Returning symptoms
 

Hey, new to these forums today.

I had what my doctor describes as a mild concussion on the 16th December 2011. I wasn't knocked out but was taken to hospital and sent home. No scans etc. This is my 5th (and hopefully final) concussion.

I felt really bad for the first week, sleeping 14 hours a day, very dizzy. By the end of week two i was starting to feel better.

I woke up this morning and i'm as dizzy as i was on the first week of the concussion, is it normal to have returning symptoms? I'm a bit worried. Also, my eye sight feels a weird today as well. Not sure what to do.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Welcome to NeuroTalk.

You are very early in the recovery from a concussion. There are many things that can cause a return of symptoms. It is not uncommon for the roller coaster of Post Concussion Syndrome to last many weeks.

If this is your fifth concussion, you are likely experiencing Multiple Concussion Syndrome where the symptoms become more pronounced and longer lasting, maybe even some symptoms becoming permanent.

At this point, you will likely be more prone to suffering further concussions due to the sensitivity to any even very mild impact or jarring to your brain. You are also likely to be very sensitive to sub-concussive impacts and anything that stresses your brain, such as alcohol or even a bad night's sleep or an evening with lots of people talking. The list of triggers is long.

But again, you are very early in the recovery process.

Try to continue to rest and avoid over-stimulation. Eat right , avoid caffeine and alcohol, and stay away from any risky activities.

btw, You would do best to use a screen name rather that your real name. You can change it in User CP and it will even change your past posts.

My best to you.

Hi, many thanks for the reply.

This was the worst of the falls i've had, most of which happen when snowboarding (i teach). I've decided to give up freestyle as i'm falling too often but will hopefully continue snowboarding. I also play in a band and hope to return to that soon. All other concussions i've had have healed up within a week.

I had a late night on Sunday for new year so maybe that's catching up on me. I don't drink so i don't need to worry about that.

PS: I can't find where to change my display name in the User CP?

@ Gilbert... Welcome to NeuroTalk.

In order to change your screen name, you have to contact an administrator for that. Members cannot do that themselves.

Scroll down to the bottom of the page here and click "Contact Us" and explain what you would like and give the new name you'd like to use
at that time. This happens quite often and NT will easily change it for you.

Gilbert-unfortunately as Mark said you are in the very early stages of recovery.

I'm six months out and still have problems pop up after a couple of days with
no noticeable issues.

Hope you heal well and quickly!

Tami

Further to how i feel, i've now noticed a medium sized lump to the back right of my head, is this something i should get checked out?

It's kind of hard, not soft. Not sore to touch but i feel weird when i press on it a little.

Is the lump on your skull or where your skull meets the cervical vertebra?

It is not uncommon to injure the joint between the skull and C1 cervical vertebra. This area can become inflamed causing symptoms to worsen or come and go as the inflammation goes up and down.

A physiatrist (Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation specialist) may be worth finding.

You can also ice it regularly to see if it goes down.

My best to you.

The lump is about an inch and a half from the top of my ear towards the back of my head. As i run my fingers up the back of my neck, i reach the hard bone going across, i then move right and feel the lump about an inch off centre.

A little worried tbh.

This sounds like the occipital condyle. Mine gets inflamed due to a whiplash injury. There are also muscles that attach here that spasm and can become tender.

I wouldn't worry myself but it may be worthwhile to get checked by a Physiatrist like I mentioned earlier.

My best to you.

I have had PCS for over three months now. This is my first concussion and at the time of the injury I thought it was pretty minor. Little did I know that I was to have dizziness, headache, eye pain and fatigue for sooo long. I actually thought I was getting better a few weeks ago, but recently have felt worse and was getting nervous that something else was wrong with me. It does help just knowing others are going through the same thing and that it is a normal course of recovery. I guess trying to handle the anxiety and frustration that go along with a 'relapse' seems a good idea. (I have trouble doing that!) But reading this blog does help me to try to stay positive and do what I need to do to rest and recover. Good luck to you in your own recovery.

Just thought i'd give an updated and share some stuff thats been going on for me.

Almost three months in now and i'm still experiencing dizzy spells, slight head aches and general wobbliness.

