Update/Words of Encouragement
 

Hello, all. Some of you may remember me, but I used to be an active poster in this forum. I sustained a mild blow to the head almost exactly a year ago now when I feel off a longboard. I never lost consciousness, had confusion, amnesia, or anything characteristic of concussion diagnosis, so I was dismissed from the ER with minimal concern.

As time went on, I obsessed over my symptoms and my anxiety went through the roof, leading to a panic attack that was triggered by sexual activity. The whole experience was very traumatic to me, but I had to stay strong.

It is now 1 year later, and the reason I had avoided the forums for so long is because it was not helping my problem of obsessively worrying about my symptoms.

Ever since that first panic attack, I suffered strange psychological phenomena such as derealization, sudden emotional shifts and numbing, etc. Amazingly, I never seemed to have physical symptoms such as headaches, etc...only light and noise sensitivity (which I have always had to a degree anyway).

As of now, I am working close to full time at a restaurant and also actively performing with three bands. Though I still don't feel like the same person as before the accident, I don't think that is a realistic expectation to have. Any experience we have as a human being changes the way we view our life as a whole, and something as traumatic as the threat of brain damage reshapes your thinking. Even so, I fight on. I still struggle with derealization/anxiety/ocd type issues that may or may not be related to PTSD, but you just have to take it a day at a time.

To all those out there suffering, I feel for you 100%. This **** sucks. Plain and simple...but you will get through it. If anyone else is experiencing emotional/mental issues like I am, feel free to share your experiences here. I still struggle with this stuff and it's always comforting to know you are not alone.

Thanks for reading, and I'm sorry if this post was not very coherent. Stay strong.

Hey there fellow longboarder - I joined the forum and ended a 10 year passion after a blow to the head boarding, very similar story with the ER etc. Glad to hear your getting out of the woods, I'm 5 months in and my recover has stagnated.

I feel ya.