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I have not worked with many clients with traumatic brain injury, so I was unfamiliar with the different levels of severity. I had heard of The Glasgow Coma Scale before from music therapists that work in hospital settings, so it was interesting learning more about how TBIs are diagnosed.

When I was a teenager, I used to volunteer at a nursing where I would play piano for the residents. However, there was a man there in his 40's who would always come listen and I learned that he had been in a car accident and had a traumatic brain injury. The accident caused some medical issues in addition to moderate intellectual disability which made him unable to care for himself, so his family put him in a nursing home. I would play "uno" with him sometimes or we would sing some of his favorite songs together. He would show me pictures of his life before the accident and it always made me so sad to see how drastically his life had changed. Even though his family sometimes visited, it was really heartbreaking to see him live in such isolation in a facility full of people twice his age.

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Honestly I didn't know much about Traumatic Brain Injury so I learned a lot this week.  One thing I found to be interesting was that a concussion is classified as a Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.   It makes sense that in recent years concussions have been taken much more seriously in the realm of sports.

I do not have any person experience around TBI. However I found it interesting when watching the rehab portion of the video. Last year my dad underwent multiple heart surgeries and was in the hospital for two months. Once he was on the mend, he was sent to cardiac rehabilitation, which was eerily similar to the TBI rehab that was presented in the video. Today, my dad is better than ever and we are forever grateful to the doctors, nurses, and therapists that took care of him!

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Understanding Traumatic Brain Injury is one of a kind. I had no idea how complex a TBI can be. When I think about traumatic brain injury, the first thing to come to mind is an open wound injury. I learned that Severe Traumatic Brain injury  or comatosis is permanent brain damage. Blunt trauma result of penetration of the skull. I never had personal experience with TBI but it has happen to an uncle of mines who was in a coma for over 5 years and came out of it as if nothing happen to him. It is necessary to know the different levels of TBI because we may not know what harm we really are in.

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I had always thought in order to have a traumatic brain injury, a person either has to have an open wound or has to loose his/her consciousness; however when I watched the video it is mentioned that the TBI is measured with the length of loss of consciousness and the traumatic memory loss which has nothing to do with an open wound and is not so much related to the loss of consciousness in the sense I thought of.
I do not have any personal experience I have had around TBI, but my mom told me that one of her friend had a terrible accident and he could not walk after the accident until the end of his life. I do not know if this person had any level of TBI.

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I never realized there were so many different ways and types of TBI. I always immediately thought of the brain bumping into the skull causing an injury.

My brother hit his head at work last year. His doctor explained the possible effects of a concussion for the following weeks. He was very annoyed by it because he said he knew what he wanted to say and he could see it in his mind but he couldn't find the words to communicate his thought. It was strange for me because it lasted for so long after he hit his head.

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I had not previously been aware that a "vegetative state" was considered a "semi-coma." I'd actually thought vegetative state was worse/higher trauma than a coma. "Vegetative state" seemed more permanent to me than "coma." It appears this is actually the other way around, with a person in a vegetative state/semi-coma sometimes having their eyes open and possibly sometimes even being somewhat aware of surroundings, while "coma" is a deeper level of unconsciousness.

I've worked with some clients who have different levels of TBI but my most personal experience happened last year when we were rear-ended while stopped at an intersection by a guy on his cell phone, going about 50 mph and not even trying to stop. My 16 yo daughter did not have any visible injuries but was very confused and disoriented. She had a concussion severe enough to impair her at various levels for at least a year. She did not lose consciousness but was nauseous (and vomiting) for a few days afterwards; had severe headaches, could not read, was confused, anxious, depressed, dizzy and foggy for days to weeks afterwards; and had continued headaches (especially when reading, doing math in any form, or using a computer for more than 15 mins) and had periods of confusion and unexplained sadness for months afterwards. This was terrifying as a parent, especially since she didn't lose consciousness or have visible injuries in the moment, so we had no idea how severe her injuries really were immediately, nor did we know if she'd ever fully recover. Actually, 16 months after the accident, I'd say she hasn't fully recovered - she does still have headaches after concentrating too long and some vision problems that were not present before.

