Jolting, Extreme Head Sensitivity, Tics Help?
 

To give a background on my story. I have had three concussions in about three months. The first was several small concussions. I was playing football and didn't know that I was concussed. I didn't know that I was cuncussed, but I received the five small concussive hits(4 in the left frontal lobe) and one in the back left part of my brain. I healed up just fine and was playing football in about 2 weeks. I played football for two more weeks when I hit that same front left spot on my head again, not extremely hard, but obviously enough to cause another small concussion. I then developed tics, a twitching disorder, two days later. The concussion symptoms (headache, small light and sound sensitivity) seemed to disappear as I was twitching very badly. I saw a team of neurologists, and they didn't seem to think I developed the tics from a concussion. They think that I developed tics from stress and anxiety, which at the time were at a moderate to moderately low level. I then got medication for the tics and my twitching went away. My second concussion went away and I was doing fine until I was wrestling with my brother about two weeks later and bumped my head on the ground. I got a third concussion close to the first two concussions but more on the outside of the left part of my brain. I healed up in about a week, but noticed I went cross-eyed for a while. I didn't have any postconcussion symptoms after any of these minus a few headaches in the concussion spots, zoning out, and about a week and a half period of insomnia.

Then about a week or two after the third concussion I was in class, and someone bumped my head lightly with their elbow. It didn't hurt my head at all, but I was extremely dizzy and had concussion symptoms for the rest of the day.

About two weeks later, I bumped almost brushed my jaw with a guitar and thirty minutes later I noticed I was super dizzy and the rest of the weekend I had a headache and was dizzy.

Then a few days after that I got hit in the head with an extremely soft inflatable ball right in the front of the head and it has caused a whole mess of problems. The next two days when I tried showering my tic movements started acting up a ton. I became extremely light sensitive, got headaches, sound sensitive, lightheaded almost all the time, loss of focus, reduced cognitive function, and (common symptoms).

I tried taking one shower since then, about 6 weeks since the last two incidents, and my tics flared up for about two days, and I only let the water hit the back of my neck and parts of the back of head just barely.


I can't get bumped by people anywhere and especially my head. I accidentally ran up my stairs and had concussion symptoms for the rest of the night and a bit the next day. I also jumped up to get a bag of chips probably about a foot off the ground and it lasted probably about the same time frame for symptoms as running up the stairs. Some people will give me a pat on the back or something which causes some symptoms. I have to be very cautious in car rides as well. Anything that causes jolts through my head causes symptoms.

I now wear sunglasses all of the time at school, and most of the time at school. My sensitivity to light is getting better and at times I can go without wearing the glasses a while. My headaches are getting better and my brain functions very well compared to what it used to. I'm not very positive thinking though. I've lost a lot of things the past couple months, mostly playing football and track in high school and college. Sports have meant more to me than most things and losing them has been rough. That part was tough, but now my future of going to college next year is in jeopardy because I can't have these symptoms and go to college. I have suicidal thoughts when I have a set back and sometimes just when I have time to think about how good I used to have it and how hard life is and will be. I have a friend at school who also is struggling with PCS and its nice to talk about our problems, but sometimes I worry.


I've gone to many appointments in a traumatic brain injury department, seen a neurophsycologist, who is my main doctor, ocupational therapist for schoolwork and stress managment, and vestibular therapist to reduce by lightheadedness which has been reduced a lot. I've also been going to acupuncture which has helped a bit. I'm having an appointment with an anxiety therapist soon. The neuropsychologist believes that a lot of my symptoms are caused from stress and anxiety, particularly me being cautious about my head now.

I know there was a thread called Sensitive to Jolting? and recently Extreme Head Sensitivity. I can't copy and past the links because I'm a new member and haven't posted 10 times, but I know there are people with really sensitive heads and I was wondering if there was anything besides not bumping my head or getting jolts that helps.

I brought up the idea from the sensitive to jolting thread to my doc about the lymbic system of the brain being messed up in my situation and he thinks that is likely.

JBuckl,

Welcome to NeuroTalk. You have found a good place with good people.

It sounds to me by your attention to detail that you are a high stress type of person. This is detrimental to recovery. If you were playing football with helmet and pads, your concussions and sub-concussive impacts would be more generalized that directed to the left frontal lobe. These generalized impacts often result in a diffuse axonal injury. There is often a concomitant injury to the neck or spine.

