What does it feel like to recover?
 

Nitro,

You posted in the wrong thread. Q & As belong in the discussion threads. Recovery happens differently for everyone. The vast differences in concussion tend to make every concussion different. Doctors try to group all concussion together and give general prognoses.

Add a whiplash injury and the matrix is very screwed up. You whiplash injuries can cause many concussion like symptoms. Getting good therapy for neck and neck to head injuries treating both bone and soft tissue injuries will help greatly.

At 8 weeks, I would bet you still have some unresolved neck and even upper back/shoulder injuries. These can all radiate muscle tension to the head.

The purely concussion oriented injuries can take weeks and months to heal. Not all PCS symptoms recover necessarily. You may be left with lingering symptoms. Head aches is a good example of lingering symptoms.

Thanks
 

Thanks for responding Mark and sorry for posting in the wrong spot. I'm having a tough time absorbing all the information on PCS out there. All that really seems to be is if you're not better after 3 weeks, you should be better in 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, or you may have symptoms for the rest of your life. You shouldn't exercise, however, a recent study from the University of Buffalo sates that a light exercise program actually helps. I have a job interview tomorrow but I'm not sure if I should re-schedule or just tell them I'm unavailable - because unlike non-brain injuries like broken limbs or internal bruising, PCS lacks distinction in healing periods. Certainly something I'm getting used to dealing with and understanding. I am not a believer or Western Medicine for most part and will give updates on my status as I take a natural approach to recovery from PCS. I'm 9 weeks now with PCS symptoms. Going for Cranial Sacral Therapy tomorrow. Best of luck to everyone trying to heal. We are all in this together.

Nitro,

Canial Sacral is definitely not Western medicine. Good luck with it. Don't let the therapist try to move your cranial plates. They don't move.

The scientific research into CST shows it to be a haphazard therapy. If ten CS Therapists are told to diagnose the same patient, they will come up with ten different diagnoses.

Some good soft tissue and gentle cervical work may be helpful, though. The muscles spasms in the neck can cause many symptoms that mimic PCS. The head aches can be neurological or due to muscle stress from neck injuries.

As I have been saying for quite some time; The head bone is connected to the neck bone. Traumatize the head and the neck gets traumatized too.

The Buffalo study is more about using exercise to speed up the return to play, not so much to speed up recovery. It works at helping the brain redevelop tolerance for increased pulse rate and blood pressure. The study has not looked into whether the brain becomes more tolerant of a subsequent head impact. No such study has ever been done.

The increased blood flow may slightly increase the brain's ability to detoxify from the toxic products of the injury. But, good nutrition needs to be a comprehensive part of the process. The injured or stressed brain has extra nutritional needs beyond the unstressed brain.

When you post here, try to use some paragraph double spacing. Many of us do much better trying to read posts with no more than 5 or 6 lines before a paragraph space. The visual component of PCS can make following from one line to the next problematic.

As you try to find concussion information, this forum will likely be your best source. The members know all of the good sites across the web with reliable concussion info. Unfortunately, there is still lots of bad information out there. The Mayo Clinic web site has concussion info that was proven wrong years ago.

A good concept to keep in mind. It is usually best to try to treat each symptom individually. There are many ways to reduce the intensity of many symptoms.

Good luck with your CST appointment.

My best to you.

Reply regarding this message, my own thooughts
 

Hi, I just wanted to interject about the CS therapy.
Was in an auto accidnet, w concussion like symptoms and whiplast, ect. I have been to a massage therapist and have done some chiro as well as limited physical therapy. The massuer and I thought CS would help, I know that she did some real deep tissue massage to the neck which has I think opened up some nerve compression the above contributor is talking about.

Its hard to tell what is and isnt working. And the terminology/diagnoses they use definately are not mainstream, but there is a whole school of "believers".


Its hard to tell for sure what works, I actually asked for CS, since it also involves "rebalancing" a whacked out nervous system, and I feel it does have "Some" benefit.

I can actually feel my whole body relax from it and it brings a mild amount of the headache away.

Not sure its from just massaging the head/face, or if the "plate movement" is part of it, but something seems to have gotten me a little further for now. Lots of debate about CS, and I dont think insurers recognize it at all.
Good luck w recovery, either way.

The specific CST work has been studied and shown to be all over the map. The hands on work, other than the cranial plate work, can be effective. But, the hands on work does not require a cranial sacral therapist. There are plenty of other disciplines that can do the hands on work, massage therapy, MFCT (Minimal Force Chiropractic Therapy), kinesiology based body work, Physical Therapy, etc. CST's try to claim a special skill and enlightenment to diagnose by feeling the skull plates.

An OD instructor at a prominent Osteopathic School where CST is a mandatory part of the curriculum has written extensively about the errors and limits of CST. To make matters worse, there is no real standard for preactitioners of CST. Massage therapists offer it as well as some chiros and the obligatory OD who has not dropped the practice after gaining better understanding while in Residency at a Medical School based hospital.

Just because one has experienced some improvement after being treated by a CST, does not mean the CST was the specific cause of the improvement.

Since those of us suffering with PCS tend to get nickeled and dimed into poverty as we seek PCS care, it is wise to enter into a CST treatment plan with eyes open and wallets guarded.