She goes robotically from place to place and from task to task as directed by her therapists. She doesn’t remember her daily activities. While in post-traumatic amnesia, the patient is somewhat responsive, but baffled by her surroundings. As the weeks of post-traumatic amnesia pass, the odds of a good recovery diminish. The duration of PTA is one of the better - but still not very reliable - predictors of long-term outcome (see page 101). Jessica’s coma lasted two to three weeks her PTA lasted more than ten weeks. In general, post-traumatic amnesia lasts three to four times longer than the preceding coma. It can be weeks or months before your survivor is able to routinely store new memories. Memory is the slowest part of the conscious mind to recover from an injury. She may be unable to recall very basic information, such as her name, your name, the season of the year, or the name of the current president.

In this condition, the survivor may not understand who she is, where she is, and what is happening to her. More recently, the definition has been broadened to include a state of disorientation to time, place, and person. For years, PTA was defined as the period of time after an injury when the brain is unable to form continuous day-to-day memories. It is called post-traumatic amnesia (PTA). This is a normal part of the healing process. She may behave bizarrely or in a manner completely alien to her personality. She may be disinhibited, demonstrating a complete disregard for social conventions. She may be disoriented, agitated, angry, impulsive, or extremely emotional. When your survivor emerges from her coma, she likely will have little or no short-term memory.

Traumatic amnesia