Hi Carla,

My experience has been advocating for my son, 12 weeks from injury now. Rest, rest, rest. I know it is very difficult and painful. He had headaches too. We started out trying to distract him from his headaches with TV, movies and outings when he could manage it, but its possible we just prolonged his healing with too much stimuli. Around week 5 we went to complete "couch potato" rest. No TV, computer, video games (he's 10 years old), activities, car rides, etc. He ended up doing a lot of baking which gave him a sense of accomplishment but did not require much exertion. After 13 days he finally had a break through.

We kept a headache chart which proved very helpful for recognizing patterns and sharing with the doctors. When it was time to return to school, anxiety triggered the headaches again and set us back another couple of weeks. I am so so happy to tell you that he just got clearance today from our neurosurgeon for full activities. We're still seeing a neuropsycologist who is conducting congnitive testing. Last test two weeks ago indicated his brain was still healing even though outwardly he seemed so much better. Next test is tomorrow. We've also consulted with a child psychologist to help with the anxiety.

I'm just getting back to my regular work schedule this week (since 12/22!) I know it's frustrating and turns your life upside down, but hopefully by taking it easy now, you'll heal quicker and sooner.

Good luck.

Sandy