Hi there!
I rarely visit here, but received a notice that someone replied to my post.

Wow, hitting your head against a concrete wall- OUCH! I've had two head injuries since the one that did all the damage to my brain. I'm a fainter and FINALLY my doctor quit telling me that "some people are just fainters" after the last fall where I broke 7 bones in my face. So now I'm seeing a cardiologist too.

Anyhoo... The first faint was the one that actually damaged my brain in the back of my head. It shows up on an MRI, even. That brain injury caused me to have insomnia, parasomnia, myoclonic jerking, and mental confusion. All from fainting and hitting the bacdk of my henad on the corner of a wood dresser. I also got bruising on the front of my brain because my head whipped forward (kind of like shaken baby syndrome according to may neuro). This was 22 months ago (June 07) and since then have come to rely on a cocktail of drugs to make life more normal for me (klonipin, seroquel and requip). We've tried to wean off each of the drugs over the past six months, but that was unsuccessful. This looks like it will be a life-long thing.

I had another head injury in Jan 08 which I fainted and cracked open the TOP of my head requiring 14 staples (if I recall). That one, believe it or not, caused me no permanent problems.

In December 08, I fainted at the top of the stairs and fell on the right side of my face on the hard wood floor. That's where I broke 7 bones. No additional neurological symptoms, but I've been living with constant pain since that time. In addition to that, I haven't been able to chew, yawn, or say certain words and even kissing (wahhh!) without a sharp and harsh pain.

Since I was on such a cocktail of drugs already, the facial surgeon didn't want to give me pain meds, so referred me back to my neurologist. My neurologist started me on Lyrica and I'm now on 75mg 3x a day, but guess what? Right about the time I ramped up to the third dose, the (light, sound and quick movement sensitive) myclonic jerking and mental confusion started up.

This has been a long journey, and my Neurologist said that since it's gone on so long, it'll probably be a life-long one. At first she said that if it's not gone by a year, it's probably permanent. After a year, she said that she's seen patients recover for up to two years. I'm just 1.5 months shy of two years.

It has NOT kept me from being a productive, working individual though because my Neurologist said that not working would be the worst thing I could do for my brain.

So, I'm soldiering on.

My point to you is, go back to your neurologist and tell him/her that you want your symptoms FIXED so you can live as normal of a life as possible. My neurologist (whose last name also happens to be Ryan) has been very patient and good about doing trials of drugs on me to see if they're a good fit. It took about six months of trying this or that. Up until this week, she had me at the perfect levels of the best drugs for me. I implore that you ask your Neurologist to do the same for you. You do not want to be sitting at home living a hermet life. You'll eventually fall more and more down that black hole. You don't want that, and I don't want that for you.

This journey has taught me patience and has taught me that I need to slow down. Well, it's FORCED me to slow down, actually. It's also taught me to accept what I'm dealing with and learn to live as normal of a life as possible.