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Old 08-19-2015, 01:15 AM
Tommy459251 Tommy459251 is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 8
8 yr Member
Tommy459251 Tommy459251 is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 8
8 yr Member
Confused Student Athlete with Post Concussion Syndrome Looking for Suggestions

I apologize for how long of a post this is, but I am in need of some advice about what to do with my life this upcoming school year. I just want to give all the circumstances surrounding my injury so that hopefully someone can give me a helpful suggestion. I am planning to start my senior year of college this upcoming fall (next week).

Last January I received a concussion during basketball practice (I am a Division 3 basketball player) while colliding heads with a teammate. I sat out for 2 weeks before I was cleared to go back and play. A few days after being cleared I received a second concussion when a basketball came off the rim and hit me directly in the face. This is something that would not normally cause me any problems but probably because my first concussion was not completely healed I suffered a concussion. Again I was cleared to play 2 weeks after my second concussion. Luckily my season ended shortly after being cleared from my second concussion and I did not have any more head trauma. However, I shortly realized that I was not able to concentrate at school and often would get extremely mentally fatigued. I had a lot of trouble paying attention in class and would get tension headaches when trying to do homework. I saw many doctors and I considered withdrawing from all of my classes and taking the rest of the semester off. Instead, because there were only a few weeks left of my semester, I pushed through and finished out the year, while getting grades that were not as good as I normally would get. As soon as the semester ended and I came home for the summer I started rehab, which included physical and occupational therapy. I had 2-3 hours of therapy per week and focused on recovery from my concussion all summer long with hopes of making a full recovery for the upcoming school year. I made progress with my balance, vision, reaction time, stamina. etc. Three weeks ago, because I was still having trouble with tension headaches and had developed severe light sensitivity my doctor put me on amitriptyline (1x per day 25mg). The amitriptyline did not seem to help much. Just this past Sunday I banged the back of my head on a doorway and have felt slightly more mentally foggy ever since while continuing to struggle with light sensitivity and tension headaches. I'm suppose to go back to school and start classes next week, and I have a meeting with my doctor at the end of this week.

One question I have is, does anyone have any recommendations for medication that I can talk to my doctor about that may help relieve tension headaches better than amitriptyline (or in addition to amitriptyline)? Another question I have is would a focusing medication such as adderall or vyvanse help me in school? A third question is, should I take this upcoming semester off to focus more on my concussion recovery? I would really like to go back to school, but I am worried that the stress of school work and class will be detrimental to the recovery of my head. I am going to be starting my Senior Year and am suppose to be taking 5 400 level classes which would be necessary for me to complete in order to graduate on time. Finally a fourth question would be, should I even attempt to make a comeback and try to play basketball this year, in addition to my classes? Just looking for any suggestions that people have, would really appreciate anyone's knowledgeable input. Thanks!
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