a few questions about concussions
 

I would be happy if someone here takes the time to answer my questions..

1) Why should you avoid high sugar diets, how do they affect the brain?

2) How long is a brain injury, such as hemorrhage, detectable through CT/MRI(i have a MRI scan next week, my accident was two months ago)?

3) Do you also experience moments where you feel like everything is almost good, and other moments where you are literally forced to take a rest?

4) Have you experienced that your awareness is reduced, even though the days before everything seemed ok?

5) Is there a possibility to worsen a concussion, without hitting the head again(such as fast movements during sleep)?

6) how are injuries of the upper neck detectable, through MRI?

7)Is there a risk of permanent damage when you strain your brain too much?

1) High sugar diets affect some and not others. I think they can contribute to inflammation.

2) Common brain bleeds are most detectible at about 3 days after the injury. After that and they start to become absorbed. Larger bleeds would take longer but they would usually have symptoms that would cause a doctor to order imaging immediately.

3) The roller coaster of concussion recovery is VERY common. Many can recognize triggers (over-stimulation, bad sleep, etc) that cause them. Often, a bad day on Tuesday is cause by too much activity/stimulation on Monday.

4) This is the roller coaster of concussion recovery. Very common.

5) Getting drunk or similar activities would not be good. A head jerk in bed would not cause a worsening of symptoms other than any trauma it might cause to the neck.

6)The subtle injuries to the upper neck take a keen eye to recognize on imaging. NUCCA and AtlasOrthagonal chiros specialize in reading these images. With others, it is hit and miss. For many of us, treating the upper neck as if it is injured and gttting PT (gentle traction and mobilization, etc) is helpful. Some get benefits from upper cervical chiro treatment.

7) I think you would need to be pushing your brain very hard to cause any damage. Maybe pushing so you have constant severe head aches could be a problem. Otherwise, you would just slow your recovery.

Thanks for taking the time mark..

to 2)
So that means that after two months no one can tell, if my accident caused a physical damage to my brain, because all injuries should be healed in that time, right?

to 4 and 5)
I know what you mean with the rollercoaster scenario. But i have the feeling that my awareness has gone excactly four days ago. I clearly feel it in almost any situation, i'm quite sure that it is not imagination. I assume that something happened during sleep, but i did not hit my head again. The only thing that I recognized were head and spine jerks, and they felt more intense than usual.

regarding 2) Most concussion damage is not a bleed so it does not show up on imaging. There are high Tesla MRI's ( 6 to 12 Tesla) that can see the microscopic damage and DTI MRI's can sometimes see the damage but those are rarely used. Seeing the fine damage does not change the treatment.

4) and 5) I don't understand what you mean by "my awareness has gone."

pcs and brain fog
 

Hi there, Have you had your Atlas vertebra looked at ? that is the first vertebra in your neck. Google, Atlas orthogonal technique. I have been suffering for 4 years with PCS , and I recently discovered that my 2 top vertebra in my neck are severely shifted... from a car accident I had 4 years ago. Doctors that are trained in this technique can be hard to find, but if you Google it.. "Atlas Orthogonal technique" it will take you to the main web site by Dr Roy Sweat who invented it, he is a chiropractor.. and then it will help you find a dr in your area. I highly recommend you check this out and can find a dr close to you, who can help you. I have been seeing one here in MN for 3 months now, and Im finally starting to get my life back again. MY Brain fog and dizziness is gone. Good luck! God bless.

We routinely recommend getting upper cervical diagnostics and treatment. The Vitamins sticky includes references/links to AtlasOrthogonality.com and NUCCA.org. I caution people about the standard 'twist the head and pop the neck' chiro adjustment as possibly too aggressive.

Glad to hear you are improving.

"Some get benefits from upper cervical chiro treatment."

if the upper cervical chiro treatment you are referring to is anywhere near the "Blair Technique" or 'Blair Upper Cervical', RUN FOR THE HILLS...

do not listen to their snake oil sales pitch...

i was hurt BADLY by the 'Blair Technique' type of adjustment...

why in the world would anyone want to attempt to adjust c-1 or c-2 with the brain stem wrapping up business there and all the nerves that protrude from that area of the cervical spine and brain stem...

several nerves of mine are damaged by the adjustment or compressed due to inflammation...we are still trying to find all the damage that was done to me 20 months after the last adjustment was done...

i traded my well being for some beer money for a chiro that did this to me,,,

it is barbaric and unbelievable to me anyone would consider doing this to another human being...

i am loaded with info on this horrible, horrible practice, so lemme know if you want to know more...

Brainstemmed (by a chiro)

brainstemmed,

There are thousands upon thousands who have been helped with upper cervical chiro. Your situation is unique. My other chiros were far more aggressive with C-1 and C-2 that the NUCCA chiro. If Blair, NUCCA and AtlasOrthogonal were dangerous, they chiros would have a difficult time getting malpractice insurance. Instead, their insurance is substantially less than most MD's. MD's kill 180,000 each year due to mistakes and such.

You either have a unique condition or were treated improperly or both. Often times, problems arise when two separate problems combine.

All medical procedures have an element of risk especially when the spine is involved. In the UK when you see a chiropractor you sign a waiver form in case anything goes wrong. I sympathise with Brainstemmed, he went to a professional to get better and ended up worse - that shouldn't happen.

Mark:

while i know you wish to help people, this is unnerving...

using an arbitrary number of 180,000 deaths by MD's is not responsible. you and i can both find numbers to back an argument...that is a scare tactic used by chiros by the way...

can i ask you this: does YOUR chiro use the Blair Technique on YOU? if so, then go for it. but please do not advise others unless you are educated in the adjustment.

it is completely irresponsible to use blunt force to move a vertabrae AND all the surrounding tissue...there is not just a vertabrae in there, there are a lot of other important parts too...

and they adjust not ANY vertabrae, we're talking c-1 & c-2...VERY dangerous...

i was hurt badly by this, and then there have been others...it is devastating...

i have yet to met a single chiro that said they could not help someone...they all believe they are miracle workers...they have told me they could help me...by doing MORE of the same adjustments! really?!

what they will ALWAYS say is that they can help, and the more times per week they can get your money from you the more they will do. they are used car salesmen, they are a 2nd class profession.

so please let me know if you allow a chiro to use the Blair Technique on you...

and if you advise others here on this message board seeking relief, you should explain the risks involved, because the risks are substantial, the chiro won't explain it either...quackery at it's worst...but they will tell how they are miracle workers...what a sham...

ask a neurologist if this is a good idea...ask them what nerves are in jeopardy when they do this and ask them how to fix it once the chiros do the damage...

you never mention the risks...

neither do the chiros...

unconscionable...you will hurt others by condoning this...

if you want to take your life into you own hands recklessly, then so be it...

but if you are to provide advice to people that need it, please do so responsibly before more people are hurt badly...