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Originally Posted by JakeWaves
I hope some of you may be able to relate to what I'm currently going through. A few weeks ago i got a concussion via a snowboarding accident. Ever since, it seems as though I've been downgraded from my old spontaneous and lively self. I've been feeling foggy and my concentration has been muddy. I've had extreme anxiety and panic attacks like you wouldn't believe and falling asleep at night intimidates me and I'm suddenly trying hard just to keep my eyes shut long enough to fall asleep. Rarely do I get the full needed 8 hours of rest. The dreadful part is that I was getting better after a couple of weeks and there was a point where i had thought i was really coming around. Until I heard about a brain injury story that had me panicked and my Symptoms started to flare again and i was back to feeling horrendous and unpleasant once again. My doctor cleared me and told me that he didn't think anything was wrong with me but my old Psychiatrist believed i have PCS. I declined taking any medication for the anxiety but it really seems to be the symptom that has the most effect on me. That week when i was getting better i had almost no anxiety or panic attacks and It felt as though my symptoms were pretty much vanishing. But after the anxiety and complete doom hit me again the symptoms started to fluctuate and increase once again. The anxiety gives me a really upset stomach, dizziness, shortness of breath, Nausea, pretty much the classic symptoms of an anxiety attack. I thought I was getting better and now i feel downgraded back to where i started when i first got the symptoms. I was wondering if anybody has had the same experience or if they have any encouraging words to spare? I'm 22 and this is my final year of college and I'm fearing something horrible is happening and there's no way out of it. My girlfriend has been really supportive but my personality has changed and i feel like I cant be that guy she first set eye on anymore. = /
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I just joined this site today and I am not sure if this is the place to post this or not. I fell on the ice on Christmas morning of 2008 on my way into work. Later that day I went to the ER at my local hospital. I had 2 skull fractures and two bleeding spots, one on my frontal lobe and one on my temporal lobe.Had Xrays and a CT scan. Spent the night in ICU, where the staff allowed me to dehydrate( had an IV line but no fluids) Next morning they hydrated me and gave me another CT scan and sent me home. My neurosurgeon said I could go back to work 3 days later although I had an extreme headache and he did not perform any sort of neurological test on me. He relied solely on the X-ray and CT scan to tell me I would be fine, just don't lift anything over 50 pounds. Went back for another CT and again, no exam. Then I went for an MRI with contrast. It was incredibly loud and painful. I was not told about how much it would aggravate my headache etc. The neurosurgeon then pronounce me fit to return to work with 50 pound weight restriction, once again without any sort of neurological test( check my pupils, memory, strength etc) I then went to a neurologist who diagnosed me with PCS, gave me an anti-depressant( I think it started with and A) and Darvocet for pain. I am still not able to this day to sleep well, concentrate or feel like my old self. I have experienced headaches on a daily basis, I feel confused and disoriented a lot of the time. I have poor short term memory and I am easily frustrated and angered. I sometimes have ringing in my ears and feel worn out and out of place when I go out in public a lot of the time.My libido is very low and i have blurry, out of focus vision and at times double vision when trying to read. As far as reading books goes, I have given up on that, although I used to be able to read 2 or 3 books a week. Most of the time I feel like I am in some sort of daze or fog. My girlfriend has been very supportive but after nearly 6 months she is getting tired of the whole situation. I was 50 years old when I fell, I am now 51 and my employer was kind enough to fire me from my job 2 months after it happened, even though I am still on Worker Comp. Even if I was physically, mentally and emotionally well enough to work , I am sure it will be difficult to find a job, given my age and the fact that I am probably considered an health or safety risk now.I hope I have not gone on too much, but after reading some of the posts here I feel like there are finally some people who can relate to what I am going through.