It sounds like you have a severe case of sensitivity to all of the sensory systems. This is usually due to an injury to the part of the brain that gates or directs the flow of sensory information or blocks it entirely. This is a common PCS symptom. The only treatment is to reduce sensory stimulation so the brain can rest and try to heal. Reducing anxiety is also important. Read the sticky at the top about Vitamins and supplements. Your brain needs stress support and the vitamin regimen is focused on helping the brain tolerate stress.

You sensitivity to head motion could be just the brain movement or it can also be related to upper neck issues. The vertical pounding from walking and running can irritate the upper neck and cause inflammation that effects the brain.

You need to get plenty of quiet rest. School should be minimized, especially any extra activities or intense projects or tests.

Knowing more about your age, location, and school objectives could enable us to better understand your situation to help you.

My best to you.

Thanks. I appreciate your help and your concern. I must ask why you help so many people though? Do you still have symptoms with using computers?

I would say after all of this I am much more anxious, cautious, and stressed. I never was before. And after the first three concussions I unfortunately wasn't very cautious nor extremely stressed.

My work load at school is very high right now. I'm trying to get caught up in school. I missed three weeks from my last incidents and I take two college level classes. I'm a senior in high school. I'm not extremely stressed about school because the teachers have been relatively nice about things, but it has been a lot of work. I'm still very behind in the one non-college level class, but I'm not too worried about it. I have a Christmas break coming around soon which will be good but until then I have a lot of studying and homework to do.

I live in Wisconsin.

Don't get stressed by the 'level' of the courses you are taking. I was in college in 1973 and the entry level college courses were equivalent to courses I took in junior high. I took a quarter of college level Earth Science as a freshman.

I suggest you do everything you can to reduce your workload at school. Drawing out your recovery will be counter to being ready for college. An understanding school admin should accommodate you with alternative ways to show you have mastered the curriculum.

"I must ask why you help so many people though? Do you still have symptoms with using computers?"

I used to have problems with screen time but I have learned how to recognize when my brain is fatiguing. I then step away for a while. I do this because I know how important it is. I went through a miserable time for the 10+ years after my concussion at 10 years old. I had very little support nor information, especially after my severe concussion at 10 years old. I was discharged from the hospital after three days with NO FOLLOW UP. I had slurred speech and a severe change in personality.

Plus, I have lots of time to follow NT.

Hey yeah I have the very extreme head sensitivity like you that sets of my pcs a lot worse. I don't have the twitching aspect of it though. It's very odd though, there are days where my head isn't as sensitive and others where if I even go to itch my head to hard I will get disoriented and set off my symptoms. I don't really know how to approach this, all I do is rest. I also eat an anti inflammatory diet and sometimes that seems to help.

Recently, the head sensitivity hasn't been as bad, but it could get worse in the future as the sensitivity seems to randomly worsen. I suggest following marks advice and getting a lot of rest and starting a vitamin regimen and eating healthy

I've tried to get my workload reduced but the teachers can't much at all because most of it is essential for earning the college credits. I'm almost caught up in the two difficult classes, but I have been pushed extremely hard.

Termed college or not, they would be difficult no matter what. The teachers are older and hard-nosed.

The easier class I am in I'm pretty far behind in but my teacher is much more understanding.

I realize I shouldn't be doing as much work as I have been, but I can't exactly control that. My teachers are pushing me and I really don't want to keep getting behind! My brain has held up very well. And I have a break coming up soon after this last stressful week of school. I've been successful and I think my cognitive function is probably at around 95% of what it used to be. Does that mean anything?

I'm seeing an anxiety specialist this week, which should help a lot. I have lots of anxiety, caution, stress about my head and rightfully so, but I know it's not all the best.

I think I should see a chiropractor soon though. Any thoughts?

Healing Story
 

JBuckl,

It is almost scary how similar my situation was to yours. I am 18 and a senior in high school just like you. Football and sports was my life but were taken away from me just like they were for you.

I received 4 concussions from football, and the last one I believe I had a small one and continued to play with it for about a week, receiving sub-concussive blows which sent me on a 19 month journey of PCS. That was April or 2012.

