Tbi Balanced
Tbi Balanced”
A traumatic brain injury (TBI) can have many long-lasting and severe effects on a person’s life, from cognitive impairment to sudden personality changes. Since the brain is the center of all of the body’s activities, both conscious and involuntary, a person can suffer from virtually any kind of symptom when it is damaged. Some of these potential symptoms include psychological problems similar to mental illnesses like dementia or schizophrenia.
One of the more common mental problems caused by this type of damage is known as a monothematic delusion. A delusion is an irrational belief that a person will cling to despite any evidence to the contrary. In this context, monothematic means that the person is only experiencing one such belief, as opposed to multiple beliefs that may or may not be related to each other.
Interestingly, monothematic delusions do not vary among the people who suffer from them as much as you might expect. Many of these delusions are so common that they have been given names, usually after the first researchers to describe them. Some of the more common examples include:
- Capgras: The belief that a close friend or family member has been replaced by some kind of “imposter” who is only pretending to be that person
- Subjective doubles: The idea that one has an exact double (known as a doppelganger) who is committing various actions, perhaps in one’s name.
- Cotard: A belief that one does not exist, or is dead. This is sometimes accompanied by the fear that one is decomposing.
- Thought of insertion: A conviction that another person or entity is inserting or broadcasting thoughts into the patient’s mind.
- Fregoli: The idea that the patient is continually meeting the same person, who is disguising himself or herself as different people.
Naturally, ideas like these can greatly interfere with a person’s ability to work, maintain relationships, and generally function. Sometimes people can even become dangerous to themselves or others when they act on their ideas. In other cases, the patient poses no threat to anyone, but endures a great deal of personal suffering.
Unfortunately, there is no reliable way to cure a psychological problem caused by a brain injury. Some patients have experienced success with cognitive therapy, in which they were presented with evidence that challenged harmful convictions, but not everyone responds to this kind of treatment.
To learn more about head injuries, their consequences, and legal options for victims, contact Waukesha traumatic brain injury lawyers Habush, Habush & Rottier.
Joseph Devine
