Zzsandco@aol.com
my heart goes out to you. i KNOW what you are going through. after my daughter was in a car accident (passenger in a pickup truck) and was unconscious for about 15 minutes, she was pasted back together facially by a plastic surgeon, but had rages 20-25 times a day for about 1 1/2 years (wherein she threatened to kill me). I could do nothing to help her, as she refused to see a doctor about anything. When I did get her to go to see a neurologist eventually, he said nothing was wrong with her and that we were "very fortunate" that she was recovering as well as she was. I had gone for help and this is what was being said to me! Anyone who had walked in my shoes for even one day would have KNOWN that there was some brain injury or, at the least, some "shaken brain syndrome." We had an MRI done on her at one point and it showed no lesions at all. A different doctor said there could be minute lesions that did not show up on the films. Our daughter tried to return to high school for her senior year, but was not able to handle the "loud whispering and talking about her".... real or imagined? She could not function in school, couldn't remember her way to and from classes. She had to have a private in-home instructor provided by the school district. She finished HS that way and eventually took and passed her GED (two years after the accident). She still had impulsive behavior and anger problems resulting in an unwanted pregnancy. Now, nine years later (since the accident at age 16), she has graduated from college with her degree. Her memory just kept on improving over the years. She still can't remember some of the high school friends she used to "hang out" with before the accident. She worked all the time she was going to college and while being a single mother, too. She had almost straight A's in college. Do not give up on your child. With time and depending on how much damage was done, your child hopefully will improve with lots of rest and alternating that with lots of stimulation. Play their favorite tunes for them, sing them their favorite songs, etc. Read them their favorite childhood stories and/or watch their favorite cartoons. Tactile stimulation with touching textures is helpful, too. Having them taste different flavors helps to stimulate their senses, too. It's really hard to know what to tell you without knowing exactly the extent of the disability or for how long it's been since the injury. And I'm just a mother who has been there. If my daughter had UNDFETECTED brain damage, then I can't imagine what you must be going through to have a child who has been defined as having severe head injury. Good luck and feel free to write me on this web page any time and I will TRY to answer, but I don't answer my e-mails very frequently.