“Come on, kids, your dad’s in the hospital; he’s had a car crash.” Fortunately, when you get to the hospital, your partner seems fine, except for the broken wrist and sore ribs, and he comes home with you.
He makes the most of his injuries for the next few days: lying on the couch as you and your kids bring snacks, coffee and beer.
A week later, he’s bored with staying at home and decides he will go to the office the next day. As he points out, he can type one-handed. That afternoon your daughter comes running into your study in tears, saying that dad shouted at the dog. You are puzzled, it’s so unlike him. He’s usually laid back, even when the dog is tearing the house apart. He did say he had a headache earlier, though.
When someone has a car accident, the full effect it has had on them is not always noticeable. While you can see something like a broken wrist, injuries to their brain may not show for some time. The sudden force of a car accident can cause the brain to hit the inside of the skull hard. It could cause bleeding or bruising of the brain that you cannot see as it is inside the head.
It is vital to keep a close eye on a family member who has been in a motor accident, however well they seem. Behaving out of character may be a sign they have suffered a traumatic brain injury.