Traumatic Brain Injury and Post Concussion Syndrome For traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post concussion syndrome (PCS).


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Old 08-26-2016, 10:29 PM #1
billzare billzare is offline
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Default Mild TBI, new daddy, 3 questions !

Hello everyone,
I'm 41 yo and a proud new dad of a 1-month old boy.
3 weeks prior to his birth, I fell off my bicycle and despite wearing a helmet, I sustained a mild TBI (LOC, amnesia, scan clear).
Note this not my first TBI, I sustained a few over the last 15 years, and despite sometimes struggling for months of recovery after some of them, I "managed to manage" (work full time, exercise).
It's the first TBI where I had LOC and amnesia (although they are in terms of minutes).

I'm almost 3 months post-TBI as of now and still off work. I have the usual mild TBI symptoms (fatigue, headaches, some occasional dizziness, noise-sensitive, etc). I find I'm "ok" cognitively apart for the mental fatigue.
I have 3 questions about symptoms that bothers me a lot right now :

1) Poor tolerance on computer (although I'm ok with TV and I manage much better with my iPhone). When I say poor tolerance, I'd say after 10-15 min of simulated work (typing in Word, browsing professional website), I get increased headaches, with pressure in the head and behind the eyes, heavy head, ringing in the ears). If I take a break, the symptoms diminish without disappearing, so doing another 10-15 min of computer work and so on will eventually bothers me a lot and will incapacitate me for a while after, you know how it is. I see no improvement on this area which is frustrating especially that my job involves using a computer a lot. I'm wondering what it is with computer that makes it is so difficult at this point? Any reason I can manage much better typing a long text on my iPhone rather than on my computer ? Can it have to do with the size of the screen that makes it "too much / too big" to scan for the eyes and to manage for the brain ?

2) Motion sickness feeling when bicycling and swimming, even on a very slow pace. This may sound weird, especially since I don't have this feeling when driving my car. I'm ok if I exercise on my stationary bike on a mild/moderate pace (road bike with Tacx system), but if I only ride 30 sec outside, man do I get motion sickness. I do not have this feeling when I walk either. I eliminated the possibility of increased heart rate factor since I now walk and do stationary bike on a moderate pace. Anyone has a cue about what is going on ?

3) Finally, if anyone has a cool tip on how to manage when baby is crying vs noise-sensitiveness, any tip will be welcome, right now I'm using ear plugs when I feel my ears might explode or when the ringing just gets too loud Fatigue is definitely amplified by the duty of a newborn but that's just something I have to cope with for now.
One day at a time they say uh...?
Thanks for you time!
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Old 08-27-2016, 04:00 PM #2
Mark in Idaho Mark in Idaho is offline
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billzare,

Welcome to NeuroTalk. Congrats. New babies are quite an adventure.

Your sleep quality may be a big part of your symptoms. PCS with lack of good sleep is miserable. I wish I had a recommendation....

1) The computer screen could be too much to process. When MS went to Office 2007 and added the ribbons bar with all of the different fonts, etc., It destroyed my ability to work in Word. My brain sees too much information to try to process. I had used the prior versions for almost 15 years and could type hundreds of pages. Now, I struggle to type just a few. I need Ubit Menu to even get anything done.

If there is a way you can reduce the visual images to simplify your visual work load, you may do better.

You may need a vision exam by a behavioral optometrist. You could have convergence issues or other vision issues that need to be addressed. Check NORA.cc Health Care Locator Custom for a list of providers.

2) Again, vision may be an issue. In the car, the dashboard does not move. On the bike, the ground beneath you is moving and requires visual processing. Some have visual struggles in near range, some at a distance.

Do you wear glasses, bi-focals or progressives ? They can add to the struggles.

Check out the Vitamins sticky at the top. Brain nutrition is important. All the more with the sleep stress of a new baby.

3) Use the ear plugs before problems arise. It is often easier to prevent or reduce a trigger than respond to the problem.
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Old 08-27-2016, 04:10 PM #3
Cousteau121 Cousteau121 is offline
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Congrats on your new baby! That must be both so exciting and yet also difficult with PCS.

Can't really speak to your last two questions, but in reference to #1, you might want to check out a Huffington Post article called "The Interesting Case of LCD Screens and Post Concussive Headaches" (I can't post a link yet).

In the first few months of my concussion, I really struggled with screens, particularly with my computer screen. I basically stopped using my computer to prevent the symptoms getting worse. I could tolerate my iPhone much better. This exacerbation of my symptoms by the computer eventually went away after about 3.5 months after my concussion (by contrast, I could use my iPhone with no issues about 2.5 months after my concussion). I can now use my computer without any problems (a little over 4 months after my concussion). I think it definitely has something to do with the smaller screen/less pixels.

