Need help finding PCS help in San Francisco
 

Hi all, I've been suffering from PCS for 3 months now. I am (was) an extremely active 32 year old male. Prior to my injury I was already eating a diet of no gluten, no dairy, no preservatives and have continued that diet. About 3 months ago I was assaulted and my head (left side) slammed against a door jam by an unknown person. My general dr is of no help, the neurologist I've seen have been no help and trying to get into the ucsf (my insurance is blue shield) has been impossible. I recently flew back to Ohio (where I'm from) to see a concussion specialist there. Even though I told the Dr I do not like taking meds, she prescribed me amantadine. Reluctantly, I have been taking 2 100mgs pills a day. While this has helped with concentration and brain fog, I think it has caused side effects including anxiety, insomnia, and depression. I should also mention that prior and during the meds I have been taking supplements, B vit complex, D3, fish oil, curcumin, ubiquinol w reservatol, cell salts, arnica (occasionally), and creatine. I also eat extremely healthy and have been meditating and seeing a acupuncturist bi-monthly.

After doing lots and lots of research, I have found that I would like to see a vision therapist (VPN)?, chiropractic neurologist, and neuro psychologist, and any other recommendations you guys have.

Does anyone know of any in the Bay Area which are accepting new patients and not on a 4 month wait? I have completely hit a brick wall here. I'm emotionally and physically drained. I know I'll get better, I have to, I just need help finding a path towards that.

Apologies for the long post. Hopefully it makes sense and someone out there can help.

Zack

Can't really help you to find specific docs in SF area since I'm not from there, but I do have blue cross insurance and so far they've been worthless in covering any kind of a specialist even if that's the only one in the state (Alaska), so I've been paying mostly out of pocket so far.

Anxiety/depression/insomnia could be side effects of the drug you're taking, but could also have developed on their own. Mine didn't start developing until about 3-4 weeks after the injury.

What other symptoms do you have?

The Bay Area Concussion and Brain Injury Program at UCSF appears to be the place to go. Maybe you need to get a doctor to refer you there.

There are lots of chiro neuros in SF. Google will list them.

Thank you all for the replies.

My symptoms are: brain fog, cannot multi task, overwhelmed/sensory overload, fatigue, loss of appetite, insomnia, difficulty concentrating (causes headaches), mood changes (feeling ok then depressed), can't exercise.

I tried to get into UCSF concussion clinic but it has been difficult and my insurance won't cover as it's at SF General (navigating the ins and outs of insurance has been a nightmare). I never paid attention to my insurance because to be honest, I've never really been injured and I don't really ever get sick.

I'm still hoping there is someone in the Bay Area that can help me with a recommendation on someone they've seen.

Thanks again

Dr. Christopher DeMartini was my chiro neurologist. His wife works with him and does acupuncture. He is in Redwood City. Dr. Sergio Azzolino is also a chiro neurologist in the city.

He is very smart and has all the bells and whistles, but I found him arrogant. Personally I would drive the extra miles to see Dr. DeMartini, but that's me.

Oh I forgot. My Neuro psych was Ashley Cohen in Palo Alto. She was amazing.

Thank you so much. I just left a message for the redwood city chiro neurologist. May I ask you if this helped with your PCS? Any other recommendations or people to see around the Bay Area?

Thanks again,

Zack

SFhelp,

Don't expect Blue Cross to pay for the chiro neuro work up. They usually only pay for chiro manipulations.

Will Blue Cross cover the UCSF Concussion clinic as an "out of network" with higher co-pays and deductibles ?

Most of your symptoms just need time and low stress. Pushing through symptoms with a normal work schedule can be a problem.

Check out this post to see if we have missed anything.
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/thread181974-11.html

I have BC and they don't cover chiropractors, had to pay out of pocket for mine this year.
But I think that depends on the plan your employer participates in.
So far Blue Cross has been the worst insurance I've had.

I had Aetna before and they covered my chiro.

What are your symptoms besides concentration and brain fog. How long have they been join going on? And have you seen any improvement during this time.

bobbyr,

Can we help you with your PCS symptoms ? Others symptoms, duration and improvement have no bearing on your condition. Every concussion is different.

Zack,
Yes he was very helpful. Incredibly knowledgable and I got wonderful care. Unfortunately I kept getting reconcussed at work. I know he has been doing some Carrick training recently and has learned a lot. Gotta love those doctors that get ongoing training that is not sponsored
by a drug company!

Yes I understand that. Im just interested to know the symptoms of his concussion.

Thank you all for the replies. I left a message for Dr DeMartini and hopefully will hear from him soon.

My symptoms are: brain fog, cannot multi task, overwhelmed/sensory overload, fatigue, loss of appetite, insomnia, difficulty concentrating (causes headaches), mood changes (feeling ok then depressed), can't exercise, anxiety/panic attacks if too much stimuli.

I did see improvements in my symptoms after spending about 2 weeks back at my parents house in Ohio, basically doing absolutely nothing and laying down in the dark for 18 hours a day. However, when I returned to San Francisco, I had a pretty stressful event happen and my symptoms came right back to where they were prior to going to ohio to relax. I'm returning to my parents house this weeknd for some time in hopes to aide my recovery. I hadn't been back to my home town for 4 years and after spending a day there I remembered why. However, boredom is what I need.

Any other suggestions would be great.

Thanks again,

Short term rest is just a short term fix. One needs to moderate all stress to get true benefit from rest. Reducing the peaks in stress is most important.

Concussion recovery is a marathon. There is not value to part time recovery efforts.

SFhelp,
My daughter was seen at the CAL Berkeley eye center. They do great testing and are very knowledgable. It takes time to get an appointment but it is worth it.