depression
 

It seems as though things are getting harder rather than easier -- I cry lots, get frustrated easily, sound and light bother me, when I am frustrated I have trouble with word find. My accident happened Feb 3, slipped on ice, hit the back of my head. To be honest there are some days that I think about driving the care into a tree -- I wouldn't do that becausee of my children, but I still think about it. I am already on anti-depressents, what wise words so you have???

dhope,

Have you asked your doctor about trying a different anti-depressant?

You will be surprised how a different med may help. Different systems react differently.

Since you were denied WC, have you contacted a personal injury attorney? If you can find a good slip and fall attorney, you may be able to get some financial help, at least eventually. Failing to sand and de-ice could be a negligence on the employer's part.

You will actually have better financial recovery under personal injury/premises liability law than under WC law.

Here is an attorney link http://www.wainjurylaw.com/library/s...gton-state.cfm

You want to make sure an attorney has good knowledge of brain injuries.

My best to you.

Please speak to your MD. Head injuries heal so slowly, but perhaps he can help you find avenues that will help you find hope. Someone to talk to? a medication to help the brain fog?

You said you have kids, have you taken time out to take care of you? Allow them to go on play dates with other families or even your family while you heal? Sleep, and rest is so important when allowing your brain to recover. Its a slow process, but thats exactly what it is, a process. Frustrations, and aggravations are part of that.

Be kind to yourself. Dont push yourself till you are so tired you cant think. Have you see the butyoudontlooksick.com spoon theory? We are all given an alloted amount of energy units to get thru the day (spoons) and if you run out...its hard! Sometimes we borrow from tomorrow to get thru today. Try to use some brain teasers or cross words, or read stories, but dont push yourself past the point of frustration. Just a bit of practice each day. even a puzzle with the kids can be fun, and help to retrain your brain.

Tons of helpful stuff out there, I hope more folks chime in with ideas. ((hugs)) :hug:

Depression is very common with TBI/PCS. In addition to Mark's suggestion about having your meds evaluated, talk therapy may be useful. Talk in general is good, as long as the other party in the discussion is aware of your feelings and understands your concerns. Controlled breathing/relaxation my help. Think about the good things in your life (you mentioned your kids) and make a gratitude list. I still get depressed but I found these little things were (and still are) helpful.

:hug:

Hi dhope
 

I sure do know about depression. Hang in there. I am going through the same kind of stuff, though with a different medical problem. Can't stop crying, and sometimes just loose hope. Lets just both hang out here at NT to get the support we need, to just put one foot in front of the other, one tiny bit at a time. I care about you, and I know there are people on this site who care about me, and maybe that is enough to get us through these times of sorrow and depression. You are not alone. I am here too, struggle sometimes just like you do. I come running back here, that is the truth. By talking to each other, it lifts the others burden just a bit. WE will get well, both of us. We just have to be patient, and keep working toward that goal. Write to me any time. I will be laid up a good month without being able to walk. I'll talk to you anytime you need. We really arn't alone dhope. Friends here will reach out to you. ginnie:hug::hug::hug:

Beautifully said ginnie!

Also: you are early on in your recovery; there is a good chance you will get substantially better over time.

In the meantime, be sure to discuss the issue of depression with your doctor (and maybe seek a referral to a neuropsychiatrist skilled in helping people with TBIs). And take good care of yourself: get adequate sleep/rest, good nutrition and supplements, minimize stress, avoid overexertion/overstimulation, etc. There is lots of good support and info on this site.

I think you should be prepared that as you get better, you may be able to better analyze how bad off you are. That happened to me continually for many months and it really made me feel bad emotionally. I still have issues with how long this process of recovering from one concussion has taken me - I'm more than 20 months out from the injury I sustained.

Just try to focus on the good things in your life. I don't know what they are, but I'll give you a few:
-You have children you love.
-You're not worse than you are.
-You're not in a coma.
-Statistics are in your favor that you'll be doing MUCH better in just a few months or less.

I know it's a lot of change in a very short period of time and that's not ideal for any human being - even if it were change that were desired.

