Kaitlyn: First and foremost: you are not alone. My 15 year old daughter, and many others, have experienced many of the same things you are. The people on this forum are so supportive and knowledgable.

We made lots of the same "mistakes" as you before we realized the extent of my daughter's concussion. She was playing still playing volleyball (shudder), staying up late playing hide and seek with kids in the neighborhood, etc. Somewhere around 7-10 days she just couldn't deal anymore and we learned all the stubborness and competitiveness in the world can't make this go away.

Our doctors are all a 4 hour drive away, so we can sympathize with driving, 30 minute appointments, driving home, you missing more school, parents missing work, etc.

However....the best thing you can do is find an understanding medical team. As I said in my introductory post, the best person we found was a psychologist who treats college athletes who sustain concussions. She helped us understand the emotional and cognitive aspects of concussion. She told us to think of concussion as soft tissue injury (which unfortunately you know a lot about right now). The more you strain it the longer it takes to heal. Be kind to your brain, try not to stress about school or friends or activities you might be missing. If you had a badly sprained ankle you wouldn't keep walking on it without support, right?

You shouldn't be so concerned about grades that you subject yourself to a 5-hour test. That's torture for someone with PCS. Talk with your counselors and get some accommodations. Wish we would have done that way sooner. Your transcripts for this year might just have to have a little asterisks next to them that say *healing from diffuse concussion junior year. There are lots of options for credit redemption these days if you need it.

Allow yourself to do things you were too busy to do before (watch "Gone With the Wind," learn to bake bread, etc.) I know the friend part is hard. They don't understand what's happening to you. I'm starting to see a couple of new, beautiful friendships blossoming for my daughter that she never would have experienced pre-concussion.

Try to relax and let your body do its work of healing. It will take time, but be patient and celebrate every little improvement. Give your mom a hug from me, ok?