What would cause symptoms as TBI if you never hit your head?

@marialara Speaking of Seattle (where I've lived since 2009) and anomic aphasia, street names have been a recurring problem for me. But, after repeated practice, I finally have Union St. and Virginia Ave. down. Why those two, I have no idea. I recently tried a method of making sure I don't have problems with a neighbor's name, which is Beverly. Knowing that I have Hyperthymesia, I took advantage of this by looking at her face (okay, got the visual, there) while saying to her, "I won't forget this, Beverly," which, in my own voice, captured the auditory component. So, now I am able to see her face, hear my voice saying "Beverly" and I can recite her name any time I want to. It might not work for anyone who doesn't have Hyperthymesia, but it could be a way to train yourself to recall names or words you have trouble with. When I drill myself for "Union" and "Virginia," I visualize the street signs, or the marquee in the bus when either street is coming up next.

@garyr443 Thank you for providing further insight. I actually have a similar difficulty with word retrieval. I've had it most of my life. I really began getting worse when I was a young adult. There was moment when I looked out on Puget Sound and saw a ship. But I couldn't think of the word for sails. I turned to my husband and said, "Those white things on the ship." It was the first time I realized that this was truly a problem. It has gotten worse with age. I forget a person's name (that I know and know) or a object. I haven't discovered a way around it. BUT I have made peace with it. Relaxing and acceptance does help me recover words. One time I was in church and I saw a person that I knew I knew, but couldn't remember his name. It was a special situation because of some encouragement he had provided regarding my son. I prayed, "Dear God, help me remember his name because I don't want him to feel bad. And, he needs to see how well my son is doing. He needs to know that his words were important." I prayed without stress. With trust. With resignation. And then...his name came. So, I guess the only way I have found to help myself is to relax when I cannot recall something I know I know. If I discover anything else, you'll be the first to know! God bless you.

In my case, I have a TBI from being hit by a bicyclist in 2014. A year or two later, I began to experience anomic aphasia. Though I haven't been seen by a doctor for this, I know, from years of reading and experience that it is anomic aphasia. I can be in a conversation, or writing or thinking about anything and, at some point, there may be a word, a name or a phrase I want to use, but it's just "not there." This will typically continue for seconds, minutes, or in rare cases, hours before the word pops into my mind. It's frustrating more than anything, as it impairs my ability to communicate. Those people who know nothing about anomic aphasia will assume the problem is "memory loss," but the memories are still there. The problem is one of recall and most people think memory and recall are the same thing, but they are not. The fact that I recover and say the word just moments later proves the memory is still intact. As for my memories, everything I see, hear or directly experience will become a part of my long-term memory. I have an undiagnosed case of Hyperthymesia and revisit memories from as long ago as age 4, sometimes whether I want to or not. Yet, despite this, anomic aphasia is a problem for me because it doesn't involve my visual or auditory senses. It is only words, whether written or read, that are affected. Some words (and names) seem to give me more trouble than others, but I will eventually recall them. It just takes longer.

Welcome, June @whoppi12 ~
Thank you for posting here. I'm going to echo what Lisa said; I am grateful that your son has you. Caring for someone with a TBI or any debilitating situation can be difficult. I look forward to hearing more details. As food for thought, I have spoken with a few people who claim that many of us sustain concussions or mild TBIs and do not realize it. I am curious to hear examples of the dementia symptoms he was experiencing before the accident. And was he ever seen by a physician or neurologist for these symptoms? Thank you again for posting. I hope you are blessed with strength, wisdom, perseverance, and love.

Hi, @whoppi12, and welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. Since you mentioned dementia symptoms with your son, I also added this discussion to the Early Dementia and Mild Cognitive Impairment support group on Connect, so members there also can offer support and insights.

Your son is fortunate to have you helping to figure this all out for him.

So, to clarify, your son had some dementia symptoms before he hit his head in a car? What symptoms was he experiencing, and was he given a diagnosis?

After experiencing these symptoms, he hit his head in a car, perhaps in an accident?