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I had no idea that traumatic brain injuries were so common in children; I always thought TBIs were common in adults in wars and motorcycle accidents. As a teacher, we must be aware of students who have had a traumatic brain injury. It is our responsibility to determine what is most important for that student in their life. We must aid the student with life skills first and then build from there.

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I never knew that treatments were different for each level of TBI. Also that there were so many different levels. 'I also didn't realize the different types of visual impairments and how they differ.

I haven't had any personal experience around TBI. My grandmother had a TBI, but I was too young to remember anything now. My friends dad also had a pretty bad accident. I know that they're relationship has changed and it's been pretty difficult for her family. I believe that they're much closer now and she's a much more patient person.

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I never knew what determined the different levels of severity of TBI. I learned that the difference in severity is based on the amount of time a person experiences a loss of consciousness. Mild is a loss of consciousness for 15 minutes or less (concussions), Moderate is 15 minutes to a few hours, and Severe can last 6 hours or longer and result in a coma.
I don't personally have any experiences with TBI outside of working with students and/or student athletes with minor concussions. I've had to be aware of how screen time and reading these students receive of they recover, but nothing too severe. I will say I've been perplexed by the increase in the amount of students experiences concussions over the years.

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It seems obvious now, but I never considered a concussion to be a traumatic brain injury. The symptoms of TBI are very similar to the effects of a stroke; balance, mobility, speaking, swallowing, personality changes. I saw all of these in my friend Mark after his stroke... just a brain injury from a different cause.

I don't have any personal experience with TBI but an acquaintance's husband suffered one in a car accident. She frequently spoke of how changed his personality was. He was in rehab for months and ended up taking his own life a year or so following the accident.

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I didn't know much about partial blindness. It's a little scary to think about the "floaters" that were mentioned in the second video. They're just dead cells floating around and your eyes can see them.

I have no personal experiences with TBI.

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I learned several things about TBI this week, but something that stuck out to me was how treatment works. Brain injuries vary in severity leading to a variety of treatment plans. Some patients have to relearn basic skills like talking and walking, while others need minimal follow up work. Rehabilitation therapy works to keep the person safe with the final goal of functioning independently.

I do not have any experience with TBI, but my husband is a hockey coach and his team usually has several players diagnosed with concussions every season. There seems to always be at least one kid who is sitting out of a game because of a concussion. It seems like with each concussion that a kid has that they have to sit out for longer amounts of time. As a mom concussions make me very nervous. I hope that my children avoid falling in love with sports that have high concussion rates. From the readings and movie, TBI are not to be taken light and can have very long term, extreme affects.

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One thing that I learned that I never realized I didnt know was the difference between Vegitative State and Coma. Prior to watching the video, I had always thought they were the same thing. When they said the vegitative state included open eyes, that really allowed me to comprehend the difference. The only experience I have with TBI is secondary. One of my good friend's husband slipped on ice and cracked their skull a few winters back. I can remember the tole it took on her. She now had to help him with everything including eating and the bathroom. On top of his limited physical mobility, his personality was completely different. He was now dark, aggressive, and uncaring. She said part of the new personality was due to him have a CONSTANT migraine that nothing cures. I would be mean and irritable if i was in severe constant pain too.

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There are three different types of TBI that range from mild, moderate, to severe.  I found it interesting to learn the different characteristics of each of the different types of TBI.  Additionally, I thought it was informative to learn the different types of tests used to evaluate the type of TBI an individual has.  What I found most interesting were the terms.  Many of them were frightening, however it was insightful to learn what can possibly happen when a one has a TBI.
Years ago, my husband had a moderate TBI.  It was the most traumatic experience of my life.  Currently, I have to work with students who have a TBI.  Once they return to school with a doctor's note indicating their restriction, I make sure that all of the student's teachers are aware of and comply with the student's restrictions.

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It is extremely important for doctors to understand what your loved one was like before his/her traumatic brain injury. Personalities and behaviors change after a person has a traumatic brain injury. I have had a good deal of experience with Traumatic Brain Injuries. I played college soccer in Alabama where many of my teammates suffered from mild Traumatic Brain Injuries. We had a goalie get kicked in the face by an opponent. We had players run into goal posts or hit head with other players. These accidents were taking very seriously by the trainers. We were forced to take extensive concussion tests and were unable to play for a certain amount of time depending on the severity of the injury. We had one girl suffer such a bad concussion she was unable to play soccer anymore. She had terrible reoccurring headaches and had to cut her class load in half. It got so serious that this player had to get nerve blocks to prevent headaches.

