New to the boards
 

Hello, I've been lurking for a few months now, but this is my first time posting. My name is Sara, and this is my first experience with a concussion/post concussion syndrome.

Almost three months ago at this point, I fainted and fell to concrete floor from a standing position, and unfortunately, my head cushioned most of the impact. I went to the MedExpress, and the doctor checked me over and said I was fine, just to watch for any changes, typical concussion follow up.

For the first week and a half afterwards, I had no issues at all besides a bruise where my forehead contacted with concrete. Almost at exactly the ten day mark, I began experiencing migrating headaches, light and noise sensitivity, and just a general feeling of being unwell.

In an abbreviated story of what happened, I had to leave school, as I was unable to continue because of what I at the time thought were episodes of near fainting, but have now realized are panic attacks.

I went to see a neurologist, had an MRI at about the one month out period, and all came back normal. I could tell he was not very well versed in PCS, but suggested that it will get better with time.

At nearly the three month mark, light/noise sensitivity are gone, I get headaches maybe once or twice a week, but they aren't debilitating, and I am now able to read again without provoking headaches. I sometimes get a weird motion sickness feeling almost, but mostly in my head, and it abates mostly if I drink copious amounts of water when I'm experiencing it.

My biggest concern is the following: the panic attacks I started to experience nearly three months ago are now an every day problem in my life. I am fine when I'm at home for the most part, but my anxiety increases tenfold whenever I drive or am alone in a public place. If my husband is with me, I have no problems, as he is my "safe person", but I struggle with the fact I can no longer do anything on my own unless it's driving to work.

My doctor prescribed xanax 0.5mg TID to help cope, and I am currently able to function with only taking one tablet daily, but I am worried that I will not be able to get off the xanax, as I've come to rely on it to get back and forth to work, so I'm taking it at least 5 days out of 7. I've read horror stories of people trying to quit taking them, and I fear that it'll be even harder since I suffered a brain injury.

Basically, all of this rambling mess comes down to the question of how to deal with my anxiety without the use of medication. I am still hopeful that one day I will be back to myself again, but in the interim, I just need help with any suggestions of coping mechanisms to deal until then.

Thank you so much in advance for any suggestions/help!

I'm about 4 months in, and I recently stopped taking Xanax. It sucked, because that med was the only thing that made me feel like myself again!

I'm taking curcumin now. There is a post that mentions it at the top of this forum. I am taking other vitamins as well, but I feel like curcumin and vitamin B helped me the most. Curcumin totally got rid of my headaches, although I do still have this weird pressure/tightness thing going on. It also helped with my anxiety, but it took a couple weeks.

My anxiety is still pretty bad, though, so I know exactly how you are feeling. Like I said, the curcumin helped...but it didn't completely get rid of it. Oddly enough, my blood pressure med that I recently started also seems to be helping with the anxiety. I know you don't want more meds, but that's another option for you if you change your mind.

Take care.

Hi Sara and welcome.

I've had anxiety as well, particularly in crowded areas like the grocery store.

Some non-medicinal things I have found helpful are:

Mindfulness meditation. There are a lot of useful books on the topic, Wherever You Go, There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn being a classic. Meditation classes may be available in your area, I found a non-credit class at a local community college.

Gentle yoga. I would suggest a studio that combines traditional meditative practice with the posture practice.

Massage therapy.

Three month probably seems like a long time, but in the TBI/PCS world your injury is relatively recent, and while all TBIs are different continued improvement is likely.

Related to your motion sickness feeling, I still have occasional vertigo after 3+ years, but it is relatively minor and I have learned to make adjustments.

Best to you as you continue your recovery.

:grouphug:

I visit a therapist on a weekly basis to help me cope with any anxiety or depression as a result of the concussion I sustained.

Maybe you could find a good one in your area? Shop around until you find one that you really like.

Anxiety disorder has many faces (panic attacks, social anxiety, agoraphobia, OCD, PTSD, etc). For some, first time anxiety symptoms are part of concussions and PCS. For others with pre-existing anxiety disorder, symptoms become less well controlled after a head injury. There are many treatment options but they are only available if you ask. Don't be shy; this disorder affects many. The need for medications perhaps is related to the intensity, disability and longevity of the symptoms. If you are interested in trying the non-pharmacological route first, try reading "From Panic to Power" by Lucinda Bessett. If you prefer internet self help sites, try www.moodgym.anu.edu.au. Hope this helps. Cheers, Canadoc

Although I don't want to be on medication long term, I have had to accept that I need it and have to take it. I banged my head 16 months ago.

Cymbalta was my life saver with PCS both for reducing anxiety and reducing headcahes.

As I have increased activity and have been working full time for over a year Neuralgia has become more prominant.

I now need a tryciclic antidepressant and 200mg of Lyrica to function without earache, toothache, cheek ache and headache.

Thank you so much for the suggestions! I will definitely look into all of the above, as it would be wonderful to at least be able to venture out of the house on my own again. I know it's early on in recovery, and I definitely try to stay positive about the whole thing, but sometimes it's hard since I can't live life like I used to! However, I really appreciate you taking the time to give me some ideas, hopefully I will find something that works for me!

It makes me feel better to know that someone else is struggling with the same thing, sometimes it's difficult to explain to people who don't have any comprehension of PCS as to why I've suddenly turned into an introvert, haha. My blood pressure is normal (except when I begin to panic, of course), so I'm not sure that a BP med will be an option, but it's worth bringing up to my doctor. I will definitely duplicate your vitamin regimen though. I'm hoping to be able to slowly taper off of them, but it just makes me anxious whenever I know that if I have another panic attack while driving, it always tends to set me back in my ability to do anything. I really appreciate your advice, and I hope you have a positive recovery!

I actually hope to be able to get to the point where I'll be able to do this at some time in the near future, as I'm sure it would help me greatly to be able to just talk out my feelings without burdening my husband with them every day! Haha. However, right now I honestly can't go anywhere that requires driving unless it's to and from work, but once I get to a point where I will (hopefully) be more comfortable driving, I will search out a therapist! Thank you for the suggestion :)

Hi! Thank you very much for the resource, I will definitely look into it. I've struggled with anxiety before (though not nearly as bad), so I think my PCP is more able to write it off as just being a more intense manifestation of anxiety rather than it being from PCS. I will discuss other options with him the next time I have an appointment. Thank you again! :)

I'm so glad to hear that you've found something that works for you! I also struggle with the idea of needing to be on medication long term at this point, but if it's something that's going to help me overall, then it'll be well worth looking into. I'm just concerned about the addiction factor of benzos, especially with xanax. My doctor suggested perhaps looking into citalopram, which is in the same family as the Lexapro that you're taking. Did you have any issues with tolerance of the Lexapro when you first started taking it? I've read in a few different places that anxiety can become much worse the first few weeks you start taking an antidepressant, which concerns me, and I don't have the ability to take a few weeks off of work to wait for the medication to fully kick in, unfortunately. Thank you for your kind words, they are greatly appreciated! I hope you continue on with positive outcomes on your road to recovery! :)

I had a problem moving from 30mg to 60mg Cymbalta because it upset my digestive system. I can tolerate Cymbalta at 30mg which is what I currently take.

I found the medication strong at first and it also made me dizzy, but this settled down after 2 days. Cymbalta dramaticaly helped my recovery.

Lyrica likewise made me dizzy, and it has gradually reduced my neuralgia overtime, boosted by Gamanil 70mg at night.

PCS can cause anxiety and this can include worrying about symptoms, so it is important that it is treated.

Good luck in your recovery.