An intro and a Thank You
 

First, thank you for being here without knowing how much help this site has been for me these past several months. I've been a lurker, but needed to sign up to say "THANK YOU".
Five months ago, I was cleaning the vinyl siding on the house (didn't want to use chemicals because I don't want them leaching into the soil as our well is close to the house). While moving the 20 ft extension ladder, I lost the balance point and it fell, and the bottom of it came up and hit me behind my right ear. I didn't lose consciousness, but it rang my head pretty hard. I thought I could shake it off, and finished moving the ladder and cleaning the next section until my home made essential oil based scrub ran out. Came in, iced the lump that formed, cleaned up took it easy the rest of the day. I don't remember much the next few days, but I kept applying my essential oils to reduce the bump, soreness and headaches. I began noticing how light sensitive I was becoming, and the constant ringing in my ear (I got hit right on the mastoid bone), and had most of the concussion symptoms except loss of consciousness and vomiting. As the weeks went on, my family noticed how easily fatigued I'd become, and how often I napped (I rarely ever napped before), and how quiet I became. I never went to the doctor (I'm stubborn and only go to the doctor if absolutely necessary) until a couple of months later when the symptoms didn't let up. Can't say I was really impressed by the practitioner I saw, but she did say I'd had a concussion based on my symptoms. Then she went on to say they matched depression so maybe I was depressed and said some nonsense about not knowing what came first~ the depression or the concussion.... um, the concussion! Prior to that, I was very active... worked out daily (I had completed several rounds of p90x over the previous 3 years, and I ran every other day). Love life, family and my hobbies. Suddenly I couldn't work out without excruciating headaches, pulsating tinnitus, and dizziness. Even walking on the treadmill slowly was difficult. So I rested... and rested... and rested. Still, the memory gaps, memory errors, stuttering, stammering, headaches, tinnitus, vision issues, and fatigue continue.
I saw the neurologist last month and he said he cannot say how long PCS will last. His testing showed I have trouble with memory and speech processing, and has recommended speech therapy to assist with those. (Which I still have to set up). He recommended multi vitamins and coenzyme Q10, so I've been taking those along with an omega3 supplement. The MRI showed no signs of damage from my concussion in June, but he said it shows an old brain scar in my left frontal lobe. He has no idea how old it is, and all I can think of is a car accident I had 18 years ago and I hit the left side of my head on the window. Except an MRI I had 4 years later (to rule out stroke and other things after a stroke-like incident) never showed any anomalies in my brain. Since my symptoms for that incident were affecting the left side of my body, any lesions would present in the right hemisphere.
My ophthalmologist said testing shows no physical reason for my vision problems (besides light sensitivity, I see things that aren't there or don't see things that are there, and I cannot see well enough to drive at night), but said it is most likely part of the brain processing errors I'm having.
I have gained weight which frustrates me, I cannot drive long distances and not at all at night, and have become less patient/easily agitated. I have tried to see the positive side of things and am in a constant state of compensating. Lots of post-it notes with some taped to things like the washer (kept forgetting to start it), reminders that I had breakfast so I won't think I didn't, alarms on my phone to make sure I remember when to get the kids from the bus, etc. My family has been amazing and supportive~ We have 6 children but only 2 left at home now. My husband is the best. He began going to work a little later in the mornings to help get our youngest up and ready for school. He helps with meals and grocery shopping and anything I need help with. He understands there is no way to know how long it will take my brain to fully heal... if ever. He listens to me tell him the same things repeatedly because I've forgotten I've told him. He repeats conversations with me because I've forgotten he'd already told me. I can walk on the treadmill for about 40 minutes before my head starts throbbing, but the running is still a no-go...even slowly~ within a minute I know it's not a good idea and spend 2 days getting back to my new normal. I can deal with the constant headaches with my oils, but the headaches never quite go away completely. The tinnitus ~ well, I think by now I'll be dumbstruck if it ever stops and my head is quiet. I've been knitting... a lot! Simple things at first but now I'm back to doing more challenging patterns, and adapted new ways to keep track of things.

Anyway, sorry this is so long, but I wanted to say "Hi" and "Thank you" because reading your posts have made me feel like I'm not alone and I'm not going crazy.

K

yay
 

Hi there

So glad you are better. I am really tired and could not read your whole post in depth.

In the future, you might put more spaces or paragraphs in your writing. It helps some of us process the writing better.

I am a knitter too and was before my accident. So glad you find it rewarding and can knit some things.

Keep on with the vitamins and just the whole framework of being positivie. I am a believer in that.

All for now,

poetrymom

Oops! Sorry about the spacing. I had a package delivery and had copied an earlier draft in case I couldn't get back to post it.

The one I meant to post was shorter (still longish) but had shorter paragraphs. I'll try to edit it tomorrow when I get a chance.

Thanks for the heads up.

K

Momma6,

5 or 6 line paragraphs work best for many of us.

Double spacing every line does not help me.

I'd like to read your version of War and Peace. I watch for the edited edition.

My best to you.

I await the opportunity to be able to edit. Right now, I'm in Newbie Limbo. Really, the one I was going to post was spaced... and a bit shorter.

K

Welcome and thanks for sharing your experience.

Like you I did have problems with speech processing and memory (including repeating myself often). I found the speech therapy very helpful in resolving these deficits. I also asked my wife to let me know when I did the repeating, I found that just being mindful of when this happened helped, as I actually began to recognize and then remember what I had said before, and I believe this helped also.

Having a supportive spouse and family is huge. Best to you as you continue this recovery journey. :grouphug:

You don't need edit privileges. Just copy the entire post into a new post and add the spacings. I would do it but editing others posts is not allowed.