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The levels of Traumatic Brain Injury are dependent on BOTH the length of the initial loss of unconsciousness and the extent of post-traumatic memory loss.  The three stages of consciousness are minimally conscious state, vegetative state, and coma. In minimally conscious state, health care professionals or family members can detect deliberate behavior. In the vegetative state, the patient's eyes are open but they are not always aware of themselves or their surroundings. A coma is a deep state of unconsciousness where the patient does not respond to stimuli. A coma can be induced medically to give the brain time to heal. I have not had any experiences with TBI.

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TBI must be a very difficult disability to deal with from a loved one's perspective. Family members might see you as the same person you were, but with personality changes and many other challenges. My friend's daughter was in a terrible car accident three years ago and is probably considered to be on the moderate to almost severe range where she is in the vegetative state with some progress, but she will never be able to care for herself. It's been consuming to the family. I have actually also learned a lot from a television show I watch with one of the characters who have acquired TBI recently.

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I learned that there are several different levels of TBI and that the time that a person is unconscious determines the level. I was surprised by this because it was something that I did not know. It was interesting to learn this and about concussions as well, because they are TBI, but mild because generally the person is unconscious for less than 15 minutes.

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I found the video on TBI to be very informative. I did not know about the different tests TBI patients were given. This is such a tough disability because the effects can be so different from person to person. Knowing concussions are a mild form of Traumatic Brain Injury is so important. So many kids and parents at my school do not take concussions as seriously as I think they should. A lot of my wrestling and football kids have already had concussions at 12. I just think there needs to be more awareness about the effects and seriousness of a brain injury. I also have a student who suffered a TBI and he struggles with his emotions and inappropriate adaptive behaviors in class and with peers. He can be very unpredictable from day to day.

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TBI can range from mild, moderate to severe and the levels may be tested by either the JFK scale, CT Scans or MRI's. Assisting the individual in via rehabilitation involves connecting that person to their past life as well as exposing them to new and different experiences. Reestablishing a quality of life is key in these situations.

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TBI must be a very difficult disability to deal with from a loved one's perspective. Family members might see you as the same person you were, but with personality changes and many other challenges. My friend's daughter was in a terrible car accident three years ago and is probably considered to be on the moderate to almost severe range where she is in the vegetative state with some progress, but she will never be able to care for herself. It's been consuming to the family. I have actually also learned a lot from a television show I watch with one of the characters who have acquired TBI recently. 

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TBI must be a very difficult disability to deal with from a loved one's perspective. Family members might see you as the same person you were, but with personality changes and many other challenges. My friend's daughter was in a terrible car accident three years ago and is probably considered to be on the moderate to almost severe range where she is in the vegetative state with some progress, but she will never be able to care for herself. It's been consuming to the family. I have actually also learned a lot from a television show I watch with one of the characters who have acquired TBI recently. 

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I thought it was interesting learning about the different types of testing that could be done to someone who has TBI. I wonder how they determined which one might be used. It makes me wonder about my father, before he passed away if they did any of these test on him?

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I thought it was an interesting fact that TBI is the most commonly ACQUIRED disability in childhood. It was an interesting frame of reference of a disability that was acquired vs. a disability that a person was born with.

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Traumatic brain injuries are severe and have various ways to effect individuals very differently, at all different levels. I learned through watching the video that, TBI's can occur and a person does not have to have an open head wound. That to me is very interesting in itself, especially with being so interested in sports, as well as participated in them. I am sure sports can be a major way to lead to traumatic brain injury, as they stated in the video that any blow to the head can cause a person's brain to react in a negative manor. The video discussed, "concussions", which I personally have experienced as well as seen a lot of by teammates and opponents. Players being slightly shook up, or knocked unconscious, as well as being highly disoriented and often forgets what has happened once they come too. The video enlightened me on how strong the human brain really is, along with how dangerous it can be for one to be struck in the head.

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I thought that it was interesting that doctors have developed different types of test to determine the injury level. I found that the video mentioned that no two people are alike and no two brain injuries are alike as well. They said less than 10% of brain injuries are under the severe level of severity.