity community today.

Injuries of any kind can be scary and life-altering. Brain injuries are no different, and sometimes have an even greater negative effect. The brain is a critical and sensitive organ in the body which is primarily responsible for other bodily functions and movements. Active children and teens may be at a greater risk for traumatic brain injury as they participate in recreational and sporting activities. At TryMunity, we hope to pass on safety measures that can be taken to mitigate that risk.

Young Children

Infants and young children are prone to falls and accidents. Often, these youngsters are curious and eager to explore but lack motor function and coordination to get out of harm’s way. Some ways to prevent an accident— and a subsequent traumatic brain injury— are to install safety gates at the top and bottom of stairs, secure window guards, and ensure play surfaces at parks or other places of recreation are made of shock-absorbent materials, such as sand or wood chips. Another important consideration is car safety. Properly installing and using car seats and boosters can help to prevent a serious head injury in the event of a car accident.

Older Children

As children grow and participate in more physical activities, precautions should be taken to prevent traumatic brain injury, such as a concussion. Helmets go a long way in this regard. Some of the activities that necessitate wearing a helmet include the following:

• Horseback riding
• Skateboarding
• Bike riding
• Batting
• Playing contact sports

Preventing head injuries for active children is possible. To learn more about head injuries or to connect with others who have endured similar accidents, join the TryMunity support community.