6 months ago I shared the exact same head sensitivity you did. Someone could pat me on the back, hug me too hard, or I could barely hit my head on something and I would have concussion symptoms for 2-3 days. This was incredibly scary as I'm sure it is for you because once you get that sensitive it seems very hard to get back to your normal self.

5 months ago I saw a nuero chiropractor out of Dallas, Texas, who put me on an anti-inflammatory diet and prescribed several supplements to me. This diet, which basically consists of lean meats, fruits, and vegetables, has completely saved my life. 6 months ago I could hardly walk or ride in cars without feeling my brain shake, and now I am running and jumping with no problem.

Just like you I also have pretty severe stress and anxiety from trying to protect my head and what not. I've kept it to myself and haven't really done anything about it but it is getting much better as my head sensitivity goes away. By no means has it been an easy road to get to where I am today. I had to become obsessed with protecting my head and preventing further set backs, and I also became obsessed with following this diet ( The Leaky Gut Diet). So here is my advice to you:

Start the diet as soon as you can, get you parents involved buying the right food for you. Its gonna be hard, but it is completely worth the sacrifice to get your life back. Continue to be very cautious about protecting your head, it is essential that you let the diet do its work and not set your head back anymore. Lastly, have a positive attitude. Look at my story, know that this is only temporary and believe that you are going to get better. Find success in everyday and try to be as stress-free as possible, this helps with the healing process. Do this and in a matter of months you'll have your life back and be ready to head off to college next year.

Please let me know if you have any questions, I really want to help you out because the situation you are going through has had such a huge impact on my life and I want you to experience the same healing I have experienced.

Best of luck

Mark,

You know I value your advice and your opinions; however, I have to say that what you're referring to here is very different from what the OP is probably talking about. When high school students today take "college level" courses while still in high school, they are referring to advanced courses that are designed to challenge them intensely, and these courses are typically in tough subjects to begin with. The "entry level" college courses you took in 1973 were undoubtedly far less strenuous than AP or IB courses that this person is taking. I know this with almost absolute certainty, as these are the kinds of classes I usually teach.

I agree that, generally, "college level" courses doesn't mean much... but when a high school student is taking them, unless it is a joint enrollment situation (which most are not), the classes being taken are probably more difficult than what most of us remember from our undergrad years.

What kind of classes are you taking? Are these AP/IB, or joint enrollment?

What kind of credit schedule is your school on? If your classes continue in January without ending for a final grade for one semester by Friday, my suggestion is that you try to set aside a segment of time each day to work on getting caught up on school, but otherwise relax as much as you can over the break. Take a break from electronics and exercise even, as much as you can. Your brain will thank you.

As far as anxiety goes, what are you doing, if anything, to manage your time? I teach high schoolers, and I see students like you struggle all the time because they get overwhelmed by the amount of work due. Now more than ever, while you are trying to heal, you need to make sure you are managing your time wisely so that you don't overdo things but can still make progress so that you don't get even more stressed. Do try to plan plenty of breaks while doing your homework... maybe doing it in chunks will make it more manageable.

My heart goes out to you because you sound a lot like my students, and I know how much it would upset them to be in your shoes. Take care of yourself.

Dan thanks for the support and I would love to hear everything about the diet and supplements. I'll look more into the diet myself, but what if you could say the foods you ate and supplements that would be awesome! I totally believe that diet is important as I have a brother who is obsessed over his and feeds me info all the time.

I also would like to know if you got an cranial adjustments? I've been looking into that and I know a good chiropractor nearby who is big into nutrition.

I have been gluten free for about a month and dairy free for about 6 months because of the inflammation it causes to the brain (gluten). I also have been trying to avoid other grains for similar reasons due to the chemicals being sprayed on them. Grains are different than used to be. I don't know a ton about this topic, but my brother has highly recommended me getting off of gluten and another brother dairy because of the acne reaction that I used to get from dairy.

I know this whole situation is not what you wanted and I'm sorry it happened. I know it stinks. I was going to play college football and run track, still maybe can run track. I've also had many other disappointments in the past few months. But if you get some satisfaction out of helping me and other people and grow as a person. I hope that all the pain wasn't a waste. That's how I've seen it and you seem like a great person. And thanks already for giving me some guidance and hope. I was really down about my future until I read your post.

courtney w, first off I'd like to say thanks for your concern. The courses I take count as college credits. We apply by computer to the college we take them through and our high school teachers teach them. I don't know if you consider that joint enrollment?

