The impact of fatigue for people with brain injury – ‘On a good day’

Action for Brain Injury Week is Headway’s annual campaign to raise awareness and understanding about brain injury. This year, the theme is ‘On a good day’, which seeks to highlight the fluctuating and unpredictable nature of brain injury. 

A person with brain injury may find that their performance carrying out everyday tasks may vary from ‘moment to moment’, or over longer periods such as days, months or even years.   

Brain injury can result in fluctuating presentations for many different reasons. One of the most common reasons is post-injury fatigue. This is extreme tiredness, which often persists despite rest, and can significantly impact a person’s energy, ability to complete tasks, and concentration. 

We spent some time with Brainkind’s clinical team to understand more.  

Dr Miles Rogish, Consultant Neuropsychologist at Brainkind Neurological Centre York, emphasised the impact of fatigue post brain injury. He said:  

‘Fatigue is one of the most common and pervasive symptoms following ABI. This can lead to a person having varying levels of understanding, ability and engagement.

‘Sometimes fatigue follows a daily pattern, or sometimes it’s more affected by physical or cognitive demands placed on the individual.’

Dr Reinhart Burger, Principal Clinical Psychologist at Kerwin Court, also pointed out the impact of fatigue, but emphasised other contributing factors too: 

‘A person’s performance can also be affected by situational factors. These are things like fatigue, but also quality of sleep, pain, discomfort and psychosocial factors. We all know how a bad night’s sleep can affect our processing the next day, but because of ‘reduced cognitive reserve’ (the brain’s resilience, which reduces the impact of damage over time, such as the ageing process)- this is likely to affect people with brain injury more than the general population’.

Sara da Silva Ramos, Senior Research Fellow at Brainkind, agreed, saying: 

‘Severe fatigue and pain can impact your motivation, which in turn impacts whatever you’re able to do.’ 

It is important that those living with ABI and the people around them understand the potential impact of fatigue, and how it may be a contributing factor in ‘good days’ and ‘bad days’. Although fatigue may never go away for some people, there are ways of managing it that can help.

More information can be found in Brainkind’s Tips and Tricks booklet, available here: Tips and Tricks for life after a brain injury