Who to believe?
 

So I haven't been around much lately but I've told my story before. Knocked my head on the door frame of my car in early March for concussion #1 and then hit it on the corner of my desk in mid April for concussion #2. My CT scan was clear, I've been under the care of both my GP as a neurologist since then, I've had PT regularly for my neck and I saw a therapist for my anxiety. I'm back to work almost full time and back doing most of my regular activities.

With that said I still get headaches and I'm still prone to noise sensitivity. I also get tired easily. I've long suffered from migraines so some of my headaches certainly could be from that. But my neurologist is of the opinion that my concussions weren't severe enough for me to still be experiencing symptoms. I don't think I'm making these things up. So who do I believe? My doctor or my body?

In my humble opinion believe yourself. My primary thinks im full of it and said i need to get over it. Ive been suffering from pcs since january 2014 and people on hear much longer than me. I also got re-injured multiple times by hitting my head everywhere and i must wear sun glasses in doors and im sound sensitive with vestibular issues and some breathing problems. Saw a neurologist who has seen many like me and told me he has had many patients who have taken 2-3 yrs and some that never 100% recover but symptoms are minimal and they deal with it. Short span concussions magnify the problem by 10x and everyone is different. Honestly if you didnt lose consciousness they will not take you seriously. Good luck to you and we both need to stop hitting our heads.

Amen to that lol.

I'm sorry you are suffering. I believe we are the best judge of our symptoms. How could we not be? I too have had some frustrating encounters with medical professionals over this. Trust in yourself. Try to relax and keep stress under control. One day at a time.

Most doctors don't have a clue what they're talking about when it comes to concussions and brain injury. I made the mistake of listening to a GP tell me for three months that I was going to wake up the very next day and it would all be clear.
You need to work hard to get proper help and assessment.

Good luck!

If you'll pardon the expression, this is a no brainer - listen to yourself.

I would have to agree with the others on this issue. It is normal to still be experiencing symptoms, even after a "mild" concussion. I believe that you should listen to your body. Doctors can be funny like that.

Thanks guys. I appreciate the responses. My inclination was to follow my body but it's tough when your doctor is telling you that you really should be over this by now and dismissive of things you say. She actually questions me about my mental health (no worse than normal lol) and tells me my posture sucks more than anything. I hate the idea of going to anyone else because I've had enough medical bills from this as it is and I don't know what they could tell me that I don't already know. I want someone to validate my feelings but I don't want to accrue more bills for it. Work has been incredibly supportive so far but the deadline for me to be back up to a full 40 is September 1, which is fast approaching. I just have to pace myself I guess.

Id highly recommend you get a neuropsych exam. Then they will probably start taking you seriously.

I've seen people talk about this on here. Exactly what is this and who provides it?

A Neuro Psychological Assessment is performed by a Neuro Psychologist (Ph.D.), a psychologist with additional training in assessing brain dysfunctions. The NPA is a battery of tests that measure a wide variety of brain functions.

There are basically 6 different types of memory functions. Those of us with PCS often have struggles with short and intermediate memory functions.
They measure processing speed, executive functions, attention, divided attention, and a number of other cognitive functions.

NPA's are expensive unless insurance will cover them.

They are good at confirming dysfunctions that we often complain about but the MD doctors are unable to confirm.

My best to you.

Hmm. I know my short term memory has been affected. But, as I'm assuming one needs a referral for one of these, how would one go about getting that referral when their doctor doesn't believe anything is wrong?

You may be able to get a direct referral by calling your health insurance company and explaining your symptoms. My health insurance company has a referral line that refers to in-network providers. You may have access to a network provider list that includes NP's. Call an NP on the list and ask about how to get a referral.

Has your doctor ever done a MMSE (Mini Mental Status Exam) where he tells you some words then asks you to repeat them after some time has elapsed ? This is often the first step towards an NPA.

Each time I was at my doctor I did the tests where they'd read off a list of words and I'd recite them back and (the one I hated) they'd give me a string of numbers and I'd have to recite them back in reverse order. I was awful at those.

My neurologist told me about a neuropsych exam. Its like 3-4 hrs. It will help others recognize something is wrong but it will not help you physically. Only rest, and time could do that but if it gets you some leverage with compensation or with work id do it.

Sounds like I'll have to look into this. Thanks everybody.

[QUOTE=allday310;1089813]My neurologist told me about a neuropsych exam. Its like 3-4 hrs. It will help others recognize something is wrong but it will not help you physically. Only rest, and time could do that but if it gets you some leverage with compensation or with work id do it.[/QUOTE

A neuro-psych is not a treatment, it's a diagnostic test - a test that can be VERY useful to the patient.

Firstly, it can PROVE to your doctor that you are injured. This can open the way to more and better treatment, accommodations in the workplace, disability pensions, more understanding from friends/relatives, etc...

Knowing ones deficits can also help target cognitive/occupational therapies that can lead to actual IMPROVEMENT. While rest is important, the brain is very plastic and, at some point, it is time to start helping it to retrain.

If all I'd done was rest and wait, I wouldn't be as functional as I am today. Don't believe me? Go on YouTube, watch "The Brain that Changes Itself" and make up you own mind.

Hope, Believe, Strive

I really appreciate everyone's insight. And the fact that people here know what I'm going through is comforting. I had a rough day today. I almost had a panic attack this morning for the first time in months due to the noise at work which threw me completely off. I thought that aspect of my recovery was over. Fortunately I had my coping tools with me, along with my prior knowledge, so I was able to get past it fairly quickly. And just in general I'm noticing issues with I'm guessing my short term memory, or I guess it could maybe be distractability, at work. I work on watches and we install batteries and offer a 1 or 2 year warranty. I can ask the customer which warranty they want, install the battery and in the minute or so in between I've forgotten what they've told me and have to ask them again. Before it happened every now and again but now it seems like every single time and I feel like an idiot. I guess I'll have to start writing it down when they tell me. Just one more way this stupid TBI has affected my life.