Be compassionate with yourself. You're recovering from a brain injury and that's a big deal. Give yourself some time to get better. Take it easy. Rest. :hug:

Trust me, I know how hard this process is. It's not easy. My prayers are with you. :hug:

Is it normal to have moments of depression several months after a tbi? Moments of frustration? Sorry if I'm in the wrong thread

mufco90,

Welcome to NeuroTalk. You came to the right place for help with a TBI.

Yes, you can go up and down with depression after suffering a concussion/TBI.

There are a number of ways to help smooth out the roller coaster ride.

Introduce yourself and tell us about your struggles. There are lots of good people here with good ideas.

The most important way to recover from a TBI is to limit over-stimulation and improve your nutrition so your brain can detoxify and start to heal.

My best to you.

Just wanted you to know... I slipped at the end of February, similar story. I was at work (3rd party site) ran to my car to grab something and slipped on the GIANT ice puddle at was under my car, hitting the back of my head. I find myself frustrated now... the depression over this is subsiding and I am more accepting of my limitations, but I still rail against it often....

I hope you are doing even moderately better, and that things are slowly improving... I hope you have a good lawyer... I chose not to go the WC route, after my work dicked me around.... I have a good lawyer, and although I won't see a settlement for a long time, I am hoping that it will compensate me for everything I have been through...

I feel as though I am on an emotional rollercoaster. Calling the doc for med change anvd seeing a therapist. Tried to go to the doc today and got lost. The more confused I got the more upset I got so I pulled over, call hubby asking him to cancel the appointment and then took myself out to lunch. Spent some time sitting on the beach and then went home. I am wiped out by the event but learned that I am able to problem solve!

DHope,

I had a benign brain tumor removed in Nov. 2000. When I woke from the surgery, I thought I was a nurse working at the rehab hospital where I was a patient. I remember thinking, "this is nice, they provide beds for nurses to sleep when they get tired"!!! I was frequently found at the med cart because, "by golly, somebody had to give the meds to the patients!" I was often redirected because i would push patients wheelchairs around the Brain Injury Unit where I was a "patient", and also tried to help people toilet, dress, walk.....etc, as you can see, could have been a dangerous situation. (thank God, everyone, including me survived!)

I had to carry what my therapists named a Memory Book (spiral notebook in which to write down minute details) with me everywhere I went. at first, my therapists wrote down info I was to try to retain. ex. 6:30 am wake up, 6:45 am brush teeth, 6:50 am get in shower, etc. Eventually these things became second nature again, but it took months of therapy and me writing everything down.

It took about 2-3 years before I became brave enough to get back behind the wheel. I was on anti-seizure meds, which caused a lot of drowsiness, and I really didn't have the confidence I once had. Once I started driving again, the confidence returned. Although, there were some "bumps" along the way with my short term memory.

Any time I was to drive to a new direction, I would get specific directions.(back before GPS I used plain old sticky notes with directions written on them) If I had never been there before, I would try to have someone go with me at first. If i had been there, I would try to visualize my route beforehand to make sure I had my bearings before heading out. One piece of advice: stay calm, always have directions, and have phone numbers on hand if you get lost along the way. With today's GPS systems, I-Phones, etc. we can find just about any spot in the US.

When traveling, let someone know where you are going. I found that if I had someone waiting for me, if I got lost I could call and get directions in to the house. Also, most importantly, have plenty of gas in the car. It may sound silly, but I have driven around blocks over and over again to find, I was pretty darn close to where I was supposed to be. Just didn't have that last little detail that could have resulted in me getting there 45 min earlier!

Also, have faith in yourself! Your brain is healing. It will take time for the subtle functions to start happening again. For me, at first, I wore myself out trying to think so darn hard! Another piece of advice: when you park your car in a parking lot, try to park in the same area each time you visit that place. Ex. Grocery store. I have walked back and forth with my buggy of groceries looking for my car because couldn't remember where I had parked!

Give yourself time to heal, and room to laugh when you forget where you
parked! Or if you drive around the block 5 times only to eventually see if you had taken a left instead of the right you would have been there 40 minutes ago!

I wish you the very best, Dodi