Acquired Brain Injury (ABI): A Simple, Compassionate Guide to Understanding Your Healing

What Is an ABI?

An Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) is any brain injury that happens after birth—such as a concussion, fall, stroke, bleed, infection, or surgical/medical complication.

Even when the injury is ‘small,’ changes in how your brain functions can feel big. ABI is often invisible on the outside, yet very real on the inside.

You are not imagining it. Your symptoms have a biological cause, and recovery takes time.

Common Symptoms After ABI

Thinking & Processing

• Slower thinking or difficulty keeping up
  • Trouble multitasking or concentrating
  • Memory slips or trouble finding words
  • Mental fatigue that hits quickly

Physical Sensations

• Headache, pressure, or fullness
  • Dizziness, imbalance, or ‘floaty’ feelings
  • Light or sound sensitivity
  • Blurry vision or visual strain
  • Weakness or heaviness (often worse when tired)

Emotional Reactions

• Irritability or emotional swings
  • Anxiety or feeling easily overwhelmed
  • Frustration and discouragement
  • Feeling misunderstood or isolated

Sleep & Energy Changes

• Waking unrefreshed
  • Trouble falling or staying asleep
  • Sudden drops in energy
  • Feeling ‘wired but tired’

Why Recovery Takes Time

Your brain heals more slowly than other organs. Even after the immediate danger has passed, the brain is still working hard to:

• Reduce inflammation
• Restore blood flow and oxygen supply
• Rebuild neural connections
• Stabilize energy use

This creates the ups and downs many people experience: good day → flare → decent day → setback → improvement.
It is not a failure. It is neural repair in action.

What ABI Recovery Feels Like

Many people notice:

• Being able to do something once, but not again the same day
• A small amount of activity causing a big crash
• Feeling ‘not like yourself’
• Grief over temporary losses
• Relief when they finally understand what’s happening
• Feeling unseen because symptoms are invisible

None of this means you’re weak. It means your brain is healing.

How Counseling Helps

1. Pacing & Energy Management

• Understanding your ‘brain energy budget’
  • Preventing crashes before they happen
  • Rebuilding stamina slowly, safely, intentionally

2. Emotional Support

• Tools for fear, frustration, and grief
  • Calming the nervous system
  • Reconnecting to a sense of safety

3. Cognitive Support

• Strategies for memory, attention, and organization
  • Gentle cognitive exercises
  • Rest/work balance to avoid overload

4. And if you Would Like it, Faith-Integrated Care

• Hope and reassurance
  • Prayer and grounding practices
  • Meaning-making during recovery
  • Confidence that God is present in the healing process

There Is Hope

Most people with ABI improve significantly over time. Not quickly. Not perfectly. Not linearly. But meaningfully.

With rest, pacing, and the right support, you can rebuild stability, identity, and confidence.

You do not have to navigate this alone.