[camyam73]

Hey everyone. Not sure really where to start, and I am feeling pretty fuzzy atm so I'll keep it short.

Ten weeks ago I had a miscarriage. Horrible yah, bla bla bla. Two weeks after that I slipped and it my head. It's been 8 weeks, and while I now have some parts of some days that are ok... but most of the time I am in a fog, with headaches that are killers.


Problem is that we are still TTC (make baby). Concussion, fertility issues, and now a huge long wait to see a specialist. Booked in for end of July! Not working, about to start school for my masters in September. I just want my head to be better.

Sorry, not much of an intro.

[Mark in Idaho]

camyam73,

Welcome to NeuroTalk.

Sorry to hear of your recent struggles. My condolences to you and your husband.

There is not much that can be done to speed up your recovery. Your brain needs rest and quiet.

Fertility hormones can make PCS symptoms worse. Concussions can cause hormone systems to fluctuate wildly.

If you can tell us more about your symptoms, there are plenty here who can offer support.

My best to you.

[Lightrail11]

Welcome, and that was actually a very insightful intro. Lots of good info on PCS, seems like July is too long to wait, are other options available?

[EsthersDoll]

I highly recommend that you reconsider TTC (trying to conceive) until you're doing all better or at least MUCH better cognitively.

Hormones can hugely affect a woman's concussion. Some experts believe that the hormones inside a woman's head don't protect our brains as much as the hormones inside a man's do. They think it makes us more susceptible to sustaining a concussion and why, typically, we deal with having PCS more frequently than men do and for longer periods of time and with worse symptoms.

You don't know how long it will take you to recover and if you get worse because of all the hormones or chemicals in your brain created from stress, depression, or anxiety and you end up needing to take care of a baby it could be a catastrophe.

I think you need to try to rest and take it easy as much as possible to help ensure that you will be able to attend school in the Fall.

Trying to do too much can also set you back in your brain's healing process.

[camyam73]

Thanks for the welcome...

My symptoms? WEllHeadaches. Located on the right side of my head, lined up with my right pupil, and about two inches back from the forehead. It then spreads into the eye, back of the head, and the face. It is sometimes what you would call an ice pick headache, but that's not the norm. If I don't have this when I wake up, I almost always have it by the evening. Tinnitus which is way worse than it was before the concussion. Fatigue. Inability to think clearly at times, usually accompanied by worsening headache. Inability to read much more than a sentence or two at a time. My mood seem fairly stable thankfully, but I do find myself frustrated with the whole situation.

As for delaying TTC... In a utopian world that would be great, but it's just not realistic. I am nearly 39 years old, we've been at this nearly a year already. If we delay any amount there's the possibility we won't get pregnant at all, and well, with all the money we've already spent, and all the hopes and dreams tied up in this, it's just not a possibility. Thankfully the round of clomid didn't seem to affect my headache as there was little to no change.... and the way I look at it, I will have nine months to clear the symptoms...

I AM finally improving, even if just a hint. I now have some days where my head doesn't hurt till later. But it has been 8 weeks, and it's just dragging on a little long for my tastes... I do my best to stay resting all the time, but sundays tends to be a bit busier given church and family (we live outside of a major center and go in for church and to visit)....

I think I answered everything.

[camyam73]

Oh yes. almost forgot. Forgetfulness... cannot remember things I need to do from one day to another. and when I do remember I cannot seem to actually get it done.

[Mark in Idaho]

camyam73,

The rest you need includes things like over-stimulation. Most church situations include a full day's dose of over-stimulation. The loud sounds, music and many voices can be very draining on the brain's energy.

Think of your brain as needing the equivalent of bed rest for an at-risk pregnancy. If reading causes over-stimulation, it should be avoided or very limited. Anything that causes a rise in symptoms should be avoided.

The Clomid may make you PCS worse since it may also result in direct stimulation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis. The adrenal and hypothalmus functions can create quite a roller coaster ride.

The rising progesterone during the late stage of the cycle is a neuro-protective hormone. It helps the fetal neural growth and the mother's brain tolerate neural insult better. If the Clomid disrupts or suppressed progesterone (my research did not mention anything about its effect on progesterone).

