Brain Injury
Information

• The Brain
• Glossary of Brain Injury Terms
• Hospital Rehabilitation Staff
• Families Coping With Brain Injury
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Communication After Brain Injury
• Prevention is Better than Cure

Why Prevention is Better than Cure

 
• Brain injury can happen to ANYONE at ANYTIME and ANYWHERE. The accident causing the injury may happen in a split second, but the effects can last a lifetime.
• The human skull is VERY THIN. Cracking your skull is as easy as cracking an egg.
• You skull is as thick as three pennies put together.
• The skull protects your BRAIN. The BRAIN is the most complex multi-purpose computer there is.
• Inside your skull your brain is able to move. If you can imagine a jelly in a basin, before you turn it on to a plate it can swivel in the basin. That is how your brain is in your skull. So when people are thrown about in a car accident it hits and twists against the skull. Therefore people have damage in lots of different areas. It is called DIFFUSE DAMAGE. Recovery takes a long time and is a complicated process.
• The front of the brain is often DAMAGED in accidents. For example in a car crash, the head can be thrown backwards and forwards by the acceleration and deceleration forces. This part of the brain is responsible for MEMORY, behaviour and emotions.
• So - PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE. Protect your head and wear a helmet when cycling, riding a horse or a motorbike! In a car, use your seat belts! Headway is pleased to offer any information on the prevention of head injury.

© Daniel Cox / Sarah Alexander / Sussex Safer Roads Partnership.