[skierscott]

> Just 2 months ago ... she can't hold a job or go to college

Oh god. How severe was it? A traumatic brain injury is something I wouldn't wish upon my worst enemy (and I know how frustrating it is. I went through a severe TBI myself).

And keep in mind that the healing is just beginning. Hell, at two months I was barely out of the hospital and the recovery took a full two years. I would guess she's not healing and has a ways to go; those effects are likely not permanent.

> Due to nerve damage she will always have a little trouble walking, but most people won't notice it.

The physical ailments are the visible ailments, but there's many more invisible ailments (at least in my case). How you think almost defines who you are and if that gets messed up, it's almost impossible to see and much more of a loss. In my view, it seems almost pointless to mention the lasting physical ailments: they're just small things you live with. They don't change who you fundamentally are.

[shanemhansen]

Her injuries are very similar to what you describe experiencing. Thank goodness she's 18 and healing fast. A lot of the visible damage was healed after a couple months. However despite graduating early from high school the doctors don't want her to start college yet.

I think in 2 years she will be fine. She will probably be a different person unfortunately. But it could be much worse.

[skierscott]

Then I really pity her; what I went through was incredibly frustrating. As cheesy as it sounds, my heart goes out to her.

> the doctors don't want her to start college yet.

That's completely normal in cases like this. My doctors didn't think I'd return to college for a year (and I was hardly ready at 6 months). I'm back now and at full throttle again (and going on 2.5 years). I was linear, concrete, black and white and and bad at planning for 6-9 months, and wasn't fully healed for (at least) 2 years.

> She will probably be a different person unfortunately.

A lesson I've learned is that there's nothing wrong with an injury like this changing your personality. Whether it be with fundamental personality changes or lingering deficits, it's just something you live with. How you choose to deal with them is defines who you are, not their mere presence. To this day, I'm bad at planning. To get around this, I manage it like any sane person would and nitpick every detail and put myself in the other person's shoes.