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Communication Challenges

Following a traumatic brain injury, many people experience challenges with thinking and communication.5-8 These challenges can occur immediately and can also continue to be a problem long term:

  • Brain feels ‘foggy’, thought is slow and effortful
  • Difficulty finding words
  • Difficulty organizing and expressing what they want to say; may talk around things, ideas, have trouble getting to the point
  • Hearing sounds and words can be slightly delayed. This means it may take an extra second or two to realize that someone is talking to you or to figure out where a sound is coming from. 9-11
  • If a person has been hit on or around their ears, there may be temporary or permanent hearing loss
  • Difficulty reading
  • Difficulty paying attention
  • Difficulty with memory
  • Attention and memory problems impact conversation as well as the ability to follow through on tasks
  • Difficulty following conversations, especially with more than one person or in a noisy environment
  • Feeling more irritable, more emotional, may snap at another person even if this isn’t typical
  • Difficulties with social communication—may misinterpret social cues and facial expressions, may have difficulty ‘reading between the lines’, may say the wrong thing for the situation. See ‘Social Communication’ for further details.
  • Sometimes, speech may be slurred. This can be mistaken for having used drugs or alcohol
  • Thinking and communication are also affected by sleep problems and fatigue12,13

References

  1. Greenaway K, Gallois C, Haslam SA. (2017). Social psychological approaches to intergroup communication. In: Oxford research encyclopedia of communication. Oxford (UK): Oxford University Press: p 1-17
  2. Wiseman-Hakes C., Kakonge L., Doherty M., Beauchamp MH. A Conceptual framework of social communication: Clinical applications to pediatric traumatic brain injury. (2019). Seminars in Speech and Language (in press).
  3. Togher L. Training communication partners of people with TBI: Communication really is a two way process. (2014). In: McDonald S, Togher L, Code C, editors. Brain, behaviour and cognition. Social and communication disorders following traumatic brain injury New York (NY): Psychology Press: p.336-60
  4. College of Audiologists and Speech Language Pathologists of Ontario. (2018). Practice standards and guidelines for acquired cognitive-communication disorders. 2nd edition: 1-29.
  5. Macdonald, S., Wiseman-Hakes, C. (2010). Knowledge translation in ABI rehabilitation: A model for consolidating and applying the evidence for cognitive-communication interventions. Brain Injury, 24(3): 486-508.
  6. Togher L, McDonald S, Coehlo CA, Byom L. (2014). Cognitive-communication disability following TBI: examining discourse, pragmatics, behaviour and executive functioning. In: McDonald S, Togher L, Code C, editors. Brain, behaviour and cognition. Social and communication disorders following traumatic brain injury New York (NY): Psychology Press: p.89-118.
  7. Togher L, McDonald S, Code C. Social and communication disorders following traumatic brain injury. (2014). In: McDonald S, Togher L, Code C, editors. Brain, behaviour and cognition. Social and communication disorders following traumatic brain injury New York (NY): Psychology Press: p. 1-25
  8. MacDonald S. (2017). Introducing the model of cognitive-communication competence: A model to guide evidence-based communication interventions. Brain Injury. 31(13-14): 1760-1780.
  9. Atcherson SR, Mina Steele CL. (2016). Auditory Processing Deficits Following Sport-Related or Motor Vehicle Accident Injuries. Brain Disorders and Therapy, 5(1): 1-5.
  10. Białuńska A, Salvatore AP. (2017). The auditory comprehension changes over time after sport-related concussion can indicate multisensory processing dysfunctions. Brain and Behaviour. 7(e00874): 1-8.
  11. Vander Werff KR, Reiger B. (2017). Brainstem Evoked Potential Indices of Subcortical Auditory Processing After Mild Traumatic Brain Injury. Ear & Hearing. 38:e200–e214
  12. Wiseman-Hakes C, Victor, JC, Brandys C, & Murray B. (2011). Impact of post traumatic hypersomnia on functional recovery of cognition and communication. Brain Injury. 25(12): 1256-1265.
  13. Wiseman-Hakes C, Murray BJ, Moineddin R, Rochon E, Cullen N, Gargaro J, Colantonio A. (2013). Evaluating the impact of treatment for trauma related sleep/ wake disorders on recovery of cognition and communication in adults with chronic TBI. Brain Injury. 27(12): 1364–1376.
  14. Wiseman-Hakes C, Murray BJ, Mollayeva T, Gargaro J, Colantonio A. (2016). A Profile of sleep architecture and sleep disorders in adults with chronic traumatic brain injury. J of Sleep Disorders and Therapy. 5(16):1-8.
  15. Wiseman-Hakes C, Duclos C, Blais H, Dumont M, Bernard F, Desautels A, Menon DK, Gilbert D, Carrier J, Gosselin N. (2016). Sleep in the Acute Phase of Severe Traumatic Brain Injury: A Snapshot of Polysomnography. Neurorehabilitation and Neural Repair. 30(8):713-721.
  16. Bloom L. (1974). Talking, understanding and thinking; Developmental relationship between receptive and expressive language. In: R Scheifelbusch & L Lloyd (eds). Language Perspectives; Acquisition, Retardation and Intervention pp 285-311. Baltimore MD University Park Press.
  17. Wiseman-Hakes C, Saleem M, Poulin V, Nalder E, Balachandran P, Gan C, Colantonio A. (2019). The development of intimate relationships in adolescent girls and women with Traumatic Brain Injury: a framework to guide Gender Specific Rehabilitation and enhance positive social outcomes. Disability and Rehabilitation 7. p1-7.