Doing a lot better
 

Hey all, I haven't checked on/posted on this website for a while. It's been about 6 or 7 months since my second concussion which gave me post concussion syndrome. I wanted to let all the newcomers know it does get better. The people on here give great advice and I wanted to say thanks so much for all the advice and support I got on my prior posts.

I was suffering from a variety of symptoms. The worst being head pressure, brain fogginess, and bumping/jolting sensitivity. I also had a bout with depression and anxiety for about 2 of the 6 months and I got over that without meds. For the most part the head pressure and brain fogginess has ceased even with me easing back into exercise which was something I could not do at all a couple of months ago. The jolting/bumping sensitivity is still there but has drastically improved in terms of the symptoms it triggers and the recovery time from jolt to a point where it isn't that big of a deal.

I was hopeless for a time during this ordeal, however I am doing quite a lot better as I have stated and am continuing to improve. I hope to eventually get to a completely normal life while being cautious and smart. I will share some of the keys to which I think greatly contributed to me getting better. Many of my keys were recommended by people like Mark on this site (deeply appreciative) and some other things I got through my own research and trial and error.

SUPPLEMENTS
- Curcumin (might be the most important for me, immediately noticed a difference, guessing due to powerful anti inflammatory/anti oxidant effect)
- Vitamin D3
- B complex/b12
- GNC Triple Strength Fish Oil
- Green Tea (decaf/caf depending on how you react to caffeine)

OTHER KEYS
- Ice your neck!! Helped me a lot (Neck inflammation can really worsen your condition)
- Get plenty of physical/mental rest and don't push yourself
- Get a good night's sleep
- Eat as healthy as possible (I'm lucky I had my mom to cook for me)
- Avoid bumping your head (obviously)
- Ease back into activities slowly
- Avoid alcohol

Everyone is different, but this worked for me. Besides the supplements and keys that I followed, obviously time is the best healer. But, I believe these things increased the effectiveness of the healing greatly. Hope this helps! It gets better!

Thanks for sharing your story. I always like reading these.

I'm about 3 months into my concussion, and I'm starting to get some hope that I will recover pretty much fully. There are days where I feel okay, even after working for an hour or two, driving, and chasing around my kids.

I'm on a few of the things that you mentioned: Curcumin, B12, and D3. I have only been on the curcumin for a week or so and am already seeing a difference. My headaches are less severe, and sometimes, they are gone completely for most of the day. It also helped significantly with my brain fog. Curcumin is expensive but totally worth every penny, IMO.

Are you still taking all of those supplements now? I'm unsure how long I'll need to take them. I'm guessing I should continue for a bit longer after I heal.

Hey MomWriterStudent, glad to hear your positive about recovering! To answer your question yes I am still taking these supplements. I know the curcumin along with the other supplements are pretty expensive, but I would sustain taking them as long as possible. Curcumin especially I think was directly responsible for jumpstarting my recovery. As soon as I started taking it, I started improving when I didn't seem to be improving at all beforehand. So again, I would take the supplements and especially curcumin for as long as you are able. The antioxidant and anti inflammatory effects seemed to do wonders for my recovery. Good luck!

MWS,

I suggest you add a B-50 Complex to your regimen. Have you shopped around for Curcumin at a better price. I find Amazon often has the best prices. No need for a fancy brand.

How much cucurmne do you take ?

Just a word of caution...I was taking turmeric, choline-CDP, extra strength fish oil and a few other things...but those three all either have or exacerbate blood thinning effects. Had a bloody nose, a broken blood vessel in my eye, a cut that bled way more than it should have all in the span of two days. I stopped everything. By trying to help my brain, I was inadvertently putting myself on a blood thinning regiment I didn't need:eek:

Not saying anyone will be as dumb as me, but jus throwing this out there, be careful with all the blood thinners...

I am taking 500 mg a day of curcumin. And yeah to be safe check with your doctor when taking it because it does have a blood thinning effect.

I eat turmeric with my food, 1 teaspoon a day, is that enough? if not I will have to take supplement for it.

That sounds like a reasonable amount to me. Bulk turmeric is so much cheaper than capsules.

Hello and so pleased to hear you're doing better, gives hope doesn't it.

Going to try the Curcumin, I do use turmeric.

I'm at 16 months since my concussion and having awful cognitive problems so am hoping things will improve, trying to keep positive..

so pleased you are feeling better :)

These are great tips!

My vestibular therapist also said that icing the neck helps because it arrests the signals from the amygdala so that it doesn't trigger any awkward spells such as pain, dizzy spells, panic attacks, etc. as well as soothing any inflammation.

:)

Concussedguy,

Like myself and others on here you souded pretty bad. You are right to come back and tell others it gets better, because eventually it does. Although I am still not 100% yet, I am functioning well with the help of meds. I have had to adapt things, I can no longer manage the gym, but am cycling 100KM a week instead on the road.

Rest, rest, rest was the key for me along with Cymbalta and Lyrica for mood/neuralgia.

Good luck!