On The Road To Recovery with PCS & MTBI
 

Hello from Mark:

I am in my third year and three months of recovery from the 2001 catastrophic car crash that I lived through. I went from a mature 50 year old male to having the temper of a three year old, unable to remember what a person told me, with out the aid of a tape recorder and having extreme fatigue and headache pains that only repeated applications of ice pack to my head would stop.

I had a closed head injury and suffered only three minor cuts to my head and I then spent the next three years telling doctors I was not the person I use to be and being told that I suffered only from deep depression and to take medication and learn to live with the 24/7 headache pains.

In May of 2004 I went to the RIC in Chicago, IL and was informed after an hour and was informed after and hour and half exam that I had PCS AND MTBI. In August of 2004 I started EEG Bio Feed Back and EMDR therapy and have been on the road to recovery and feel much better and looking to get back to part time work in late 2008 and full time work by 2010.

I like to make aware to any person with PCS and MTBI that EEG Bio-Feed Back can offer help in retraining the brain and not to use medications that you may be on now.

If interested please check out the web page of Midwest Neurofitness, Champaign, IL and read what treatments that they have and you can contact Dr. Andy Hogan as to a clinic that may be close to you.

Now this helped me, but as all brain injuries are different you need to check to see if this therapy will help you.

Keep on rockin'.

Good Morning Mark
 

Good Morning Mark, Looks like you are making some progress with the treatment of TBI/PCS using biofeedback

My name is Jeff I was hit by a drunk driver in 2003 and suffered a TBI and PCS as a result of the collision and have been working on the recovery of these injuries the last 4 + years.

I've been researching neurofeedback for the last 2 mouths and believe this is a therapy that will treat the symptoms of TBI/PCS. I'm currently identifying the parts of the brain that were effected by the concussion and the symptoms that are manifesting as a result of the injuries to the brain.

What kind of results are you seeing from the biofeedback treatments ?

Are you being treated with biofeedback or neurofeedback ?

Take Care Jeffn:)

Bio_Feed Back Therapy
 

Hello Jeff:

Glad to hear from you and what a bummer this MTBI_PCS is. I have had great results from Bio-Feed Back, but it is a slow process that takes time or should say. Comparied to the amount of damage the brain has. I lived with headache pains in the 5 to 9 range 24/7 for over four years. Its about a one or two point scale now but the headache pains have moved as the preatment has progressed. My temper has improved from going to atomic blast to getting very irked. More energy and memory improving and looking toward the future.

Please check out the Bio-Feed Back and get an QEEG Test done first to help determine just what areas of the brain may be damaged. I am about the sixth person that they have treated with PCS. I was directed to this clinic by the human resources of the state and I would have you check with them to see if they still have a Federal government program that is funding this.

I am in a catch 22 on this for, Medicare with not pay unless a medical doctor is part of the clinic. So I am ending up paying for the treatment myself. I go twice a week and I have started my third year and fourth month of treamtment. the treatment cost me #1,600 a month and my disability is 1,540 a month. Also the long-term disability insurance policy from Unum Provident insurance, has ruled that I could go and work at McDonalds and they do not have to pay me the policy. They have never see me for a medical exam and will not accept the doctors report after they closed my case out.

Yet I get the hassle at home from my parents whom are both 80+ ,and they tell me I should be cured by now and that I am just wasting my money. All my family members think I am faking these problems and that I am a weak person. All I have to do is buckle down and work hard and get back to work and I will be fine.

Thanks Mark
 

Thanks for the feed back on nuerofeedback, looks like you're making some progress.

I've been studying a`book Getting started with Neurofeedback by John Demos. Learning the technical language and what areas of the brain that have been effected by the trauma/concussion.**Since the concussion happened on the leftside of the brain it looks like the Broca's area and the Wernickes area have been damaged as they two areas have to do with language skills and communication. It also looks like the prefrontal cortex has been damaged, as this area of the brain is responsible for Executive Planning and working memory.

I laid out a grid from the 10-20 International System identifying each area of the brain that has been effected by the injuries and I'm collecting information on these areas to be re trained. I'm a novice at this so the learning curve is huge.

It looks like you can buy the neurofeedback equipment [ hardware and software ] for about $ 1200.00 plus assessment cost and the cost of having a mentor or trainer and do Home Training and this is what I'm in the process of doing. There is a great deal of preliminary work to do before the brain re training even starts.

I've set up a master mind group of 3 men and 2 women to review my plan before I start this work. PCS McGee started a post For those interested in Nuerofeedback on page 3 and there some useful information there on neurofeedback.

Dave Strand stared a Blog on Neurofeedback and it looks like he is making progress. I believe there's a link to his work in the the neurofeedback post.I also watch a video once a week by Robert Scaer Md who specializes in PTSD and Trauma a link to this video is www.Brain State Technologies.com very useful information on understanding Trauma and the long term effects it has on people.

OK Mark take care it's good to read that other people are making progress with Neurofeedback therapy.Jeffn:)