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For Family and Friends
A brain injury affects not only the injured person but the whole family — from financial challenges and social upheaval to isolation and job loss.
In this section for caregivers, family, and friends, you will find basic information about caring for a loved one with TBI; legal and financial guidance; workplace rights for caregivers; support group information; and advice about caregiver burnout among other topics.
As family and friends, you may be particularly interested in:
Traumatic Brain Injury Basics
About Traumatic Brain Injury
Brain injury affects the roots of who we are — our ability to think, communicate, and connect with other people. Here's a good place to start learning.
Letter to My Wife's Family
Caregiving & Brain Injury
A long-time caregiver writes an honest plea for help and support to his wife's siblings.
Lost & Found: What Brain Injury Survivors Want You to Know
Living with Traumatic Brain Injury
Hear what people with TBI are really thinking and want their friends, family, and others to know.
Topics
About Traumatic Brain Injury
Any injury to the brain from an external force is a TBI. Penetrating head injuries occur when an object, like shrapnel, enters the brain and causes damage in a specific area. Closed head injuries occur when there's a blow to the head, which can happen during a fall, car accident, sporting event, or any number of different ways.
Brain Basics
The brain is incredibly complex — take an interactive journey to see how the brain works and what impact an injury can have.
Can the Brain Recover Regardless of Age?
Up until the time when we die, our brain continues to make new connections and make new neural cells.
Caregiving and Traumatic Brain Injury
When a loved one sustains a traumatic brain injury, becoming a caregiver can happen suddenly, without warning. The person with the injury may look the same but think and behave differently. And when one member of a family changes, the entire family changes. Providing and coordinating care can be overwhelming. It helps to know there are resources you can turn to.
Caregiver Burn Out
Services like respite care can help an exhausted caregiver rest and refuel.
Finding the Right Doctor for People TBI
Caregivers need to educate themselves about their loved one's TBI and not be afraid to get a second opinion.
Family Concerns
While no family is ever prepared for the life changes a brain injury brings, almost everyone wants to know how they can help during the recovery process, and they want to learn about ways they can prepare for the financial, psychological and social consequences that a TBI can cause.
Family Counseling Services After Brain Injury
Dr. Jeffrey Kreutzer and Dr. Tayrn Strejskal talk about their work as teachers and doctors.
My Child's Brain Injury: Family Matters
Learn about common strategies that some families use to help them feel supported and strong after one of them sustains a TBI.
Sports Injuries
Sports-related brain injuries can happen in countless ways. A football player can sustain a traumatic brain injury (TBI) in a head-to-head collision. A cheerleader can fall on her head during a “basket toss.” A skier can smash into a tree. A skateboarder can lose control and fall against a curb. Coaches, parents, and athletes need to learn about brain injury to prevent injury and make the best decisions if an injury does occur.
How Can Parents Help Educate Their Children’s Coaches About Concussion?
Don’t worry about seeming like an overprotective mom or dad … share your knowledge and keep your child safe on and off the field.
How Many Concussions Are Too Many for a Young Athlete?
Err on the side of caution; “when in doubt, sit it out.”
And for brain injury rehabilitation resources in your area, click on “Resource Directory” on the top grey bar. Click on your state and go directly to a list of nearby TBI resources — rehab centers, outpatient services, and more. Or you can simply enter your zip code into the search box to find out what is available near you.
We hope you'll visit BrainLine often. We'll be adding new information, resources, voices, and stories on a regular basis. Tell us what you think here.
Andy's Story
"The puzzle of my life has a thousand pieces to it, and I am learning how to fit them all together."
No Stone Unturned
From the moment the Goldsteins adopted Bart from Korea, they pulled out all the stops to give him a good life. Especially after he sustained a severe TBI.
The Ups and Downs of Changing Medications After Brain Injury
My Daughter with a Brain Injury Acts Like a Teenager
Skills required for parenting can be taught but a safe, loving environment is critical.
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BrainLine.org is a WETA website funded by the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center through a contract with the Henry M. Jackson Foundation. Government funding support is not an endorsement of WETA or any of its products, including this website.
