Self Doubt
 

Am I the only one that has days that I think to myself.. I am such a sissy la la... how is it that I am one of the 5% that end up with PCS?

Do I really have this or am I just making this up?

I am quickly reminded that I am not making it up when My head is pounding and I can't stand light or sound but still... I just wonder... how did this happen to me? there were 5 other people in the car and only 2 of us with concussions... we weren't hit that hard (45 mph)... what in my make up made this happen and how can i prevent it from ever happening again?

Oh Sarah,

I had such guilt and shame like I did something wrong. I'm not sure I'm completely over 'How did this happen to me. My head wasn't cut open, I wasn't in a coma?'

I'm not sure why I felt that way. It's a mental mess up in there a lot.

Be kind to yourself. I'm wondering if there's a lot more than 5% of us with PCS. Many undiagnosed, misdiagnosed, unaware wondering if they have gotten lazy or they are just weak.

I find it very unsettling that there is not enough awareness in the general public about what CAN REALLY HAPPEN AND HOW LONG IT CAN LAST!!! I think there needs to be a movement.

Peace and wellness Sarah,

Jace

My situation is the same. 4 people standing close to the explosion, 2 of us got concussions I'm the only one who got a ruptured ear drum and pcs! I find that I get more self doubt when it comes to my family and personal finance. Keep your head up

Oh, yes!!!

I long for the day when science catches up with our injury. When PCS/TBI is no longer "invisible" and I can toss an image at all the naysayers.

If I had one arm, people wouldn't expect me to juggle, but they have no problem making even more ridiculous demands of a TBI patient.

To be doubted - and even mocked - by one's own family, when one is practically killing oneself to be a good wife/mother - well, it's just beyond cruel. Frankly, there aren't that many days when I don't curse airbags.

No easy answers
 

Sarah, there are no easy answers .. I don't even know if there are complicated answers.

***** happens. Bad things happen to good people. It is what it is. You can't change the past.

These are the things I keep telling myself as I learn to accept who and what I am, right now.

You know you're not making this up. You know this is real.

Now you have to figure out how to deal with it, just like I do.

How can you prevent it from happening again?

You can't.

The way I see it, you have two choices.

Wrap yourself in a protective cocoon to minimize the chance and finish out your days. To me, that's not living.

Or, you can live your life, doing the best you can, each day, even if that "best" is pretty limited compared to how you used to be.

That's the path I'm going to try to follow.

Be really careful with trusting statistics like 5%... I've read that upwards of 50% of people get PCS after a concussion.

But is that trustworthy?

My stepmom was in an auto accident and two months later told her Dr. she was having difficulty thinking straight and the Dr. told her it's because she had a concussion from the accident... it was the first she'd heard of it! She hadn't been told to take it easy or anything! (This was over ten years ago...) How many people don't even know that they have a concussion!?!

And many Dr.'s disagree about what the parameters are of what makes a PCS diagnosis. Some say 2 weeks post injury, others say 3 months and some are somewhere between the two.

I remember feeling like something was wrong with me when the first neuro I saw would tell me that I'd be "back to normal" in the next 2 weeks, or 6 weeks or whatever new time period he told me.

Ultimately, I think this guilt comes from the thinking that we are in control of our bodies and our health, when the truth is we are NOT IN CONTROL of those things. (I learned this from my therapist - it seems pretty obvious when you really think about it, but that's how ingrained it is that we are in control in Western Society!)

We are taught that if we exercise and are trim, that nothing bad will happen to us. We will avoid cancer, diabetes, MS or whatever other kinds of health conditions we are at risk for... this is simply NOT the case.

Please try to think about it like this: if you have a child, niece, nephew, cat, dog, close friend, basically someone you care deeply about - how patient would you be with them? How understanding? Probably very. Am I right?

Now give yourself that kind of compassion, patience and understanding.

Like EstherDoll says, how many of us know what concussion is or what the symptoms are? Lots of people think concussion is being knocked unconscious, for example.

I was watching some videos on youtube about concussion in sports, and how many people weren't being diagnosed because they simply did not know the symptoms. Someone may not volunteer they have blurred vision because they don't think it's relevant.

And also, the doctors didn't know the symptoms either.

They found that after teaching the participants and doctors the concussion symptoms the diagnosis rates shot up because the doctors were asking the right questions, and the sports participants knew what symptoms to look out for.

I spoke to a nurse at a head injury charity, and she says it's possible for someone to have no symptoms at all after their event, but develop really debilitating lifelong symptoms, even if they are subtle they can be life changing.

Ironically, one of the symptoms of concussion is NOT reporting symptoms. When examining a suspected concussion patient, the doctor should ask specific questions (do you have headache, are you seeing double), not wait for the patient to offer.

In my case, I didn't tell my GP I was vomiting and fainting.

Thank you all for making me feel like I am not crazy...

You are not crazy!

But you DO have a brain injury... ;)