On March 26, 1985, Clive Wearing was a critically acclaimed conductor, tenor, and expert in early music, with an influential position at London’s BBC Radio 3. In his capacity there, the esteemed musicologist had even been responsible for the musical content of Prince Charles' and Diana's wedding (an event heard by millions).
On March 27, 1985, Clive Wearing contracted herpes viral encephalitis. The illness ravaged his hippocampus—the part of the brain responsible for storing and creating memories—leaving him with exceptionally extreme cases of both short-term and long-term memory loss. For Wearing, reality, both past and present, effectively resets every 30 seconds. With such severe memory problems, Wearing understandably lost his position with the BBC and requires full time care. So, in the span of a few weeks, Wearing went from a prominent musical figure to a shadow of his former self. While his is a truly remarkable case (in terms of the severity of his memory loss), after a car accident, many people may experience a similar situation even more abruptly. Fortunately, an auto accident injury lawyer can help you to deal with your car accident injuries by securing the compensation you need.
Coping with Memory Loss
The sad truth is that medical science does not currently have a cure for memory loss. But, as experienced Toronto personal injury lawyers know, the situation is not necessarily so bleak. Memory loss caused by serious car accidents often only lasts for a short period of time (i.e. transient memory loss). However, there are cases in which patients do not improve, or even worsen over time. Regardless of your affliction, memory loss should never be approached passively. It takes a concerted effort to deal with the effects of memory loss after an auto accident.
Strategies for Aiding Memory Loss
There are several broad categories through which patients, their families, and caregivers can manage memory loss. While an auto accident injury lawyer can help you to learn these strategies, it is always best to seek professional medical advice and therapy when coping with a disability.
- Adapt Your Environment
- As you would expect, the day-to-day environment for someone with a functioning memory won’t be compatible with someone suffering memory loss. It’s easy to adapt a patient’s home and surrounding environment by adding things like: a notice board for important information (e.g. addresses, phone numbers, etc.); a single location for essential objects like keys, a wallet, and glasses; labeling as much as is necessary, like cupboards, drawers, rooms, or perishable food items.
- External Memory Aids
- Everyone uses external memory aids of some sort—perhaps you can’t get by without your iCal, or maybe you magnet a grocery list to the fridge at all times. For someone with memory problems, it simply means increasing the use of these, and adding a few more to the repertoire, such as voice recording software, pictures and diagrams, labeled pill boxes, etc.
Though the prospect of memory loss is frightening, an auto accident injury lawyer knows that even a case as severe as Clive Wearing’s has a silver lining. Wearing never lost the long-term memory of his wife, Deborah. But, since his memory “turns over” so frequently, whenever he sees Deborah, he will joyously greet her as if he hadn’t seen her in years, earnestly hugging his beloved wife—even if she only left the room to fetch a cup of tea.
No matter the extent of your injury, you can help yourself by seeking a free consultation with a Toronto personal injury law firm today.
Sources:
http://nbia.ca/pdfs/coping-with-memory-problems.pdf
https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003257.htm