A list of ways to beat PCS
 

I was hoping we could make a list of things that has helped us try to control PCS.

So far... here is the list of things I do/eat to battle PCS.

Food:

Fish Oil
Blueberries
Horizen Organic Milk with DHA

Exercise/Supplements:

Neck Strengthening Exercises to minimize impact on brain
Weight Lifting
Creatine

Also... I've read that the bigger your body mass, the better you can absorb impact.... so I'm going to try to bulk up from 175 to 200.


I hope you guys could add some more things I haven't thought of.

I can understand the value of neck strengthening exercise to strengthen the neck.... But do no see how this can reduce impact on the brain. Also. body mass will only be a factor if the body is the point of impact. If the head is the point of impact, the body's mass will not make a difference.

If these are tips to try to be able to continue to play sports like football, the risk of more impacts will still be great.

btw, The fish oil should be chosen based on its levels of Omega 3's and DHA and EPA. Some fish oils are very low in these components.

I like the topic title. I want to destroy this PCS of mine :D

I've heard walnuts are good as well, so I've been having 'em.

I've cut out weightlifting since the stess of even 10 lb. weights can trigger the headache (for me).

I'm 125 lbs, despite a lifetime of trying to gain weight. Hope it isn't messing w/the recovery.

Thanks for posting-

Neck Strengthening will help your brain absorb impact. Your head and brain is held in place by the neck. If the neck is strong, it will take more of the impact and stop the brain from moving as much on impact.


Body mass would work in the same way. Body mass is not only your midsection or trunk region, it's your entire physical structure from head to toe. If you have more thickness around your head, neck, upperchest and trunk region, your head and brain would absorb less impact if something was to strike your head.


I also wanted to add that I've read a lot of your replies mark and love your positive energy. I can truly say you are one of my heroes and i love to read your posts. Keep up the great work boss.

Good addition. Walnuts are amazing for the brain. In my opinion, it's not a coincidence that walnuts have the same shape of our brains.

You can try taking creatine as this will help you gain water weight. I would definitely try to rest up as much as I can until I could hit the weights again because without lifting iron I don't know if I would be able to make it through the PCS.

Thanks for starting this thread!

I am taking two supplements: Balanced B Complex 100 and 900 mg algal DHA.

I also try to drink half my body weight in ounces every day (e.g. if you weigh 100 lbs, you would drink 50 oz)

I am having chiropractic neck adjustments and also doing neck strengthening exercises under the supervision of a physiatrist.

I am doing vision therapy after a visual efficiency evaluation.

Looking forward to hearing others' thoughts! Maybe this could be a sticky post for the top of the forum?

amazinggrace,

You are misapplying the laws of physics. Any energy that impacts the head has to transit the head into the neck and body. There is no way that energy from a hit to the head can be transmitted to the neck without it first impacting the head. That is why so many with head injuries find that they also have neck injuries. The only thing that may change is the duration of the impact and whether there is a whiplash effect.

A skull that is held stationary is more likely to pass the energy to the brain as a coupe contra-coupe impact as the brain bounces off the skull at the point of the impact and back to the side of the skull opposite to the impact.

Strengthening the neck will help it absorb the energy transmitted to it with less chance of neck injury. Neck strengthening will include strengthening of the ligaments and tendons. This will provide protection to the neck joints.

Bulking up the body can actually cause the neck to take on more energy as the body tries to stay motionless (or at the same motion) while the head and neck accelerate.

Researchers have tried to study the impact forces of blast concussions. The head is moved very little but the shock wave of the blast can do great damage. Similar shock waves effect the brain in impact concussions.

UNC-Chapel Hill has placed accelerometers inside football helmets and measured the G forces from a wide range of impacts. They have found that sub-concussive impacts which are far more frequent can do more damage than a single full force concussion.

These sub-concussive impacts are most frequent with linemen, happening up to 900 times per football season. Lineman have the toughest necks and most body mass. They also suffer the most early onset dementia leading to a high suicide rate in the 40's age period.

If you want to build muscle mass without the head rush of sustained high impact workouts, try doing slow reps of max weights. The reps should be so that you can only do 4 to 6 before muscle fatigue. Rest then repeat. Each rep should be 6 seconds or more. The longer the rep, the more muscle cell stress, thus the more muscle rebuilding.

How are you able to weight lift? I'll assume you've made a substantial recovery allowing you to do so? If you are still experiencing a multitude of symptoms, weight lifting is not know to be a positive method to beat PCS. And how exactly is creatine helping?

Hey Mark,

I don't know much about the laws of physics, all I've done is read from different sources that building neck strength will reduce the chances of concussions.


When you type in "neck strength concussions" in Google, there are other sources as well that say neck strengthening will help absorb some of the impact.

i have had 2 concussions that left me unconcious and a third one that didn't leave me unconcious but left me with post concussion syndrome. I got kneed in the jaw by my friend the last time, we were playing around and I didn't think anything of it. Next day, I woke up and had the worst headache, If I sat in a car and we went over a small bump my head hurt. For 3 weeks I didn't sit in a car because every small little bump caused my brain pain. I didn't lift weights for two months because I was having anxiety. After the 2 months, I slowly started getting better to a point where I could lift weights. Its been about 4-5 months now but i'm about 95% healed. The only problem I'm having now is anxiety and twitches. I constantly worry about the head twitching cause I'm scared I'm having small seizures(could someone tell me why I'm twitching?)

I couldn't have healed as rapidly as I have if it were not for my diet. Everytime I take fish oil, drink DHA milk or eat blueberries, the affected part of my brain feels as if it's healing.

As far as creatine...

just type in "creatine neuroprotective" in Google.

I remember reading a study saying that they gave creatine to rats after they had already sustained concussions and the ones that were given creatine healed better.

hey amazinggrace,
after a concussion, there's a sequence of metabolic cascades that involve potassium leaking from cells and calcium influx into cells. however calcium is harmful to cellular metabolism in the mitochondria (cellular metabolism being responsible for ATP production). since creatine is a synthetic variant of ATP, it would make sense for creatine to provide energy for brain cells that are actively repairing. however, i'm not sure any neurologist would recommend this due to the load that creatine places on the kidneys.

I haven't found anything in particular that helps (except Advil...which of course I can't take too often):winky: But I guess the thing I do is just listen to my body. If I am craving this I eat it, even if I do not need it for that summer beach body:p If I need to go on a walk, if I need to sleep, if I need to take a break, if I need to explode (my pillow has become much smaller from the beatings):rolleyes:

Mark lay off a little, let people share without being picky about the details, if it works it works even if you believe the science isn't there to back it up. We are grasping for straws, don't take those away:). We have all had to many docs and such tell us the scientific "You're OK" or the "You don't have PCS just..." Let us have our straws. I don't mean this in a critical or mean way, I am just trying to let this thread be what it was meant to be...a sharing of helps.;)

God Bless!
Margarite