Welcome to the forum, Aaron!

First, seek medical attention when you have a sudden onset of severe symptoms (slurred speech, difficulty balancing).

Sorry for the bad car accident. Yes, we can relate to your condition deteriorating. I've also experienced sensitivity to light and sound. I'll try to explain.

Post-Concussion Syndrome is an inflammatory condition. Inflammation is both good and bad. Inflammation is the body's way of repairing itself after the initial injury. But prolonged inflammation is bad.

PCS occurs when concussion symptoms persist for more than 3 months. The brain's inflammatory system can become overactive and may pump out too much inflammation. It's that inflammation that causes the symptoms.

A day at the fair is a high level of sensory stimulation for the brain to process. Overloading the brain will cause more inflammation, which causes more symptoms, so that might be why your condition seems to be deteriorating.

Your brain needs rest and a quiet environment to regenerate and heal. The type of rest is to avoid intense high-level cognition like computer work or driving. It would be good to take more time off work, or work half days. Lower your activity to a level that you can tolerate comfortably. Once your condition stabilizes and begins to improve, gradually increase your activity level.

Besides rest, treatment should also focus on reducing inflammation. Take fish oil and curcumin (both are anti-inflammatory) when symptoms get bad. But don't take pain pills. NSAIDs like Ibuprofen seem logical because they are anti-inflammatory, but unfortunately they don't work. Take Omega 3 DHA fish oil instead.

Diet and Nutrition should also be incorporated into your treatment plan. A lot of the foods we eat cause inflammation. Inflammation will inhibit neurogenesis and make symptoms worse, so stop eating inflammatory foods. (see list below)

ADHD is also linked to brain inflammation. Bacteria in our gut influences our mental health. An overgrowth of bad bacteria causes inflammation in other parts of the body, including the brain. So address your gut health as part of the treatment plan.

Sounds like you may have a neck injury. That can contribute to symptoms so seek treatment for your neck.


Stop eating these inflammatory foods-

• soda
• sugar/fructose/corn syrup
• wheat/gluten
• fast foods
• processed foods
• fried foods
• refined carbohydrates
• processed vegetable and seed oils (polyunsaturated fats)
• (safflower oil, canola oil, sunflower oil, corn oil, soybean oil, cottonseed oil)
• Trans fats (shortening, hydrogenated vegetable oils, margarine)

Eat this instead:

• Replace wheat with whole grains. (Paleo flour, quinoa flour, almond flour, coconut flour, chickpea flour, etc)
• Eat a moderate amount of protein, lots of vegetables, some fruit
• cook with lots of healthy saturated fats (animal fats, coconut oil, butter, olive oil).
• bone broth
• Eat cold water fatty fish for the Omega 3 DHA
• Eat organic foods because pesticides contribute to neurodegeneration