Did you know that more than 5.3 million people in the U.S. live with disabilities caused by TBI? Among these populations, twitching is a common symptom but is often ignored. We will look at the potential reasons, the types of twitching, and the treatments. We invite you to learn some facts about twitching after a brain injury concerning the tone, for which we wanted to be very friendly and approachable.
Causes of Twitching After Brain Injury
A healthy brain delivers nerve signals to our muscles, enabling them to know when to shorten and lengthen. However, an injury to the brain disrupts such neural tracts or lines that the brain derives its lines for internal communication. By healthy internal lines of the brain, it must communicate appropriately to different muscles. If these are disrupted, then twitching occurs typically.
It can impair somebody’s usual functioning, disrupt mobility and sometimes cause pain. But it is not all a morbid condition. That some twitching after brain injury may bring back movements in somebody who, up until now, was dumbfounded by paralysis tells us that recovery from injury can happen.
On the other hand, twitching may also turn into a dangerous movement disorder, so it should probably be treated quite seriously. It would be wise to discuss this with one’s physician to shed some more light on what could be causing the twitch. Therefore, you will have the correct diagnosis and an appropriate treatment plan that suits you.
Various Twitching Types Following Brain Injury
Muscle contraction all over the body is another appropriate word to describe twitching. Nevertheless, the nature, appearance, or degree of nature in twitching very intensely differs from one individual to the other. It is incredible to note that in any list of symptoms of different types of movement disorder arising, the most common denominator in all of them is twitching.
Different kinds of twitching may develop after a brain injury. They show the following characteristics:
Spasticity
Consider that you have experienced some arm neurological hiccup, ranging from a less serious stroke to even more severe brain injuries. Suddenly, you feel that your muscles are behaving weirdly whenever you try to make a move. Yes, they are probably contracting more than is usual for you, or perhaps you’re even experiencing an unexpected twitching. Well, you’re probably managing against spasticity.
Interestingly, spasticity does not occur right after a brain injury. In the majority of cases, it only appears at some point in the first half-year. If left uncontrolled, spasticity could become a bigger problem. It can progress to include more of your muscles, limiting your mobility and allowing your pain to happen at higher levels.
Shivers
If you’ve had any sort of a brain injury and your musculature began to twitch or shake of its own accord in some kind of a regular cadence, then you know about post-traumatic shivers. These are most typically erosive in fine musculature, such as that found in your hands or fingers, though it is quite common to have them erupt in your neck or even your lips.
There exist several tremor types with various causes, and they may, therefore, manifest themselves either as static, with no movements done—resting tremor—or as incredibly violent when undertaking particular electrical-driven motions—action tremor.
Myoclonus
First, let us define myoclonus, a disorder that provokes sudden, brief muscle spasms or twitching in any location on the body. Usually, these are involuntary muscle jerks. It is relatively common for healthy human beings to feel some mild types of myoclonus.
Dystonia
Dystonia is a state marked by prolonged muscle contractions. These contractions can force the person into abnormal body postures or brace them into repetitive or twisting movements. Dystonia is broadly classified into three types: Focal dystonia, Segmental dystonia, and General dystonia.
Muscle Reactivation
Interestingly, some people who sustained a head injury constantly twitched, and it might point to the presence of a severe kind of movement disorder. However, it might also become a good sign in the rebuilding phase.
Management of Muscle Twitching after Brain Damage
If you have experienced some kind of head injury, muscle twitching might occur. The severity of it and, therefore, the treatment approach can most definitely differ. So, you are well advised to see your therapist and make an appointment to identify the most effective intervention for your circumstances. They will be able to propose this in the form of a mix of various treatments and may comprise:
Therapy
Rehabilitative exercises go hand in glove with the best way to deal with twitching after traumatic brain injury. Following that, it will be coupled with a host of other therapies. That could involve physical therapy and occupational therapy through in-house exercises.
Your therapist will use whatever combination of techniques—stretching, positioning, strengthening, and movement retraining—they think would best restore your muscles to their proper function, whatever the underlying cause of your new-onset twitching.
Medication
Indeed, the post-TBI twitching might, in some cases, be a prelude to spasticity. Baclofen and certain other medications may be of real help in such cases. However, you should remember that such medicines treat the symptoms or the superficial causes and not the central problem of twitching post-brain injury.
It’s best to combine these with rehabilitation exercises for optimum results. Be aware that such a drug can have side effects, so you have to have a discussion with your doctor on the optimum drug.
Surgery
This stressful treatment must be considered only after all other possibilities are at an impasse. In severe cases, such as those with post-brain trauma, surgical interventions may sometimes be required. However, discuss with your doctor to decide if surgery is the correct option to select for treatment.
In a Nutshell
You may have twitched a bit after your brain injury. This may be your body’s way of telling you that you have something like a movement problem, the same as spasticity or dystonia. But don’t not panic! It’s not always bad news. This twitching might tell you that your brain and muscles have started to reconnect, relearning each other.
Still, twitching can be a significant nuisance. It can cause discomfort, even agony, which gets in the way of ordinary daily living. That’s why talking to your medical provider and looking for therapeutic options is always good.
Another great way to understand twitching caused by a brain injury is to constantly work on rehabilitation exercises. The more you practice them, the more your brain will be stimulated towards adaptability, which leads to neuroplasticity, in turn improving your chances of getting better.