New Diagnosis of Post Concussion Syndrome
 

HI all, My 19 year old suffered (her second) concussion this past Nov 2015. She is now suffering from headaches and not getting any better. She is in bed/resting all the time and has had to cancel most activites. I am worried about her starting school again soon, and about her health. The neuro wants to start her on nortriplyine. Has anyone had and side effects from this or would like to comment good or bad? Also, I am wondering how long this can take to resolve itself. Do you feel the same afterwards? I am very worried. Thanks.

You can use the search tool to find posts about meds & other symptoms while waiting for replies.
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/search.php

Also check out the sticky threads at the top of the main TBI/PCS page...

Does she have any neck pain? This could contribute to headaches.

What other problems do she seem to be facing?

I would not recommend her to start school again this soon if she's not doing many activities right now. I made the mistake of going back to school to soon and the consequences have not been fun.

Keep us updated! You'll get lots of good feedback here on Neurotalk.

Sorry to hear about your daughter. I take nortryptiline, have not had issues with it. Good luck to her, I hope all goes well.

Itoledo,

Welcome to NeuroTalk.

Nortriptyline and amitriptyline are commonly prescribed for PCS headaches and insomnia. They are usually prescribed at small doses, much less than would be prescribed for anti-depressant action.

As Jbuckl said, neck injuries often contribute to head aches. I call these subtle neck injuries because they rarely show any symptoms other than the headache. A sure sign would be tenderness at the bony part behind the ears but that is not a way to rule out an upper neck injury.

Bed rest can be problematic because it can lead to poor head and neck posture exacerbating the subtle neck injury. She needs to be disciplined about good straight head and neck posture.

Some find benefit from Upper Cervical Chiropractic therapy or some osteopathic cervical manipulation or gentle Physical therapy (traction and gentle mobilization, not range of motion work.)

You don't mention her other symptoms. I bet she has plenty.

The Vitamins sticky at the top has good information to consider.

Please feel free to tell us anything. We have heard it all and understand what she is going through.

My best to you both.

Thank you!
Yes, she does have neck pain. In fact, I think she feels that initiates the headache sometimes. How does the neck pain correlate?

A neck injury, even if there is no neck pain, can cause inflammation that can interrupt blood flow to the brain and autonomic nervous system function to the body's systems.

The spasms from the neck can radiate far beyond the neck.

Please read my prior posts in this thread about the risk of lying in bed regarding head and neck posture.

Since she does have neck pain , don't ignore it. And don't let Drs ignore it either.. especially if you need to have a referral..
Seek out very good PT or even expert chiropractic care.
Highly skilled therapists are always a plus, some are just much better "healers" than others..

Massage, E stim, ultrasound, trigger point work, low level laser all are gentle and should be beneficial..

Thanks so much! I definitely will.

Update
 

She still does not feel any better. The doctor has ordered an MRI with contrast and MRa as well. Will then have appointment on Friday.

Thanks for the posts. I plan on really diving into this site and read everything more.

Is anyone else's sleep rhythm disturbed. My daughter now sleeps most of the day and up all night. I figured night time may be easier. Normally I'd wake her up, but with the concussion, I figure she may need sleep.