You get in a motorcycle accident and you hit your head on the other vehicle’s hood. You do have a helmet on, fortunately. You walk away from the wreck, though you feel a bit dizzy, and the doctor tells you that you have a concussion.
You’re worried that it’s more than a simple concussion that should go away in a few days or a week. What signs should you look out for? How do you know if it is time to go to the emergency room?
A few potential emergency warning signs include:
- Weakness in the limbs
- Numbness anywhere on your body, but especially in the limbs
- A headache that not only will not go away, but that keeps getting worse
- Repeated vomiting and extreme nausea
- An inability to feel fully awake, even if you’re technically awake; this is often referred to as “extreme drowsiness.”
- Pupils of different sizes
- Difficulty recognizing the people around you
- Difficulty understanding where you are
- Convulsions and/or seizures
- A fever that runs to at least 100.5 degrees Fahrenheit
- Difficulty speaking, often resulting in slurred speech
- Extreme irritability, confusion or other changes to your general behavior
As you can imagine, others may be more in tune with these changes than you are. If they notice that you’re not making sense when you talk and that your personality seems different, they need to take action. It could mean that you suffered a more severe head injury than your doctor thought or that there are other complications, such as bleeding on the brain.
After a traumatic brain injury, it is very important to understand all of your potential rights to compensation. Contact an Easton TBI attorney to learn more.