I take a College Chemistry Class, College Spanish Class, and an intro to stats class this quarter. I recently dropped band and choir this quarter and may potentially for the year depending on my symptoms as I have not been able to go to those and they're not necessary for my graduation. I have one lab to make up in chem that I'll do after the Christmas break, and one quiz left in spanish to do. The stats course, I'm a little bit further behind, but the break will help.

That said, I have pushed myself very hard to get caught up by this break, but I haven't stressed about school much at all maybe because I've had to get caught up before but I've been more worried about my health and college more, as I just got accepted to a very difficult private school and am concerned that it may be too much to handle. until Dan gave me some more hope.

My brain functions about as well as it used to except when symptoms build up too much.

For anxiety and relaxation, I do some deep breathing exercises I talked about in a different post maybe on a different topic/thread and I plan to exercise over the break and into school more now that I'm more caught up.

Also Dan, if you could give me some advice on the anxiety and preventing stuff and how you progressed that'd be appreciated.

Specifically, how did you realize when you could start walking faster, running, hugging people? stuff like that.

And what were specific situations that you avoided and how you dealt with anxiety, stress, and maybe other stuff.

I know caution and anxiety are necessary, but my anxiety is excessive.

Yep... joint enrollment means you are enrolled in two schools at once; a high school and a college. AP and IB are different, in that those programs are offered through the high school and count for high school credit, with the opportunity to take exams at the end of the term that can make a student eligible to receive college credits.

The good news is, at least I'm guessing, the Spanish class is probably not much more difficult than the Spanish you would have taken at the high school level; in fact, it's probably mostly review of what you've already had. It's probably tedious, but not overly difficult as far as the material is concerned. The chemistry and stats might be a different story. (I know that you know all of this already LOL... I'm saying all of this more for the benefit of others in this thread who aren't as familiar with the program you are in).

Are you supposed to start college in the fall? The good news is that, as a freshman, most of your classes probably will be review of material from high school and it won't be quite as stressful as it is right now because you won't be taking the high school classes with them. You'll probably have more time between classes that you can devote to studying, resting, or relaxing... so as long as you are managing your time wisely, you stand a very good chance at still being able to be very successful in college, particularly given how much you say you have recovered already.

Be careful with the exercise... I have found that heavy exercise makes my symptoms worse. Exercise is awesome if it's not hurting you, but please listen to your body... if you start to get a headache or other symptoms that resemble those from your concussions, stop whatever you're doing and limit yourself to walking for a while afterwards. I know that's no fun, but neither is prolonging the life of any lingering symptoms. I learned that the hard way when a simple light jog sent me into a migraine so bad that I could barely even communicate with my husband beyond whispering. It was awful.

Best of luck, and keep us posted! I'd love to get updates on how you're doing :)

I'm really glad your going to give the diet a try. The diet is called the Leaky Gut Diet, which is designed to fix "leaky gut syndrome" but it also reduces inflammation, heals the blood-brain barrier, and does a number of other things..this is all what my chiropractor told me. Here is a link with the diet's restrictions:

http://askdrakiba.com/food-sensitivi...pair-vite-diet

It is basically the Paleo Diet but a little more extreme. The diet basically consists only of lean meats, fruits, and vegetables. There are even some high-glycemic fruits you can not eat like banana or pineapple. You can eat as much as you want, and I recommend eating a lot because it is easy to start losing weight when you are eating so healthy. Try to eat anti-inflammatory foods like ginger, berries, and fish. My mom buys a lot of meat at the beginning of the week and I grill it up and feast on it throughout the week. It may seem boring at first but after a while you really start to enjoy the food.

To adapt to the diet I drink coconut milk, which is really the only kind of milk you are supposed to drink on it. I also have an avocado everyday, cook with coconut oil, and try to eat ginger with all of my meat. It is funny you have an older brother who is obsessed with his diet because I do to, and he's helped me out along the way too.

