Local charity urges people with brain injuries to get support earlier
Headway Thames Valley highlight the impacts of waiting to find help
A charity supporting people with brain injuries across Berkshire and south Oxfordshire is urging families to use community support earlier, saying this can significantly improve recovery and quality of life.
Headway Thames Valley says too many people are only finding help years after their injury – something its the charity leader knows from personal experience.
Jamie Higgins suffered a brain injury after being assaulted in 2012 and struggled without the use of the service.
“For the first 12 months, I didn’t make any progress and, if anything, I think I deteriorated,” he said.
It was only after attending the charity’s eight-week 'Living with Brain Injury' course that Jamie's condition began to improve.
“It was such a massive turning point in my life,” he said.
Jamie later began volunteering with the charity before working his way up to become the manager.
He said one of the biggest issues they notice is how long it takes for people to find them: “The worst thing about my job is hearing about someone phone us up and say they’ve had a brain injury three years ago and they’ve just some across us.
“Usually by the time they’re making that phone call, they may have experienced mental health issues, relationship breakdowns, lost their job, they might be on the verge of homelessness or had brushes with the law.”
He added: “Had they contacted us three weeks or three months after their brain injury, I’m really confident that all of those things would look much better.”
The charity helps people over the age 16 with acquired brain injuries, which could be from strokes, traumatic injuries and illnesses like meningitis.
Jamie believes they are filling a crucial gap between medical treatment and long-term rehabilitation.
“The NHS is amazing at supporting people when they’re in hospital,” he said. “But in terms of once people are out of hospital, we don’t see a great deal of support or rehab going on in the communities.
“It’s not an organic recovery. They will only recover if they get the right type of support and that’s where we come in."
Headway Thames Valley provides a range of services across Berkshire and south Oxfordshire, including rehabilitation courses, community support groups and specialist therapies.
Jamie explained that people typically attend group sessions for three years, while some are still going after 10.
He says a key part of progression is people understanding their condition and finding ways forward.
"We talk about acceptance with all of our clients and it's never 'accept that this is how you are now and it's the way it's going to be', it's 'accept that something significant has happened to you and you're probably going to have to make some changes to the way you live your life'."
Jamie hopes that by raising awareness of brain injuries, more people will access support sooner so they can make the most of their recovery.
He said: “There is so much potential to get better and to live a really fulfilling and great life again with a brain injury."