A whopping 31% of all traffic crashes in the US involve a fatality, and a large percentage of these result in post-traumatic amnesia, or PTA.
PTA, sometimes referred to as a post-traumatic confusional state, can have a detrimental effect on your physical, emotional, and psychological well-being. While this can occur for several reasons, it can be caused by traumatic blows that impact the head and neck area, like whiplash during a car collision.
Post-traumatic amnesia has the potential to put your life on hold and affect your ability to earn a living. Let’s take a deep dive into PTA, analyze common signs, and give tips on how to get the responsible party to take responsibility for their actions. Check more about traumatic brain injury symptoms
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What is Post-Traumatic Amnesia?
Post-traumatic amnesia can be defined as the state of being confused, feeling disoriented, and experiencing long-term memory loss after a severe brain injury. In simple terms, it’s basically a loss of memory and some brain function due to a hard hit to the head.
Post-traumatic amnesia manifests differently in every person. Some may experience relatively obvious signs, while others may have limited memory loss accompanied by symptoms that are not always associated with PTA.
This is the reason why getting medical assistance is necessary if you believe you or a loved one has suffered PTA. A medical professional has the knowledge and qualifications to determine if you have PTA and which symptoms you seem to be displaying.
Symptoms and Signs of PTA
Most people think of long-term memory loss as soon as they hear the term “amnesia,” but the truth is that there are many symptoms associated with this type of brain injury. Let’s take a closer look.
Memory Loss
What causes short-term memory loss? This question can have several differences, but there is no doubt that PTA is among the leading long-term and short-term memory loss causes.
It’s important to note that the memory loss could be retrograde, anterograde, or dissociative. So, it’s possible to forget things that occurred before the accident, events that occurred after the trauma, and even your own identity, depending on the type of amnesia.
A Shortened Attention Span
Amnesia usually occurs when there is severe brain damage to critical parts of the cerebral matter.
This type of impact can also produce other side effects, with a shortened attention span being among the leading secondary symptoms of PTA. This symptom usually rescinds along with the other signs, though it may take weeks, months, or even longer to disappear.
Difficulties Understanding Others
PTA can make it hard to follow conversations or understand simple instructions.
This confusion often stems from cognitive damages caused by the impact, so it can leave you frustrated and struggling to communicate.
Confusion and Distress
Post-traumatic amnesia can often leave you feeling lost and disoriented. This confusion can cause immense emotional distress, making it difficult to process information and understand their surroundings or circumstances.
Anxiety and Agitation
Post-traumatic amnesia can trigger intense feelings of anxiety and agitation in some cases. The confusion and memory gaps increase stress, leaving individuals feeling uneasy and irritable, often worsening the emotional toll of their recovery process.
Instances of Wandering
Out of all the amnesia symptoms on this list, instances of wandering may be the hardest to detect, but they are also among the most telling.
Post-traumatic amnesia may cause patients to wander aimlessly due to confusion and disorientation. This may lead you to move without understanding where you’re going or why you are moving.
Uncharacteristic Behaviors
PTA can result in strange, out-of-character actions, including extreme emotions that you have never experienced before.
The brain injury can disrupt normal thought processes, leading to behaviors that may seem erratic or unexplainable and further complicating interactions with loved ones.
Migraines
Along with memory loss, PTA may induce frequent migraines that vary in severity and duration. These crippling headaches are a common side effect of traumatic brain injuries, causing intense pain that further complicates recovery, interactions with other people, and daily functioning.
How Long Does Post-Traumatic Amnesia Last?
Now that we have a better understanding of the causes of amnesia related to brain injury, let’s discuss the duration of PTA.
As mentioned earlier, PTA cases vary in terms of severity, symptoms, and how long they last.
PTA injury severity is usually rated based on the amount of time the person experiences memory loss, with mild cases lasting less than an hour, moderate cases lasting up to 24 hours, and severe cases lasting more than a day.
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Treating Post-Traumatic Amnesia
The road to recovery from PTA is unique to each individual, but it’s always a different journey filled with unique twists and turns.
In this sense, the most important thing to remember is to build a great support network that helps you get through this challenging situation.
It’s also essential to have the right legal representation, as this will help you get fairly compensated for the injuries you suffered due to someone else’s actions.
Get in touch with our team of experienced attorneys to start building a winning case and get the compensation you need to focus on your comeback.
To Wrap Up
Suffering from amnesia due to an injury like a severe blow to the head can greatly reduce your quality of life by affecting your psychological and emotional wellness.
While many don’t realize it, PTA has many symptoms, including physical pain, in addition to the loss of memory. For instance, it’s also possible to have frequent migraines, develop a short attention span, and experience other symptoms along with the loss of precious memories.
Have you or someone you love developed amnesia due to someone else’s actions? In these cases, getting the compensation you deserve is a key factor if you want to get the time and space necessary to recover from the physical trauma.
Contact Brain Injury Law of Seattle and tell us more about your time. Our attorneys will carefully listen to everything you have to say and help you get fairly compensated if your injuries were caused by a negligent party. Contact us today!