As far as supplements go, I would ask your chiropractor who is big on nutrition what he/she recommends. My chiropractor did a pretty thorough blood test for me and recommended supplements based off of that. Some supplements that you should definitely take are fish oil, magnesium, B2, and reservatrol. Two others that she put me on are NeuroFlam and NeurO2, which both help with inflammation and can both be found on ebay or other places online. I would ask your chiropractor though because I'm sure he/she is going to recommend the same things.

Over the summer when I was in my worst condition I would desperately search the internet for hours looking for answers and solutions to my problem. I actually went to see my chiropractor out of Dallas because she did cranial adjustments and I had read all about them. She did do them, and I think they did help a little bit but its hard to say how much. I still think the primary thing that healed me was the diet. So I would say to go ahead and try the adjustments, just be careful your chiropractor understands your situation and does it in a gentle way, mine did in a massage-like way that was not jarring at all.

Another thing I did and still do everyday is put a lot of time in strengthening my neck. A strong neck helps to prevent form further injury and has definitely helped me out. Im sure you are familiar with neck drills from football, just be careful how you do it so you don't hurt your neck at all.

Also, I don't know if you are into partying, I was for a while but completely gave up alcohol/drugs in order to let my brain fully heal, and I think that was very important.

What we are going through is definitely not fair, but its nice to have someone to go through it with. It was definitely scary for me over the summer because I could not find anyone who shared my situation and there was no advice on how to heal from it. So I am very happy that I get to be that person for you and help you get through this. Please ask me any questions or advice, I really enjoy helping you out. Also, I'm from Austin and my real name is Garret Hemphill, my screen name is Dan because I wanted to stay anonymous when I made this account a year or so ago. Try and find me on Facebook and we can communicate that way too.

Best of luck

JBuckl,

I just saw your post about anxiety and preventing further injury. As far as anxiety goes, I never found a great way to avoid it, I just removed myself from situations where I could potentially hit my head. I had to be constantly aware of my surroundings which just adds more stress, but I'm afraid its necessary to let yourself heal. The worst anxiety I experienced was when something did hit my head or I experienced some type of jarring motion that I thought set me back. Knowing that I got set back and would have to feel bad for the next few days was incredibly stressful, so the best way to avoid anxiety is to protect your head.

For progressing into walking faster, running, jumping and all that, you need to take it one step at a time. At one point I could not walk heel-to-toe barefoot because I could feel my brain shake when my heal would hit the ground. So, after a few weeks of being on the diet and feeling much better, I started walking barefoot on carpet. I would do this everyday until I got comfortable, then I moved to tile floor.

Once I could finally walk normally again, my big goal was to start running, which I'm sure it is for you. I honestly was very scared to start, but I stated in a batting cage that had turf floor so it was a little cushioned. I started jogging pretty goofy at first, making sure each impact wouldn't shake my head, but as days and weeks went by I slowly pushed my limits until I was running without a problem.

I encourage you to do the same thing I did: just chip away at it day by day and before you know it you'l be running and jumping again. Push your limits but be smart about it, it is much better to play it safe and not further-injure yourself than to push it too much and set yourself back. It is going to take some time so be patient and stay focused on your goal.

Thanks a lot Dan/Garret! I'm excited to get fully onto this diet and heal up!

This may seem strange, but what's a typical breakfast for you? I didn't quite see the most breakfast type foods on the list besides fruit.

Sorry if you've said this already, but what were your PCS like? Mainly pressure buildup/headaches in the front of the head, light sensitivity? And were you able to shower right away?

What about with Christmas celebrations coming up? How did you avoid getting bumped by relatives and little cousins if you have any? This past thanksgiving I chose to stay home because I thought the risk was not worth the reward and that may still be the case.


My questions will die out I promise. Ha I know it's never good to compare when dealing with brains, but when information is available, sometimes I just have to know it. I suppose I can't think of any other questions at the time, but I'm sure I will. I added you on facebook, and I'll keep those messages personal, but I think posts would be good on here for other people to see as well because I don't think the diet has been brought up a whole lot.

Thanks for the advice.

Yeah, I start in the fall, and I'll be sure to contact admissions counselors if possible. I also have contact with some track and football coaches as well, whom I may get a hold of. I'm not quite as worried as I was, but as sensitive as my is, a small accident could really take me out of school for some time, and I have to make sure that the school knows that and that there's a plan of some sort if that does happen. I can't be spending thousands of dollars to fail school, and I know there's some insurance policies, but I know people at the school would know more about that.

