Whilst everyone who suffers a brain injury has different symptoms there are many cognitive issues that are more common. Whilst I am still trying to develop my skills I thought I would share with you things that have helped me come this far. There have been a few game training programs, that I would recommend you try, and here’s why…. 

Cogmed Online Training

Annette, from the brain injury charity Headway, set me up on Cogmed brain game training which I could do at home.

To begin with it’s appearance made me assume. But its not if you have a brain injury. However, just like a muscle, if you keep training and practising the brain, it will get better.

It allows you to measure what you’re good at and your progress. That is so important because you need to be able to see you are improving as otherwise it can be difficult to process  how far you have come.

It is designed to develop your working memory which many patients report as being an issue. It’s simple to use and although it can feel laborious and frustrating sometimes, you can take a break whenever you are struggling. It’s best to do in the morning before you have worn yourself out as you will get better results. Most patients struggle with fatigue so you do need to take that into account.

Unfortunately you can’t just go to the Cogmed website and start using it. You need to be referred to it by your Occupational Therapist.

Peak brain game training

Available on Apple and Android devices it allows users to develop their skills in language, problem solving, memory, focus, mental agility, emotion and coordination.

It has helped me and I really enjoy it. You can download it for free or upgrade for extra freedom on which games you play. Each day it gives you 5 games to train on that day. It tries to expose you to areas you need to improve in the most first. In addition, you can see how well you perform against the average in your age group. By giving you different tasks you are training different areas of your brain, and so it helps anyone. If you choose to upgrade, as well as being able to to the workout it has planned for you that day, you can play any others too. I love everything about this app, so I did decide to upgrade, but for most people the free version is enough.

Being able to appreciate how far you have progressed since your brain injury is vital. Read 5 shrewd steps to unlock your recovery from brain injury, to see how you can do this in other areas of your life.