Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
Although traumatic brain injury is not specifically listed as an impairment in the Social Security Adminstration manual, it is included under the heading of cerebral trauma. The manual provides, in short, that traumatic brain injury cases are evaluated primarily according to neurological criteria.
If you've suffered a brain injury and can't work as a result, you may be eligible for Social Security disability benefits. When they evaluate your claim, the Social Security administration will look at the disabilities that result from a brain injury, rather than the injury itself, to evaluate how these disabilities make you unable to work.
Even if your symptoms don't seem severe, a brain injury can affect your life in many ways - some of which you may not notice but people around you might see.
Because the brain controls your entire body, you may experience a wide range of symptoms. Look for any of the following:
- cognitive disabilities (trouble paying attention, impaired judgment, short-term and long-term memory loss)
- communication problems (aphasia/difficulty finding words, dysarthria/difficulty speaking, prosodic dysfunction/difficulty with tone of voice)
- sensory problems (problems with vision or visual processing, tinnitus or hearing noises, feeling itching, tingling or pain without an obvious source)
Depending on the location of your brain injury, you may notice a variety of emotional changes too. Friends and family can help you identify these if you're unsure:
- depression
- anxiety disorders
- mania or bipolar disorder
- obsessive-compulsive disorder
- panic disorders
- insomnia
- loss of inhibition
- impulsiveness
- aggression
- loss of initiative or pleasure in formerly enjoyable activities
Brain injuries can also cause a variety of physical symptoms:
- dangerous blood clots
- post-traumatic seizures
- ataxia, myoclonus, and other muscle/motor disorders
- hydrocephalus
- vasospasm (constriction of blood vessels)
- aneurysms
- hormone imbalance, including hypothyroidism
This is not a complete list — if you experience other symptoms, or notice changes in your behavior and personality, be sure to talk to your doctor about how they may relate to your brain injury.
If a disability decision cannot be made on medical factors alone, your situation will be evaluated based on a variety of physical and/or mental limitations you may have that prevent you from working. These include:
- How well you can perform physical tasks such as walking, standing, lifting, carrying, pushing, pulling, reaching, and handling objects; or
- How well you can perform mental tasks such as understanding, carrying out, and remembering instructions; responding appropriately to supervision and co-workers; and dealing with work pressures.
Improving Your Chances for Obtaining Benefits
- See a doctor regularly and take the medication that he/she gives you so that your doctor can support your application for benefits.
- Use a calendar to jot down notes about how you feel each day.
- Record any of your usual activities you could not do on any given day.
- Ask your doctor or other health care professional to track the course of your symptoms and to keep a record of any evidence of fatigue, depression, forgetfulness, dizziness, or other hard-to-document symptoms.
- Keep records of how your illness affected you on the job.
Helpful Links:
You can learn more about Social Security benefits and brain injury at the link below:
- Brain Injury Association of Oregon
- Brain Injury Support Community
- Street Roots article: What We Don't Know Will Hurt Us