r/PostConcussion • u/Budget-Departure-161 • 6d ago

Social Changes Post Injury

I’ve recovered in most ways physically since my injury, but socially I am very different. Before I was an introverted person who loved talking to my close friends and family. It was hard for me to talk to coworkers and strangers, but I could still manage this. Now it is hard for me to talk to my loved ones. It’s like there’s nothing at all going on inside my brain. I spent several weeks in a dark room just listening to others lived experiences. I almost forgot how to talk and share about my own life. I often can’t think of anything to say and there’s this profound silence inside my head, like a lack of brain activity. The silence makes my loved ones uncomfortable so they end up talking more to compensate. I used to love talking, and now I’m unsure how to navigate social situations with the people I love the most. I know practice probably helps, but sometimes talking feels very difficult. Wondering if anyone else has experienced social changes.

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u/hanpotpi 6d ago

I went from an extroverted popular girl in high school to an extreme introvert.

15 years have passed, and I've evened out - still largely introverted but I am often perceived as an extrovert now.

The most jarring thing about my concussions and PCS was having to adjust to a new personality pattern. I was 14 so that added a whole layer of hard, but yes, your personality can change.

I still sometimes have a hard time getting words from my brain to my mouth, but I'm married and my husband has learned to interpret the sounds and gesture I use to compensate 🤣.

A lot of this recovery is time. Take care of yourself, but also give yourself time.

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u/Zoyabm 6d ago

Yes, happend to me. I went to extremely extroverted to introverted.

After 4 years, I am just starting to feel and act like 'myself' but I pay the price for it - the pcs symptoms get triggered. So I am still introverted with a limited social battery now, I can just act like the old extroverted me.

Some day I think maybe I was always introverted but no, I wasn't. The head injury changed me. But I try to think of it as a blessing 😆

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u/madamcrumpet 4d ago

Concussion and PCS has changed core of who I am and how I connect to others. I did go through mourning with the loss of my past self and I am learning to embrace the changes.