I row on a C2 (Concept 2) rower. I set the screen for 'Just Row' so it shows Watts, elapsed time, strokes per minute, distance traveled, and 30 minute pace. I row at 22-24 strokes per minute at 105 Watts or so at a 30 minute pace of 6000-6100 meters. I watch the distance traveled and time to maintain 500 meters per minute. I do 4000 meters in 20 minutes. My legs will feel wobbly and I know I have done a workout but I don't feel seriously winded. I have not checked my BP or pulse.

As I said previously, taking your year slower will give you a better chance of not riding the roller coaster of PCS.

The Buffalo protocol has not shown to help with reducing sound sensitivity. Nothing really helps with that other than slowly increasing exposure. That is done by learning the early signs of over-stimulation and removing oneself from the environment when those signs manifest.

In my experience, the louder and more chaotic the sound, the shorter my tolerance is. I can go to a noisy restaurant and sit in a quiet area (usually the bar) near an exterior wall (less echos) and sometimes use my foam earplugs and last for a meal. If I am over-stimulated, at first, I will notice the sounds as a tolerable struggle. I can try to ignore the sounds by focusing on my meal and talking with my wife. Then, I might start to notice early signs of anxiousness or confusion. Some mild disorientation may manifest. Time to change environments. I can get outside and my brain settled down quickly.

In the past, if I pushed to the anxiousness point, I would take a hour or two to get settled.

The worst sound environment for many is either chaotic music, multiple voices speaking at the same time, and echoing ambient noise. It takes a lot of brain processing power to make sense of these stimulations and we don't have that brain power available for long.

I struggle to understand the current culture of college having a big entertainment. social and fun value that must be experienced. For me, it was go to class and go to work at McDonalds flipping burgers and try to find time to study, eat and maintain a household. I barely had time to fit in meeting with a church college group midweek and Sunday church for some social interaction. A couple weekend ski trips with the ski club

Today, college appears to be all about the 'college experience' with studies a distant second. The PCS interruption of the college experience seems to be quite a stressor. For me, my PCS cognitive and memory struggles were enough stress. Accumulating college credits and keeping the bills paid was enough of a goal.

But, I had been dealing with PCS for 8 years and had been instructed by a neuro to slow down and stay away from alcohol so I had no affinity for partying, only light socializing. I had no clue as to what over-stimulation triggers were so I did not understand how to moderate stimulation. There was no concussion recovery industry like there is today.