Hi,

Was rear-ended by a drunk driver at over 60mph last summer while waiting for a light to change. Never hit my head, but had a death grip on the steering wheel that took my head and neck for a wild ride that resulted in a short loss of consiousness and all of the wonderful symptoms I have today.

Been through a bunch of doctors that said I would get better in 2 to 3 months and handed me a bunch of pills. After that time passed they said that it could be up to a year and as that time is about to pass, they now say two years.

I am so tired of being put through this. Because I can talk and function semi-normally people pass me off. They don't understand what this is like. I took great pride in my brain, and now part of me is gone. They keep saying that I am depressed, and that I get irritated easily.

I'm sorry but feeling sad at times because you realize you now have limits on your concentration, memory, and attention span is not depression. It is grieving a loss. Get hit in the head hard and for the next hour your bell has been rung see how chipper you are. For the irritability have your life stolen and see how ****** you get.

I think that is a huge factor in PCS not being taking seriously. They list depression and anger issues as symptoms as if there is no reason behind it. I believe sadness and anger are rational reactions to a horrible event. I deeply resent being told that depression is just a condition of PCS so you must have it, as if that negates the root cause of it.

For the first three months I had constant migraine type pain. I would point to a long muscle in my neck and tell them that whenever that would get really tight (like steel) that the head pain would be worse. They wouldn't listen. It wasn't until today that I found out it was Splenius Capitis Muscle Syndrome. Apparently it's fairly common in auto injuries. This can cause severe headache like pain and visual disturbances.

For the first six months I would have visual disturbances that looked like stationary objects were flying at my face. I would literally flinch and jerk my neck all up in response. My peripheral vision was deeply affected for the first few months with what looked liked someone smeared vaseline all along the sides of my eyes, it has gotten better with time but still had short periods where I would go blind (No incidents in past 5 months). Still can't drive at night because of the peripheral loss (looks like cars next to me are driving into me), and the lights disorient me.

It makes me really upset that no one ever mentioned that the headaches and visual disturbances could be caused by that or Occipital neuralgia. Why is it that when it comes to a diagnosis with PCS that they just hand you pills and say it will all go away? As if it realives them of any duty to find a real cause.

Anyways I'm sure you can tell I am mad. For the past year I have been so out of it and listened to them telling me that I will get over it. It really bothered to have to deal with anything regarding my injuries because I always wanted to believe that it was going to go away.

Today I took the first step in researching it and came across these two solid, concrete items that make perfect sense. The Splenius Capitis makes perfect sense for the headaches, and the occipital neuralgia explains the horrible, acidic burning in my scalp. So I am angry that we could of done something sooner with a diagnosis, but also feeling empowered that there is something solid to hold onto.

I finally started to get good medical care toward the end when my $15,000 PIP coverage ran out. For so long I had the most idiotic of doctors. My current neurologist was awesome and finally gave me some real answers. Not all, but at least some. I was such a mess before seeing her.

She currently has me on exelon patches. I can't tell you how much this has helped with feeling normal again. I am concerned, though, as it is used in alzheimer's patients and can only be taken for up to two years. I am 4 months on now and have forgotton to take off the patch or it has fallen off and I feel myself slipping back into that black hole. I would highly recommend it to anyone suffering like I have.

It has made all the difference in being able to think right again and advocate for myself. Before I can not believe how much I was taken advantage of because my brain would shut down and I couldn't defend myself.

I would so love to meet people like me who have dealt with this and share tips and concerns. Is anyone else on alzheimer's medication? Any support would be greatly appreciated. I can't even begin to tell you how happy I was to find this site and read some of the posts. Finally someone who does actually understand. I can't tell you what it's like getting pat answers and well meant sentiment when others don't have a clue.

Anyways, have to go. Got a lot of research to go over with my lawyer on tomorrow. Like did you know that people with TBIs are 4 times as likely to develop alzheimers later in life. We also can develop plaque on the brain as seen in much older individuals. Scary stuff.

Take care all,

Angie