According to the Mayo Clinic, falls represent the number one reason why people suffer traumatic brain injuries. Consequently, construction workers like you face an increased risk of sustaining one.
Think about it. How many of your construction tasks require you to work on roofs, scaffolding or tall ladders? If you fall from one of these locations, the result may be a TBI that could disable you for the rest of your life.
TBI symptoms
Always seek immediate medical attention for any head injury you receive, even if you think it caused no more than a bump. Unfortunately, even an extremely serious TBI can show no symptoms for hours, days or even weeks after your fall. Common TBI symptoms, whether arising immediately or substantially after the fact, include the following:
- Dizziness
- Persistent ringing in your ears
- Persistent headache
- Double or blurry vision
- Nausea, often accompanied by vomiting
- Sudden convulsions or loss of consciousness
Be on the lookout for any of the above in the days and weeks following your fall. Other TBI symptoms that may appear include the following:
- Sleep disturbances
- Speech difficulties
- Cognitive issues
- Mobility issues
- Inability to control your emotions, particularly anger
- Anxiety attacks
Medical intervention
If any of these or other unusual symptoms appear, ask someone to take you to the emergency room immediately. You should not attempt to drive yourself. Doing so could put you and other drivers in danger.
Once there, ask for an examination by a head trauma specialist if at all possible. Such specialists likely will be more apt to run the proper tests to diagnose a TBI than would a non-specialist. Remember, the sooner you have a confirmed TBI diagnosis, the sooner the physician can start you on a course of treatment to minimize its possible long-term effects.