BlueLotus,
Welcome to NeuroTalk. You have found a good place for help and support.
In order to be able to read your post, I need to repost it with double line spacing every 5 lines or so. Many of us have visual difficulties that make it difficult to find the start of the next line when the paragraph is more than 5 or 6 lines long. So, your post will have < at the start of each quote and > and the end followed by my comment.
<I suffered a concussion on June 23rd (over two months ago), and I'm still having symptoms that REALLY bother me. I don't know how EXACTLY I got the concussion, because I went to bed one night, and my next memory is trying to walk up the stairs back to my bedroom and having difficulty walking and even standing up. >
Sounds like you may have fallen down the stairs. My first concussion was from falling down stairs.
<By the time I got up to my room, I didn't know where I was, and I was really confused. That was around 5:45am. It was about 15 minutes later that I realized where I was and that I had hit the back of my head really badly, because there was a HUGE contusion and my hair was wet. >
Ouch
<Which I later why.. my roommate (a bartender) had gotten home around 3:30am and said I was sitting in the dark on the living room floor with ice on my head. She said she kept asking me how I hit it, and she said I just kept telling her I don't know. (I don't remember this conversation AT ALL).>
You made a great decision to put the ice on your head. It can help reduce cellular damage.
<Anyway, so once I realized I had hit my head and that I was confused, I realized I probably had a concussion, but instead of doing anything about it, I fell asleep and didn't wake up until a little after 8am. With my head pounding, I somehow drove myself to urgent care, where they told me that I needed to go to the emergency department of the hospital. >
<I called my roommate up and she picked me up and dropped me off there. I spent the rest of the day there getting a CAT scan, EEG or EKG (I can't remember which one), and an x-ray because I also had a big welt on my lower right back that hurt really bad. In addition, I had a scraped up knee and a few days later, I noticed really bad bruising on my shin. >
It may have been an EKG. They do those when there is no witness to someone falling and/or becoming unconscious. This is to rule out a heart problem causing the fall. I passed out walking across my bedroom a few months ago and had the EKG.
<So, my best educated guess is I fell down the stairs, or I fell on the kitchen floor trying to climb over the baby gate we had up.
Anyway, the hospital concluded that I had a concussion, but was otherwise fine, and sent me on my merry way.>
There was not much more they could do but tell you to get quiet rest and call 911 if you had any loss of motor function, slurring of speech, etc.
<For the next couple weeks I was SOOOOOO SLEEPY I could barely stay awake and I was super sensitive to light, constantly confused and unfocused and my whole body ached. Going to work was so hard. So I went to the doctor, where they told me it could take up to 12 weeks to recover. So they sent me on my merry way.>
Sleepiness is your brain telling you it needs rest. Common for a concussion.
<Well, a couple weeks ago I was STILL having these symptoms, so I went back to the doctor. They checked my blood, and said I had a vitamin D deficiency, so gave me a prescription for a vitamin D pill to take once a week, and sent me on my merry way.>
Vit D is needed for the brain to heal. You also need B-12, folic acid, Omega 3, 6, and 9 oil. Plus, you should be avoiding caffeine, alcohol, MSG, and artificial sweeteners (aspartame and sucralose or the worst)
<By the end of last week I was so fed up with my fatigue, inability to concentrate and focus for work, and light sensitivity, so I called up my doctor and said I'd like a referral to see a neurologist. Now I'm waiting to get an appointment confirmed with the neurologist.>
The neurologist will probably tell you to get more quiet rest. You should be resting and not working until most of your concentration and focus are back.
<It has started to affect my job, I am a home health speech therapist, where I drive to my patients' homes for therapy. My boss wants me seeing at least 5 patients a day, and some days I'm lucky if I can get in 3 patients, because I get dangerously tired, so tired that I start to feel myself falling asleep at the wheel. I've actually been pulled over twice for swerving went I wasn't even doing anything but driving, and I got a ticket one of the times.>
You should NOT BE DRIVING. If you see the neuro, tell him about your driving struggles. He should put you on quiet rest and have your license pulled until you recover. It may qualify you for disability pay if you have it. The last thing you need is to have an accident and cause someone else to have a head injury like yours if not worse.
<Getting through my day is so hard. All I think about is wanting to sleep. I leave for work by 9 or 10am and get home by 6pm and fall asleep by 7pm and sleep until 8am. I am getting over 12 hours of sleep some nights, and nights that I don't get at least 12 hours, I feel like I have narcolepsy the next day. >
You are likely not getting proper cycles of sleep. The brain only heals during REM sleep. Some of us struggle with sleep apnea from our injury. It makes sleep almost a wasted effort.
<It's incredibly frustrating because I can barely get through my work day, let alone get stuff done I need to around the house. And I can't remember the last time I had the energy/time to do something leisurely and enjoyable like read, do yoga, or take my dog for a walk. The fatigue seems to only be getting worse. >
It will not get better until you get the proper rest.
<Could it be because I never really rested in the first place after the concussion? >
You should have taken weeks off work. Your brain needs quiet rest where you have minimal visual and auditory stimulation. As a speech therapist, I am surprised you have not learned more about brain injuries. But, even doctors have not given you great information.
<I feel like my medical care hasn't been as good as it could be. I mean, after a concussion that severe (which I don't even know how severe it was, no one explained it to me), it seems like I should have eased back into working and doing stuff. Everything is such an effort now, and it's really got me down and out. I'm so discouraged. >
Your experience is no any different than the normal post concussion experience. Doctors look at you and don't see any obvious symptoms and release you to your own choices.
<I WANT to do stuff, like ride my bike and do other hobbies, but I just don't have the energy to.Like I said, I barely have the energy to get through a work day, and my boss is starting to get on me about my lack of productivity. I CANNOT lose my job.>
You don't say where you live. You should have access to Family and Medical Leave Act in the US. It protects your job while you recover. I wonder about the medical skills sets of your boss.
<Anyway, I would like to know what others' opinions are about my situation and what I need to do at this point. What is the best way to recover from a concussion like this? I just want to feel normal again! Thank you for reading this LONG message and thank you in advance for those of you who share your thoughts!! >
Others may comment with suggestions. I bet you are using caffeine to try to be alert at work. It has a serious negative impact. Been there. Done that. Doctor read me the riot act for the caffeine. Some response to my suggestions will give us a better understanding to help you. Please, put a double line space after 5 lines or so.
We are here for you.
My best to you.