MEDICAL PROBLEMS IN TBI: SEXUALITY IN TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY

     Sexuality is an important factor that contributes to the sense of identity each of us develops as a social and emotional being. Expression of sexuality is greatly influenced by self-esteem and self-perception, or, by the way we view ourselves in relation to our environment and other individuals. Changes in appearance, thinking skills, and/or physical changes related to brain injury alter an individual's self-perception and result in accompanying changes in the expression of sexual thoughts and impulses. He/she is often insecure about the ability to express and experience affection and concerned about attractiveness and sexual effectiveness. Sexuality is therefore a valid rehabilitation issue for the individual with TBI that requires support and understanding from the family and counseling.

Based on Brain Injury Patient Care and Education Manual, by Pinecrest Rehabilitation Hospital; Neuro section of the Trauma Manual, Jackson Memorial Hospital; and Recovering from Head Injury; a Guide for Patients, by Nova University Neuropsychology Service, and edited for PoinTIS by the Louis Calder Memorial Library of the University of Miami School of Medicine and the PoinTIS Advisory Committee, and on Rehabilitation of Persons with Traumatic Brain Injury, NIH Consensus Statement 1998 Oct. 26-28.