Track will probably not be an issue by the time that season rolls around... football, however, might. At least you'll have a helmet on. I'm not sure about the effectiveness of a typical football helmet... is that the kind of thing where you can maybe get the helmet a little bigger to allow room for extra padding, just in case? Ultimately, you'll just need to have some kind of plan in place to protect your head as much as possible, if not playing isn't an option.

I'm definitely not going to be playing football anymore, so there will be no worries with that.

JBuckl,

I definitely struggled putting a breakfast together when I first started the diet too. Your breakfast will most likely end up looking more like lunch for a little while. I always have an apple and some other fruit, some kind of meat like a chicken breast or pork chop or something, and my mom gets this gluten free AppleGate sausage at the grocery story that is really good. Its just part of doing the diet, you'll get used to it and can probably start adding eggs after a month or so. Eggs is one of the more lenient things on the diet, I eat them every morning now and have no problem-but I would start off completely following the diet plan just to be safe.

My PCS began in April of 2012 after I got my 4th concussion. I had constant head fog, head pressure, and a headache for 14 months. Literally every second of every day I had a headache, it was awful. The diet took care of the pressure and headaches though. My head sensitivity, which turned out to be much worse of a symptom than the headaches, started when I was about 8 months into PCS. I was playing baseball and someone underhanded a toss to me and it hit me right in the forehead. It was not a hard toss at all, but that sent me on a downward spiral to where I could hardly walk or ride in cars. The diet also gradually helped to resolve that. I also had light sensitivity which has slowly gotten better, and I had a few weird vision things like a little double vision and halos around street lights at night. I never had a problem with showering, I kind of avoiding the water coming directly down on my head just because I was so cautious but I doubt it would have done anything, if it bothers you though just work your way around it- there was one time I showered at my aunts house and the water pressure was really high so I just took a bath.

As far as your Christmas goes, I would hate for you to not see your relatives and all. I do know that it is tough to control what other people do when they hug you and all that. If you have to travel far and just don't feel comfortable with everything than maybe you should stay home, and just know that next Christmas will be much better. Just be safe and smart about what you do. Keep the question coming, I'm happy to help and I'm sure I have a lot more advice to give you. Remember to try and eat a lot, especially meat if you can get your hands on it. Keep in touch

hello everybody
 

Almost 4 weeks ago I suffered a concussion while I was playing basketball , a guy hit me with his head in my head, first symptoms were,.....lightheaded ,body coordination problems ,filing spacey .........second day my neck started to hurt a lot and also stiffness.

I went to the ER, they din a CAT scan and sad It was good and that I had a concussion

After couple of days I noticed that any small impact of the body I was feeling it in my head , basically my head became very sensitive to any impact of my body , (like bumping my foot in to a chair...) or bumby roads .

I also noticed that if i was laying in bed on my back and dropped my hand on the bed i will start having symptoms like pain .... confusion etc.

Around one week since the concussion I was playing with my cat in bed and I did some sudden movements ( turning my body )and immediately I had concussion symptoms it will last for 1 day and then go away

After that it happened 2 times to get up from the chair to fast and again symptoms, and always new symptoms like head pain around the eyes , cognitive issues some of them I have them now continuously.

Today I was at the gym using a stationary bicycle , after a while my forehead was sweaty , I reached with my hand to clean it and by mistake I hit my heat but very softly and then again symptoms

So at 4 weeks I have mental fogginess , and this extreme head sensitivity that gives me concussion symptoms and every time I get symptoms my neck becomes stiff

I ve been reading this forum for about 3 weeks now , and is good that people are sharing their experiences and knowledge .

I also have a history of neck issues, and depression prior to concussion , sometimes I am thinking that this sensitivity is some how related with my neck


Thanks again everybody for sharing your stories and helping

dan100,

Try your best to not hit your head. Lay off exercise for a while until your symptoms are much fewer or gone, and definitely get your neck checked out. Depression is very common. I've had it, still have those type of thoughts and I believe it's one of the number one PCS. Don't quote me on that. It's not unusual to feel down when you can't use your brain like you should. So basically you need to do everything in your power to heal your brain the best that you can like starting this diet that Garret has said, and try and correct your attitude which is the hardest thing I believe. Try reading the Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale or other positive things. This website is a great resource but don't read too much into how long it could take to heal. I did that and got really negative thinking for a while. You don't know how long it will take.

