Misinformation about brain injury continues to be reinforced by popular media.
This month’s selection of brain injury misinformation is a Net Flix film, “Falling for Christmas” staring Lindsay Lohan, a comedy about a spoiled hotel heiress who experiences traumatic identity amnesia after falling and striking her head while skiing.
This rare form of amnesia occurs when an individual forgets their own identity and their life experiences. The film unfortunately provides viewers with an inaccurate depiction of head trauma, concussion, and its consequences.
Concussions and brain trauma are not sexy and not funny.
The story line of hitting your head and forgetting who you are is not the ordinary and typical response to head trauma and perpetuates myths about traumatic brain injury and its consequences.
This film, like many others, fails to accurately portray the common physical, cognitive, emotional, and behavior consequences of traumatic brain injury that can affect an individual’s ability to function day-to-day.
It’s time that Hollywood consults with advocacy groups such as the Brain Injury Association of America to understand how a concussion can negatively affect a person’s life before portraying this condition on film.
Brain injury is difficult for the victim to explain and difficult for outsiders to understand.
Someone in the United States will sustain a brain injury every 9 seconds. Films like “Falling for Christmas” make it harder for everyone to appreciate the silent epidemic of brain injury.
Hollywood needs to do better. Perpetuating myths about brain injury is irresponsible.