I'm thinking this is not PCS but ....
 

still want the opinion of those who do have PCS.

I am 3 weeks to the day from my event. I was traveling on business and after dinner (and literally two beers) with a friend I had returned to my hotel room .... then I woke up on the bathroom floor. I have no idea how I got there (well I fell obviously but no memory of the fall or impact). I remember getting ready for bed, laying out some things for the next day, and the next thing I know I wake up on the floor with a fair sized pool of blood. I remember thinking "that's weird" then got up from the floor and went to bed. The next morning I woke up with the pillow and sheets like the horse head scene from The Godfather. I had the presence of mind to look for clues: no water on the floor to slip on, no sign of anyone else in my room, nothing missing, .... I cleaned up and went about my day albeit with a nicely clotted 3 inch "star' split on the occipital lobe of my skull. I had no pain but everything felt like I was moving in slow motion. I interacted and responded to those I was meeting in a normal fashion (I asked them and since a couple are close friends, I trust them) but I felt exactly like I was running in a pool of molasses. My appetite seemed somewhat diminished and I abstained from alcohol for the rest of the trip.

After i returned home (3 days later), I went to see my personal physician. After an expected series of questions and examinations he basically said "who knows? if it happens again, we'll have another data point - if it doesn't, it's a fluke". He thinks that my BP may have negatively spiked and put syncope in my notes. He did run a blood and tox panel both of which came back normal. Aside from mildly chastising me for not going to the ER to get the would sewn up ("it's too late now, but you'll have a nice scar") he didn't think I needed an MRI unless other symptoms manifested or my dizziness got worse instead of better. He also ran an EKG to see if there was any indication my heart had done something odd to cause it - normal. He told me to return to work but take it lightly. He suggested I take a couple weeks off from exercise and definitely stay off my motorcycle or bicycle while I'm still having vertigo episodes. I followed that to a T and worked "lightly" but noticed that I tired more easily. Since I telecommute, that wasn't much trouble and I'd just lay on the couch in my office for a few minutes every couple hours - something I should probably have been doing all along anyway.

I didn't and don't have the feeling of pressure in my head, no blurry vision or cognitive issues; the only memory impairment is the event itself - everything before and since are clear. No nausea, no emotional changes. Headaches - that's an odd one, I don't have have any headaches which is almost odd in itself because I used to nearly always keep a headache going (stress usually) and now I rarely get one since my event.

Dizziness (or vertigo as I now learn from reading here) is my single most prominent symptom. For about the first week after it happened I'd get dizzy from moving/changing position too quickly - especially when laying down. Sometimes I'd be sitting in a chair doing nothing and without changing positions I'd suddenly get so dizzy I had to hang on the arm rests to keep from falling out of the chair (or so it felt). The vertigo has steadily gotten significantly better over the past 3 weeks. Sometimes I go a day or so with no swoons at all and when they do present are very mild. Just today I had one that surprised me because it was much more dramatic than the gradually diminishing ones I'd been having; though still not so severe as the "hold on to keep from fall off the earth" type I'd had previously. I think it just surprised me because I'd gotten complacent. I know the vertigo could play hide-and-seek with me for months, years, or forever .... I still haven't climbed back on either of my two wheeled toys but lately that's been priorities more than convalescence.

I've increased my nutritional supplement regimen (similar to what's in the sticky thread by Mark in Idaho), cleaned up my food intake, reduced my caffeine, and am still abstaining from alcohol. That latter point is interesting - I'm no longer abstaining by choice, I just don't have any taste for it now. I poured myself a beer recently and after two sips left the rest on the table - I just didn't want it. I had a similar experience with dinner wine at home this week, so it's not just beer. I spoke with a friend who had a concussion who said his sweet tooth immediately disappeared after his concussion - no idea why, just gone. The brain is a funny thing.

So - Tolstoy's backstory notwithstanding: I don't have any other symptoms and seem to be steadily improving so I'm thinking it's not PCS. But for what should I be on the lookout?

Opinions? (aside from observations that I'm long-winded, I know that one already... :p )

Thanks folks!

Hmmmmm
 

Hi there. I am no doctor, but I would be concerned about that passing out and not recalling it.

Your dizziness, which is getting better is something to watch for sure.

From my point of view, it doesn't sound like PCS, but there is something going odd if you passed out and had a head bump. Just be very careful -- and if you did get a concussion and are healing well enough, yay!

Just try not to get another brain break.

So that's my nickel's worth for you.

pm

I believe that you are too close to your injury date for a PCS diagnosis. That only comes when your symptoms persist.

You have, however, as evidenced by the gash on your head, suffered a TBI. TBI's with loss of consciousness are, generally, more serious. Whether you blacked out from the clunk to your head, or from some other event that precipitated your collapse, remains an open - and critical - question. Did you trip or did you faint?

Have you had an EEG to rule out a seizure? Has your blood sugar been checked? Were you on any medication, especially something that might have reacted with the alcohol?

You do really need to know why you collapsed. What if your next "data point" occurs while you're driving? :eek:

As for TBI/PCS keep a journal of any symptoms. Also talk to those close to you about your behaviour, etc... TBI patients are not always aware of their own condition. Many think they're perfectly fine , despite massive empirical evidence to the contrary.

I think you need to ask your PCP to do an MRI or refer you to a neurologist to see why you fainted...

An MRI is not indicated yet. You may have had a vasovagal response causing syncope. Sometimes, a quick head and neck movement can cause such a response. As the doc said, until it happens again, you don't have enough data to start a diagnosis.

Come to think of it, that's exactly what my dr said and based on some of his questions is his preliminary thinking. It's also why he ordered the EKG (that came back normal) to rule out that being a cause.

Hi Timberline,
I'm just curious when you say you were travelling... were you travelling a long distance in a plane or a car?

The reason I am asking this is that I have been alerted to a condition called Mal de debarquement syndrome which can occur after prolonged activity such as being in a car, a plane or a boat. I'd not heard of this until I saw a segment on our tv recently about a woman with this condition and she sounded just like me. I was astounded.

I'd flown from Colorado to Dallas earlier that day - an easy 90 minute flight. I travel a fair bit for work and have heard a little about MdDS but it's never been a problem when I was traveling much more frequently and longer distances.

Update: dizziness/vertigo is steadily improving, no other new symptoms - well maybe: Today, for no apparent reason, I got a pretty big anxiety attack. I've had them before but only a few and it's been years since the last one. No evident stimulus (except that I skipped lunch) and it subsided after a couple hours. If it happens again I'll report it to my PMD.

Sounds more like PCS more and more...