(As an aside, it was always interesting to me how some sports med doctors I saw who specialized in concussions were completely unaware of this very disabling problem - one just told me to turn down the brightness on my computer and "keep practicing" with the computer, as I needed to "get used to it").
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Old 08-27-2016, 07:04 PM #4
Mark in Idaho Mark in Idaho is offline
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Here is the link to the article mentioned.
The Interesting Case of LCD Screens and Post Concussive Headaches

This article is not entirely correct. A properly functioning LCD screen does not flicker. LCD pixels are either on or off. CRT (old TV Tube) screens flicker because each pixel lights up then fades before lighting up again. This is the source of flicker. Screen brightness can be a problem and can be easily changed on most laptops and on desk displays through settings or with f-lux, a free software program.

An issue that can be a problem for some is line length. 45 to 75 characters is considered a comfortable line length. 66 characters of letters and spaces is considered ideal. Many web site use a line length of up to 120 characters or more, making it difficult to follow from line to line. A browser window can be made narrower to shorten lines if the web page uses automatic line break.

Horizontal gaze (nystagmus) can impact reading effort as it changes how the eye moves from side to side. The number of saccadic movements (eye movements) per line is considered optimal at 64 to 84 characters. It may be less for struggling brains.

The Norway study compared reading text on paper to text on 15 inch screens. There was no mention of line length in characters or inches.

Lines on NT are about 85 to 90 characters so they can be a struggle. Many of us on NT promote short paragraphs of 5 or 6 lines max to make reading from one line to the next easier. Otherwise, the visual struggle can be a problem. The longer the line length, the more limiting the number of lines in a paragraph makes a difference.

So, it may help to try different line lengths to see if there is a limit.
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Old 08-28-2016, 03:41 PM #5
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Congrats on the 1 month old!

Try inverting the colors on your computer and phone screen (black back ground with white lettering) this was suggested to me by my OT and it seems to help. She also recommend increasing the font size. I hope this helps.
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Old 08-28-2016, 03:46 PM #6
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One more suggestion. For longer text on your I phone try using the talk to text option on your I phone key pad. It's the micro phone next to space bar.
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Old 08-29-2016, 05:22 PM #7
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I'm really sorry to hear about your accident.

Last year I had a similar event with LOC and amnesia. I destroyed my helmet and would have had a severe tbi or would be dead without it. I am a masters level Cat. 3 cyclist and was training for the upcoming road season. Needless to say that my season was over and indeed I will never race/compete on the road again! My biggest mistake was really underestimating my symptoms and recovery time and pushed way too hard afterward. I have a feeling having the newborn is really exacerbating things for you.

16 months later I did a 5:15 century ride with my brother and am racing cyclocross this year. I got back to about 95-98 % and I feel like I continue to improve.

1) Have you tried dimming the brightness on your monitor? Also, have you considered going to a neuro-optometrist? Both those things helped me, and I still have to wear glasses occasionally to this day. This might just have to do with being in my mid-40s!

2) Also, I think this is due to your vision being really messed up. I'd seriously consider visiting with an optometrist who specializes in managing vision after TBI.

3) I can't imagine going through PCS with a newborn. It was hard enough with a 5 and 9 year old! I have feeling this is one of the reasons your symptoms are really lingering. Are there long blocks of time that you can sleep?

Hang in there!
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Old 08-29-2016, 11:51 PM #8
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Bill,

Congrats on the baby and being proud of him!

I had a difficult time sensing motion this past winter at one thing...running a vertical mill in my shop.I would have a difficult time sensing where the motion was coming from ( was it the table, the ground outside the window behind the mill or the object I was milling moving on the table) even when I knew I was making the table move. It was strange because it was mostly limited to just that and I Haven't any clue why that and nothing else caused the confusion.

Don't have any explanation for your case, just saying heads can be goofy in unexplained ways I guess.

Bud
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Old 09-16-2016, 02:46 PM #9
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Thank you all for your time and kind answers.
I met with my doctor last week and we agreed to a referral for a vestibular assessment (physiotherapy) and I will also be seen by an optometrist who is supposed to be knowledgable of vision trouble following a concussion.
I had also found about computer glasses who are supposed to help with eye strain (blocking blue light) when doing computer work. I ordered a pair thinking I had nothing to lose, and all I gained was a headache
Hopefully, physio and optometrist will be helpful.
Thanks again!
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Old 09-17-2016, 03:48 AM #10
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Sounds like a plan... Gotta start somewhere!
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