Garret,

Someone just patted me on the shoulder at church, and i've had some sensitivity in cars recently. I've had that happen before, but never thought about asking you. I'm wondering what you did when you felt your head being jostled and got those symptoms when someone bumped you or you had any extreme head sensitivity. My head basically gets extra pressure and feels really weird. Sometimes I start going cross-eyed and it's tough to concentrate and I get headaches and all my other symptoms rise in sensitivity a bit, but it's mostly the pressure in my head expanding.


I got into a network marketing program called evolv this summer and they have this anti-inflammatory supplement called Limitless which I take in the morning and at night and I'm wondering if I should take it after I get bumped or something. I did that once and it helped quite a bit. I was wondering if you took an ibuprofen, ginger or those anti-inflammatory foods to reduce the inflammation right after a bump.

Thanks

I actually just took the supplement and some blueberries and tried resting off the pressure which I usually try to do if I have the available time. It helped quite a bit.

thanks for the advice and encouragement ,

you are very right about getting negative thinking after reading to much on this website ,

I think I am going to to try Garret diet , with his posts he give us lots of hope.

I read your story and I wanted to tell you that I think you will for sure get well because you are very young .

So stay positive and start the diet and hopefully soon this will be just an experience.

by the way I am 32 , and this is my only concussion, so I guess the sensitivity is not totally related with the number of concussions .

Garret,

First off, thanks for the diet recommendation. I don't feel my brain jostling in my head anymore. It's awesome! hah I started doing some stationary biking and things are progressing. I finally am developing a good mental attitude, which is the biggest part in this I've realized.

I don't know how sensitive you still are to everything else, but I got some good advice from some doctors.

Everything is mental. We can retrain our brains into not responding to the nonconcussive hits, bumps or whatever. How?

First, you have to visualize yourself in these situations and make sure you're calm and relaxed. Ever visualized before having a conversation with someone? It goes better. or how Michael Jordan always used to visualize before games? Anyways, it has something to do with muscle memory and putting things in your sub conscience. Also, visualize yourself being 100% back to normal. I told you about the book I'm reading and the founder of the Purina company was really sick growing up and his teacher taught him to visualize himself being healthy, strong, and to believe in himself and he outlived all his classmates. Make sure you visualize specifics too and if you can't stay calm or stray off seeing something bad happen stop.

Second, start small by exposing yourself to things. For me like I said it's the water drops. I haven't done this yet, but it's Christmas time, people have been "touchy" and I had a few senior pics so I got hands on me. And make sure you're calm the whole time, if you can't be stop. Tell yourself it's ok and nothing wrong is happening. Never do this while your tired or late at night because that makes things worse.

Third, Don't go too big! start really small like you told me with everything. I started a little bit too big, but that's fine. Oh, and buy that book I said if you can and buy any motivational books or anything that will improve your outlook or thinking because it's huge.

I've been told that it takes on average 3 months for a full recovery for an average TBI, I realize ours maybe more extreme and don't focus on that number because numbers are BS when healing! I do that too much and my mind goes to thinking like crap! Anyways, when people don't recover in that time, it's because they have stress, anxiety, PTSD, depression, etc. If a person can a person can get rid of those to the best of their ability than they'll heal faster. And if you need help reducing those, I can try to help.

Master your thoughts! Imagine yourself 100%! I know you're doing a lot better, but you can always keep doing better.

Hope this helps!

Whoever said 3 months to heal for an average TBI is not speaking from medical evidence. Something like 85% of concussions heal spontaneously within 6 weeks. The rest can take months to years to reach a maximum level of recovery.

Much of recovery is lowering stress by learning to work around symptoms while the brain heals. Getting frustrated and stressed out by concussion symptoms is counter to healing.

courtney,

I missed your response. The entry level courses I took were required courses. I challenged them so I could get the credit without wasting my time and frustration in class. AP (Advanced Placement) courses are similar. They allow the student to forgo the prerequisite courses and get to the meatier courses. Some of these course are college level but many are no more than the Honors courses of decades ago. At least now an A in an Honors (AP) course gets a bit more Grade Point value. In my day, an A in an Honors course was no different than an A in a general level course.

