Trying too hard to be normal = FAILURE.
 

It seems like trying to be "normal" is very exhausting. I always try to make sure people can't tell that I'm recovering from a TBI. I do a very good job of it, but, it's wearing me out. I noticed today that a lot of the mistakes I make are the same mistakes that my friends make. For instance, I was playing "Draw Something" on my Android last night and today. I have about 5-6 games going at a time. I started to forget what I drew for each person...and I thought it was just my memory getting worse. Then, I text one of my friends that I play with and ask him for a hint on one of the drawings (Draw Something is like Pictionary). He texts me back and says "Um, I forgot what I drew for you". This friend of mine is a "brainiac" and doesn't drink or do drugs.

LOL.

So, today I decided to loosen up. I don't care if I don't use proper English, or if I space out, have trouble finding a word, forget what I'm saying, forget what I had for breakfast yesterday or anything like that. WHO CARES? People make mistakes. We might make a bit more mistakes than others, but NOBODY IS PERFECT.

I wrote this tonight in case anyone out there is having trouble trying to "fit in" or just be "normal". Chill out. If you over-analyze your condition you will only make yourself worse. I learned that lesson today.

Godspeed,

Nick

Good idea Nick. Accept that life is not perfect. And that your life is not and will never be perfect. You will do fine with this new outlook.

Hi Nick,
I'm new to this site and I don't know if I'm doing this right, but I wanted to let you know that after my latest TBI four months ago, I'm having many of the same symptoms you're describing. My first diagnosed TBI was 20 years ago and with no help from my doctor, it took me a really long time to understand what was going on.

It was nearly a year before I found a team of really good doc's who got me on the right path. I too, tried to act "normal" at first mostly because I didn't want people know and I desperately wanted to be normal again.

I got some great help from therapists and doctors, but what really started to turn things around was when I found out about gingko biloba, which stopped the tinnitus and I could finally listen to my TV and stereo again.

A few months later I found PS 100 which changed my life. It took about 3 weeks before I noticed anything, but then I started remembering things like phone numbers and names, my short term memory improved and I could focus and concentrate better.

That was about 1 1/2 years after my accident, so don't let anyone tell you, like my well meaning doctors did, that you're as good as you're going to get after the first year. I did every kind of puzzle I could get my hands on and I could feel my brain getting better every time I mastered something new.

It was hard work and with this recent TBI I feel like I'm almost back at square one, which is very depressing, but at least I understand what's happening this time and I know that I can get better if I don't give up.

This time I've decided to not try and pretend that I'm "normal" because it is exhausting. If I forget what I'm talking about in the middle of a sentence, or my words get stuck, etc., I just tell the person that I'm recovering from a concussion and everyone seems to be very understanding and they help me get back on track.

There are two other nutrients that I've been reading about and taking that are in clinical trials and seem promising. One is large doses of fish oil. It was featured on Dr. Sanjay Gupta's program on CNN a few weeks ago. It brought two comatose patients back from being nearly brain dead. One had a Glasgow Coma scale of 3, which the doctor said a brick or a piece of wood is a 3.

The other is coconut oil. A neonatal neurosurgeon in Florida, found that in 3 weeks it miraculously started to bring her husband back from early onset Alzheimer's. She found a clinical trial for coconut oil after she was unable to get him into a drug trial for a new medication.

I hope my note isn't too long and I hope this information helps. Hang in there!

JadeGreen,


PS 100. (standardized phosphatidylserine) has been mentioned before. Many of us use a brain nutrition regimen to help the body produce these important substances. PS 100 is a pricey supplement for those of us on a long term regimen.

The coconut oil is valuable because it has high levels of MCT's, Medium Chain Triglycerides. These support ketone production. The early onset Alzheimer's patient more likely suffers from an inability to metabolize glucose. Ketones are the body's emergency food for the brain. The ketogenic diet is based on raising the ketone levels in the blood. MCTs are often used for those on intravenous feeding. It is sometimes combined with fish oil.

It would be great to see some valid study of PS 100 for brain injuries.