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Can a TBI alter your personality?

On Behalf of | Mar 7, 2022 | Car Accidents

After taking a blow to the head, it might seem sensible to worry about the physical damage first and foremost. While this is a major component of a brain injury, there are many other factors at play, too.

These different factors can contribute significantly to major problems with potentially unexpected things, such as the personality of the victim in question.

Alterations to impulse control

Mayo Clinic delves into the effects of TBIs. Traumatic brain injuries can have wildly different effects on a victim based on factors like the type of injury, its location and the health and age of the victim.

However, when discussing personality changes that occur due to TBIs, many will manifest in a similar way. First, if the brain injury affected the frontal lobe, the victim will likely suffer from impulse control. In terms of personality, this can manifest as unintentional cruelty, as the victim no longer has the social brakes that allow them to keep their thoughts and words to themselves when necessary.

Agitation and anger

Many victims also suffer from increased anger and agitation. Combined with this lack of impulse control, it often leads to victims lashing out at their loved ones without meaning to. This is what leads many loved ones to state things like saying they no longer recognize the victim as a person.

Victims will also often lose their ability to cope with stressors, including the small daily stressors that happen to everyone in day-to-day living. This can result in nervous, anxious or even paranoid behaviors. Victims may fall into a depression or struggle with anxiety, further changing the person they once were.