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Acquired brain injury (ABI) doesn't discriminate. It can happen to anyone at any time. It isn't something that you plan for so it is impossible to prepare for.

CBIT's definition
An acquired brain injury is an injury to the brain that has happened AFTER birth. It could be the result of an accident (such as a road traffic accident or fall), an illness (such as encephalitis or meningitis), stroke, tumour or poisoning.

The hidden disability
People often think that if you can't see the disability then it doesn't exist, but acquired brain injury is commonly known as the 'hidden disability' because, more often than not, you won't be able to see it. Leaving hospital often signifies recovery and a return to school often signifies a return to normality, but the hidden difficulties are likely to emerge over time, as expectations increase.

Why focus on children?
In adults, the greatest improvements after a brain injury generally occur within the first two years, but the story for children is very different as the human brain takes roughly 20 years to fully develop. This means that depending on the age of the child or young person, it can take months and quite possibly years for the injury to become apparent as it is only when the injured part of the brain develops that the exten of the brain injury can be known. Parents often say that that the difficulties facing their child tend to get worse rather than better as the young person enters adolescence. This is largely due to the fact that the teenage years are when most people begin to fine-tune skills such as independence and the ability to plan their life. For a young person with an acquired brain injury, this can be incredibly difficult.

CBIT supports anyone affected by childhood acquired brain injury, regardless of how the brain injury came about. We do this because following an acquired brain injury, children will commonly experience difficulites in the following areas:

Thinking
Taking longer to process information
Difficulties concentrating
Diffulties focussing attention - being easily distracted
Forgetfullness - particularly in relation to new information and recent events
Follwing verbal instructions
Organising and planning

Emotions
Depression
Anxiety
Fearful
Obsessive

Behaviours
Acting on impulse - without thinking thrught the consequences
Immaturity
Aggression
Sexually inappropriate behaviour

Physical
Tiredness and fatigue
Doing things at a slower pace