History:

Was in fight, hit in temple, been suffering from PCS for almost 2 years. First diagnosed concussion. 22 years of age.

Symptoms:

Mild but frequent headaches, constant tinnitus, sensitivity to sound.


I have been lurking for some time but decided to finally make an account and post. I have been doing some research about how much force is actually needed to cause a brain injury, and the general consensus has been around 50g-90g. Here are some relative forces so you can get an idea of the amount of force that this is:

Sneeze: 2.9g
Slap on back: 4.1g
Hop off step: 8.1g
Plop down in chair: 10.1g

I suffer from anxiety and I get very worried even about small bumps such as when driving, even though I know that there was not enough force to cause another brain injury. An example of this is my friend gave me a hard slap on the shoulder. I mentioned this to my neurologist and he said that this force was not even near the amount needed to be considered a sub-concussive impact.

But then I read on here that some can re-concuss themselves by just a simple bumpy car ride.This makes me quite anxious about my own PCS.

I really want to get back to normal life (no sports or anything), but being able to hug my friends without getting worried, able to receive a pat on the back without being worried, etc. I try to use these statistics to keep my anxiety at bay.

I do understand that every brain is different, but I was just wondering generally what type of impact I should be worried about?

Should I be avoiding hugs, and "other" activities with my girlfriend?

Sorry if this is a strange subject, it's just that my neurologist says one thing, I research another thing online, I just am not sure. My first neurologist said that after 3 months the brain is completely healed and I could go back to playing sports or whatever I wanted (switched neurologists immediately after that appointment). My second neurologist was much more practical and was saying that I now am a higher risk for concussions, but it would still take a pretty significant impact to cause another head injury. And that I should slowly increase my exercise according to my symptoms.

Also I try to live just by gauging my symptoms, but the problem is my anxiety makes my symptoms worse, and I can't tell whether the increase in symptoms is because of the bump or the anxiety.


I appreciate any and all responses.