Frequency of Doctor visits
 

I suffered a concussion four months ago and am dealing with PCS. Headaches, cognitive problems, short term and immediate memory issues, word finding issues, lack of focus and ability to concentrate, easily distracted, sensitivity to bright light, fatigue, irritability, depression, lack of motivation, blah, blah, blah.

Tired of talking about it, reading about it, thinking about it. I have strong support from my family and close friends, but it seems like I'm wearing them out with the lack of progress.

I see a neurologist, a neuropsychiatrist and a cognitive behavioral therapist in addition to my GP.

How often should I be seeing my doctors? I realize this is somewhat individualized, but all I seem to is "you're doing fine, be patient" from my medical team. My patience is thin and I don't want to fall into a pattern of apathetic acceptance.

I'm used to being effective in my life and I feel like I'm not a part of my own healing or treatment and things I can do to positively impact my condition.

I try to exercise, read, research TBI / PCS and all I seem to get is increased symtoms and setbacks.

Anybody have any suggestions?

What we are doing....
 

In all due respect, everyone has to get a piece of the pie (as my DH would say).

My DH's accident is very early on and he has only seen one doctor/RN since he was released from the hospital. It was a special concussion clinic. Upon his evaluation 2 weeks post-concussion, he was not perscribed any meds. All they told him was if he feels a set-back or a relapse to give them a call. The hospital (not the cucussion clinic) perscribed him Xanax .5mg to take at night but that is ready to expire (good thing cause I heard that can become addictive).

The concussion clinic gave us a script for cognitive therapy and also to see a neuropsych. The cognitive therapy we are holding off on to see how he does on his own. The neuropsych. was for him to discuss the accident because he has sleep disturbances. Both of these types of therapy are available (if needed) but my DH has decided to decline for the time being, for he knows that the resources are there if he needs them.

There is no set therapy, time frame or magical cure for PCS. It is a healing process that can take months and they treat the symptoms until the body heals itself. My DH has been lucky enough that he returned to work 2 weeks after his accident with some restrictions (rest as needed, dayshift work only and no overtime). Now don't get me wrong, he comes home very tired and fatigue is obvious but something he has to deal with. He is just very lucky he works for a family-owned business who has been very understanding and supportive.

Good luck on your recovery and just remember, there are rarely any doctors out there that will tell you they do not need to see you. I'm still waiting for a doctor to cancel an appointment. If you feel you do not need the treatment that week, or 2 or 3, then make that decision. :winky:

I think it is best to not have any regular scheduled appointments. There is very little they can do to help but hold you hand and tell you half-truths if not outright misinformation.

I am also not a believer in cognitive therapy until you are free of sensitivity to over-stimulation and chronic head aches. There will be plenty of time to exercise your brain to regain skills that have become lazy after the rest of the recovery is well at hand.

There are many health care providers who will keep seeing you as long as you keep paying their bills. All this does is draw attention to your claims by your health insurance company.

If you need med reviews every 90 days, that is appropriate.

Thanks, Mark.

Yes, unfortunately, a lot of it is DIY - do it yourself. But you can always have the help of someone else being a close "personal assistant" to keep you on track of your progress and your activities.

Another option would be to have several people keep you on track. I have my therapist (for the emotional component) and my boss (for my work).

In the beginning, Nathan was almost catatonic so we saw like 3 docs the first week. Then, we saw dr every week, then two until he was at least coherant. When I was getting frustrated that he wasn't getting any better it seemed like I was taking Nathan every day to someone!

Now, he goes to cognitive and vestibular therapy once a week and sees his dr once a month (except when i freak out about new symptoms:wink:)