WHY IS FATIGUE IMPORTANT FOR MANY STUDENTS WITH TBI?
Following severe TBI, sleepiness and fatigue are common problems for months, years, or, in many cases, indefinitely. There are many reasons for the frequency of fatigue problems. First, after injury to the brain and often to other parts of the body as well, the healing process saps energy and results in fatigue. In addition, sleep problems are common, with sleep-wake cycles disrupted by the injury. If there are physical impairments, greater-than-normal physical effort is required to perform even simple activities of daily living, adding to fatigue. In virtually every case, additional mental effort is required to pay attention, remember, organize, think clearly, and solve problems, further adding to fatigue. In addition, the impairments associated with the injury and the many changes in life cause emotional strain that further saps energy and contributes to fatigue. Mild TBI is also known to be associated with fatigue. For example, many athletes report sleep problems, fatigue, headaches