I've had a CT scan, MRI and MRA and thankfully, all came back clear.

I had thought everything had cleared up about a week ago but i've seen things get a little worse this week.

I suppose I just want to reiterate to people coming to this fourm for the first time that it seems normal for signs to come and go from anywhere from a couple of weeks to several months.

I'm positive i'll make a full recovery in time. I'm back at work full time, not doing much socialising yet but even managed a 1 hour snowboarding session last weekend as I really felt ready to exercise.

I wish everyone a speedy recovery :-)

....
 

Kinda weird, im on 3rd month since the injury, but not doing as bad as some other people even though my MRI results are terrible, though its my 1st concussion aswell. Hope it wont get worse.

Is it possible to have swelling several months after the accident? I had a recurrence of symptoms that correlates with being taken off of prednisone. I don't know if it is the change in meds or stress related or something else. Three weeks ago I was better than I am now...I hit my head three months ago an have been diagnosed with PCS.

EyeofNewt,

Welcome to NeuroTalk.

Any time there is a change such as a change in medications, symptoms can return or get worse. Prednisone effects many systems so it could be any number of effects.

Did you stop taking it abruptly or did you taper off? It is best to taper off slowly to let the body get back to normal steroid production. There can be a sort of rebound effect it stopped abruptly.

Tell us more about yourself and your injury. There are lots of good people here with lots of differing experiences.

My best to you.

Thank you, Mark.
I went from 10mg to 5 to 2.5 to nothing.
I have been off of it for a week now. I know about two weeks ago I would tell people that I didn't feel bad, I just had a lot of problems with my cognitive issues, focus, concentration, short-term memory.

Over the last week, I have had dizzy spells almost every day and pounding headaches. They have never just gone away since the accident where I hit my head, but they have not been daily in a long time.

I have also been stuttering a lot more over the last week than I had been, more like the first month after the accident. I had gotten to where I would stutter mostly when I was tired. Now I can't complete a sentence without stuttering.

Thanks,
EON (seems like my previous life was eons ago...)

Sounds like you need to get started on nutritional improvements so your brain can continue to heal.

There are plenty of discussions about nutritional supplements. The basics are B-12 (500 to 1000 mcgs) Omega 3's, a B-50 or B-100 complex, a multi vitamin with good potency such as GNC Mega Men or an equivalent, calcium and magnesium.

No caffeine or alcohol, artificial sweeteners, artificial preservatives, MSG, or excessive High fructose Corn Sweetener.

A single serving per day of caffeine and/or alcohol can be OK if you don't notice symptoms from it.

Get good rest and sleep and avoid stressors and excessive visual and auditory stimulation.
\
Hope you start getting back to good function.

My best to you.

Thanks, Mark,
But what is your take on the change in condition? I am on supplements (B100s and multi-vitamin) and my nutrition is good thanks to a fresh food delivery service. I don't drink alcohol or caffine (including sodas).

Would getting off the prednisone do this? Could it be stress? The timing also coinsides with losing any source of income. I am now living off of savings which I know won't last long.

The last thing I want is for the doctor to see my condition is worse and have him say that I am exaggerating, making things up, or something along those lines. I'd be interested in your opinion or anyone else with experience in this as to what might be going on.

Anxiety is the worst enemy of PCS.

Did you have a change in daily schedule with the loss of income? Sleep patterns can make a big difference.

There are many of us who have the roller coaster ride of PCS with dips lasting a week or two.

I think you should try to relax, stay disciplined and try to wait this out. Day to day differences can be confusing. Week to week or even month to month trends are a better way to gauge condition.

Find something simple to do to keep busy. Then, see if you feel the same in a week or two.

My best to you.

As always, Marks advice is very sound...!!!

I started to drink more Tea and found that it seemed to really set me back. I think one of the biggest and most important things to overcome is acceptance that these symptoms are going to come and go for an undetermined period of time, i'm trying to accept that I may be up and down for 6 to 12 months, anything less for me will be a bonus.

One more thing that concerns me, is that i've been spitting blood every morning for the past three months. Not every morning, but most. My doc says this is nothing to worry about as my blood pressure is normal but that can't be normal, i'd never done that before the accident. Any ideas?