All three of my kids graduated or qualified to graduate high school early. They started taking college courses at 16 or so. One dual enrolled rather than graduating because she wanted to continue playing high school sports.

My point was that just because a course was labeled AP, it was not necessarily a high level and difficult course. Some students tend to psych themselves out by the label on a course. Students carry a big load of stress put on them by labels.

I agree 100% that students do tend to psych themselves out over those courses, and you are right to try to minimize the anxiety that a student feels over these; however, to simply assume that all of them are the same level of difficulty as what was taken in middle school is erroneous.

I have taught some of those classes as an English teacher, and I can assure you that the level of difficulty that those kids are facing, at least in the literature courses, is much higher than what their peers are facing in college prep level courses, and it is often higher than freshman level courses at most colleges, because the teachers are under a lot of pressure to get these kids to a point where they are producing sophisticated writing that most college grads are never capable of producing, since most are not English majors.

In all fairness, I do tend to automatically think of the English courses and forget about Spanish, Art Appreciation, etc... so in that regard, you are right; some classes are relatively easy no matter when you take them.

Again, I agree that students do tend to psych themselves out over the label of these courses, thus adding even more stress to their already full loads; it's just that the way I read your initial comments on the subject made it sound like you were demeaning his course load somehow, and that bothered me for some reason. It may have been a misinterpretation on my part, but that's why I responded the way I did.

I've heard it said that the average college freshman enters college reading and writing at a junior high level. Not to take away from the achievements of the Honors students. As a freshman, I had to take a boring English Grammar and Comp course that the instructor promised a challenge exam but it never happened.

Yes, that's very true; most college freshmen cannot read and write the way the professors want them to be able to do. There were probably several people in that class with you who thought it was challenging; judging by what you have said about your grandchildren being in advanced classes, you are probably pretty book smart as well, so the things you found easy in school were probably harder for others. It's all relative.

JBuckl,

I'm glad you asked about what to do when you get bumped and have a "set back". I have definitely had plenty of "set backs" over my healing period: no matter how careful you are sometimes they just happen, so you need to know how to handle it. First off you are correct by taking the anti-inflammatory supplement after a "set back". My doctor recommends that I double up on my dosage of NueroFlam-the anti-inflammatory supplement I am taking for 2-3 days after a set back. Besides from taking the supplement, the best advice I have is to try and have a positive attitude like you are talking about. I have experienced the worse anxiety after I have had a "set back" and know that I will have concussion symptoms for the next few days. I start getting thoughts of depression-"ill never get better, there's no way to beat this"-things like that. So my best advice after you have a set back is to relax and know that in a few days you will be back on track. Think about where you will be in the future and don't be overwhelmed by your current situation-and be EXTRA careful not to bump your head again.

Thanks so much for posting about that book and everything about the positive attitude. That is something that I have slowly figured out on my own but have not researched it in depth and I really look forward to reading that book.

Sorry, she said concussion, not TBI. I mispoke.

The course load is insane. They're both 200 level college classes I think, but it doesn't matter. I have a 4.0. I've been one of the most dedicated student, musical, athletes of the school. and I've had a very strong mental toughness for such a long time that it's probably hurting me now. I think that it's gotten to be a bit too much finally for my body. Mentally, I'm still strong most of the time, but physically I'm noticing signs.

I just dropped one of my less important classes with about 3 weeks left in the quarter as it's not required to graduate. I believe I have burnout. I have lots of the symptoms of that recently except when I got bumped, when I believe I might have gotten an adrenaline boost (on right now), which is something I discovered today~just a theory. Any thoughts?

I think that my severe sensitivity might trigger an adrenaline release. The past couple weeks I've been able to do less and less school work and the past three days I've been really tired and had a ton of brain fog, which I really almost never have. I felt really tired and completely drained. I don't know where my energy came from or how I got through the weeks before, but I'm interested to see how my body responds.

I'm not sure if my theory is correct, but when I got bumped-not hard- my symptoms flared up again a little bit~tics a bit, crosseyed, weird head feeling, increased energy.