He's opened his eyes which is great. That in itself will be overwhelming for him. Unusual place, different people. Don't rush to get him jumping through hoops. The brain can shut down very fast when fatigued. Please take things easy. But....thank you for supporting him.

Can he do basic 1 step imitation? Like open close hand after hearing "do this". This will identify if he has control over his body and which parts. You can say "tap" then touch his finger and physically tap his finger for him and repeat "tap". See if he can do it on his own. This is after you know he can imitate the movement now you can add a word or label to it. Think of movements that might be helpful like "arms up" to help him get dressed. See if he can imitate the movement then add language to keep it easier for him to progress.

I am trying desperately to get my dad to follow commands after surgery. His eyes are now open. What should I be doing?

I agree every TBI is definitely different. My daughter had her accident 2018 and we are still not very far in recovery. I mean we are making progress, but not how I expected. Mind you we have had several setbacks with insurance, more surgeries since we’ve been home (2/2019). We just had one on 3/19/21 and the shunt is off due to surgery. So backwards we go again, but I know that we will get there. Just continue to have faith.

About 6 months for me after being in a coma for 3 weeks. Had to learn how to do everything again. Luckily i was in a good hospital/ rehab environment that had every kind of therapy possible. I still have issues 20 years later, don’t get me wrong, but it does get better, slowly. Best of luck!

As in.... going to the bathroom by yourself, or feeding yourself, or walking on your own, first words, etc... I know every brain injury is different but I would love to hear from all you ABI/TBI survivors who had to “start over”, as in infancy wise.

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I am trying desperately to get my dad to follow commands after surgery. His eyes are now open. What should I be doing?

How many weeks, months, or years did it take you to be more independent?

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