Originally Posted by Mark in Idaho

CoffeeAndCats,

Welcome to NeuroTalk. Glad to hear you survived a very bad crash without a seat belt. I know many who suffered Traumatic Brain Injuries in such crashes that changed their lives.

It is unfortunate that you were not examined by a doctor at the time of the collision. Any time a person flies though the air in a suddenly stopping car and is stopped by the dash or windshield or such, a doctor's exam should be performed. Neck injuries are very common in these situations.

Regarding your fear of a blood clot. Most head trauma bleeds manifest in the first 24-48 hours and start to be absorbed by the third day.

Hopefully, you can talk openly with the annual physical doctor. They often do not have time to go into areas that are not part of the annual physical regimen. When they do, it is usually billed as an extra level of care/diagnostics.

The driver's car insurance likely has a benefit called 'medical payments' that provides a small amount of 'no fault' access to medical care. It would not have a deductible so your mom would not have to pay for the doctor's exam regarding the collision injuries. The annual physical doctor may want to refer you to a second doctor for a more specific exam. Take advantage of this referral if you can.

It appears you are a minor teen so you may not have much control over your medical decisions. Try to be persistent. Understanding what has happened to your head is important.

Has this taught you the importance of seat belts? If you had been wearing a seat belt, you would likely have had no injuries at all except some seat belt rash/bruising. After suffering this concussion, you need to make choices to protect your head, Seat belts always.....

btw, Caffeine should be limited to a single serving a day until ALL concussion symptoms, headaches and such are gone for a few weeks.

My best to you.