Virginia (VA) Personal Injury law firm news

Virginia Woman Develops Russian Accident After Head Injury

Why are traumatic brain injuries so different from other kinds of accident injuries? Unlike broken bones or lacerations, brain injuries can permanently change your perception, your personality, and your abilities – just ask 45-year-old Robin Jenks Vanderlip, a Virginia, Fairfax woman who suffered a serious slip and fall accident and woke up with a Russian accent.

In May of 2007, Vanderlip fell down a flight of stairs and struck her head. Although she had never been to Russia – or ever heard a Russian accent to her memory – the woman woke up sounding as if she had been born in the faraway country. Three years later, she is still burdened with not sounding like herself or her culture.

Virginia doctors diagnosed Vanderlip with Foreign Accent Syndrome, a rare and little-understood consequence of head injuries and brain damage. While fewer than 60 cases have been documented since it was originally discovered during the 1940s, scientists have taken an interest in the odd disease, which has also made a Louisiana woman speak with a Cajun accent, an English woman to speak like a Jamaican, and a Japanese man speak with a Korean accent.

Foreign Accent Syndrome can change your life – in one case, a Norwegian woman was ostracized from her community after she hit her head and developed a German accent. In all cases, patients will never again hear the sound of their own voice – and struggle through life explaining that they aren’t from where it sounds like they are from. While it is sometimes easy to put a price on an accident injury, the real cost of traumatic brain injuries is harder to determine.

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About the Editors: Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton is a VA injury law firm whose attorneys focus on personal injury and accident law and have experience handling cases brought by victims of traumatic brain injury and closed head injuries. In fact, in 2000, our firm helped a plaintiff receive what was then the largest verdict ever in a Virginia brain injury case. We also have a blog in which we discuss only topics related to brain injuries and head wounds. 

Rick Shapiro and James Lewis have been named to the National Million Dollar Advocates Forum since 2009 and listed among the Best Lawyers in America since 2008.Shapiro and Lewis have been named Virginia Super Lawyers for Personal Injury Law since 2008. Fewer than 5 percent of lawyers receive this professional honor. In addition, our firm was the first in Virginia to join Primerus, a select group of highly ethical and respected law firms. Our VA injury law firm has the highest rating of AV from Martindale-Hubbell, a national lawyer ranking organization, which means we have a reputation for preeminent legal skill.

We have offices in Virginia Beach and Hampton, VA, but we're ready to come to you anywhere in Virginia, including Norfolk, Chesapeake, Hampton, Suffolk and Newport News if you or a family member has been seriously hurt by someone else's carelessness. While not every case meets our criteria, we offer free initial confidential consultations. Call us toll-free at (800) 752-0042. If you cannot get through due to high call volume, please leave a voicemail so we can get back to you.