If your progesterone levels were low or at zero at the time of your injury, your brain would have been less tolerant of injury.

Ignore the tinnitus. There is nothing you can do to reduce it but ignore it. Find a soothing auditory stimuli to lightly focus on. I find that music that I know is easiest to relax to. My brain knows what to expect and does not get stimulated by the changes in melody or tempo.

If there are manual tasks you can do to lightly focus your attention, it will help to keep your brain occupied in a non-stimulating way. Knitting, painting, simple crafts, etc., that focus on using your hands allow you to keep busy at a speed that does not over-load the brain. The hands can not work too fast for the brain. Solitaire with a deck of cards, not on a computer, will also be therapeutic.

And, pray for a pregnancy that is a baby that matches your blood factors. This will lessen the immune load on your body and brain.

Keep your folic acid up and also B-12 and omega 3's. They help the brain tolerate stress. Folic acid, B-12, D3 and a good B-50 complex will help you maintain a strong blood brain barrier.

Nutrition should be a high priority because your body has a high work load just recovering from the concussion.

Have you tried using an ice pack to help with the head aches? It might help.

My best to you.

[Scott in Fenton]

I"m very sorry to hear about your issues. My heart goes out to you. Everyone who has replied so far is completely right, I cannot say it better. But I did want to say this: try to imagine tending to a newborn in your current condition. Because this can last a very long time, some of your symptoms may even be permanent. It's partly predicated on how many concussions you have had before, and many of us do not really know how many because (I believe) half the concussions we get do not get diagnosed. I know in my case I've probably had 5 or 6, but this last one was the only one diagnosed because I never went to the doctor for the others; just took some tylenol and went to bed.

I can imagine how you feel about TTC; but having had a couple and now being PCS, I can imagine the two together and it does not look fun. Just something to think about.

[camyam73]

thanks for the advise... The progesterone level info is good to know. I suspect that my progesterone is naturally low, and since the head hit happened before it would also have spiked in my cycle.... IT explains why what I perceived as a small hit has done so much damage.

I HAVE seen improvements. This is why we are going ahead with TTC. I am at the point where (if quiet at least) about 40% of my days are not bad... I am hoping I continue to improve. And if this is now a lifelong condition, to be honest, I will just have to figure out coping mechanisms... I won't allow this to change my life. Right now I try not to take meds to cope, and just deal with the headache. In the future, if this is a permanent state, well, I guess that meds would become a part of my regular day... but that is better than not living life at all.

I find that the use of ibuprophen 600 is actually pretty decent. It takes a long time to kick in, but it generally works. Tylenol is pretty much useless, unless combined with caffeine. I save this for days when I cannot avoid stimulation (which is VERY rare, not something I rely on even on a weekly basis, this might happen once or twice a month)... By this I mean one or two cups of coffee.

thank you for all the vitamin advise. I do take a daily multivitamin, but I feel pretty sure it doesn't contain omega 3... I DO eat a lot of fish though, so perhaps I am getting it from there.

[Dejibo]

You have gotten some great advice here. Your brain MUST have quiet and rest to recover. Stressful things like loud music, reading till all hours on electronic things, or even stressful talking can put you a step back. The grocery store can be overwhelming. The shiny floors, the bright florescent lights, the bright colors, the overwhelming perfume, the pushing, the blocked isles that you need to get into and it takes me all day to recover.

TTC while wonderful and miraculous it also can be stressful. Perhaps a short break would allow your rattled brain to recover. As someone else said its like being put on bed rest when pregnant to protect the pregnancy and baby. Be kind and patient with yourself. Dont force answers from your head just yet. Just pull up a chair, and see this as a way to be given permission to rest.

Get a teenager from the local high school cheap to help you do housework. cook easy one pot meals. hire another kid to come walk the dogs. If you are TTC dont be the one to clean the kitty box. That is NEVER a pregnant womans job as it can make you sick.

Give yourself permission to slow down, and smell the roses.