A STUDENT who suffered life-changing injuries after being hit by a car has told how she can no longer see her favourite bands as the atmosphere becomes too "overwhelming".
Anna Khan was walking home with her twin sister Lauren and friend after watching a Michael Jackson and Elvis Presley drama show at their college in Rotherham when she was hit by a car and thrown across the bonnet after coming off a bus a year-and-a-half ago.
The 22-year-old from Edinburgh spent a month in an induced coma during a four month stay in hospital after sustaining a serious traumatic brain injury, a fractured face and hip, a broken leg and a punctured lung.
After three months on intensive treatment at a specialist rehabilitation centre including physiotherapy and speech support, she was finally able to return to the family home at the end of March, last year.
Anna, a fan of Ed Sheerin, Jess Glynne and James Arthur, explained how she tried to see one of her music heros singer-songwriter Newton Faulkner in Sheffield last year, but ended up crying in the bathroom before heading home saying she could not cope with the intensity of the experience.
Speaking at the start of this year’s Action for Brain Injury Week said: " I used to love going to concerts but have found the experience with the loud music and crowd totally overwhelming in recent times. I can chill at home listening to music, that's okay it's going out to listen to it that's when I struggle.
Newton Faulkener (below) was on tour last year and I took my two sisters and a mate to go and see him. But the whole thing was way too much.
"I was standing and my leg isn't that strong, because there is titanium in it and the arena was getting [busier] with more people coming in and in and in. By the time the artist came on, the crowd was going everywhere, and there was screaming and clapping and all that and I was just like, I have to go because. I was getting upset.
"I could see the artist. I could see the guitars and drums and mics. But I just had to leave because my brain was going freak out.
"I was there for fifteen or twenty minutes and then I had to go to the bathroom. I was crying in the bathroom, I was so upset. I had barely got to see the artist I wanted to see."
She says she is going to try and find out if she can overcome the trauma by going to an outdoor concert by another of her favourite artists, singer-songwriter Jess Glynne at Falkirk stadium in August.
"I think I will try to see how it goes, and if it gets too much, then I am going to have to go," she said.
She had been studying for an HND in Graphic Design and her driving test had been booked around two weeks before the accident. Now she is hoping to finish off her studies in September.
" I’m looking to put such matters behind me and complete studies which had to be put on hold following the accident. I also want to find some new hobbies and interests too. All in all, my future is looking positive and I want to keep focused on moving forward," she said.
Now the family have taken legal advice over a potential compensation claim "to protect her future care, accommodation and therapy needs". Anna’s family instructed Irwin Mitchell’s Serious injury team to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident and solicitors are in the process of obtaining all of the relevant evidence, including from specialists.
They have recently secured funding from the insurance company for a rehabilitation assessment which will help start to rebuild Anna’s and her family’s lives.
Anna Khan, right, with her twin sister Lauren
Taking place from May 8 to 14, this year’s annual campaign week, organised by Headway, is based around the theme of ‘life after brain injury’ and how such injuries have a lasting impact on not only survivors but also their families and carers.
As part of its work, Headway has established ‘A New Me, a platform for people to share experiences which has been created to both challenge misconceptions about brain injury and also highlight the value that the right support can provide.
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