New member concussion/vision problems
 

Hi all. I received the diagnosis of possible concussion from my injury and I saw an eye doctor about a month ago and said my eyes were fine and wouldn't need glasses. Did an ex ray of my retina too. Unfortunately I've been dealing with some anger problems lately and sometimes my head shakes when I start yelling. Also I punched a wall a few times the other day. My eyes started to get really sensitive to light a few times like I had at the beginning. Should I see the eye doctor again or is my anxiety possibly making this worse?

Kelly,

Welcome to NeuroTalk.

Your anxiety and anger issues can easily cause the symptoms you are experiencing. Anxiety and anger can cause you to relapse into Post Concussion symptoms.

I urge you to seek professional help. Concussions can cause a weakness to having outbursts. Hormone and other chemical imbalances can cause this.

Adrenaline disorders and such can cause these issues.

There is a special field of medical care that can help. Do a search of doctors using the term 'life extension' or 'max performance' or 'bio-identical hormones' or 'optimal health.' If you cannot find a doctor, post your location and I can research to find some resources. You could check out Request A Free Practitioner Referral - Women's International Pharmacy | Compounding Pharmacy | Bioidentical Hormone Therapy | Custom Prescriptions | Thyroid | BHRT | Some of the specialists in their database also work with men.

I assume you are a man because I've never heard of a woman punching walls.

I suggest you choose a screen name rather than use your real name. It is a safer to post online. The admins can change your screen name if you ask them. Although, I bet there are lots of Kelly Robersons.

Your probably right. I was scaring myself with the Internet a bunch and noticed a lot of symptoms return even ear pressure as a result of being anxious. But when I took my mind off of it it went away. I noticed my motion sensitivity come back when I was walking today. Can that be caused by anxiety too? I hope it's not vestibular damage

You don't describe what the motion sensitivity is. Do you feel dizzy or some other symptom/sensation ?

Anxiety can magnify any sensation.

The main thing I'm honestly worried about is when I get angry downtowns I shake or I'll tell which also shakes my head. I do it a lot. Are these minor movements anything to worry about?

I don't understand what you mean. "when I get angry downtowns I shake or I'll tell "

Increased heart rate and adrenaline can cause the shakes. My hands will sometimes shake if I am stressed.

It is not a Parkinson's Disease movement because because I can control it by relaxing.

Sorry I'm doing a lot of typos. I just meant that when I get angry my head will shake sometimes. Is that a problem of concern? is that going to hurt my head? Also I have a habit of yelling when I'm angry which also shakes my head. I'm definitely going to the doctor to see if I can get anti depressants or something.

I don't think the head shaking is dangerous or injurious to your brain. But, the high blood pressure that comes with your outbursts of anger can be problematic. What are you doing, have you done to try to control your anger ?

Why do you get so angry ?

Do you have specific things that trigger your anger ?

I've been struggling with depression since I was a kid honestly and have always had these outbursts. I just can't get away with it like I used to now I guess. I hope the high blood pressure that comes with that isn't too harmful to my recovery :(. I'm going to try and do some more meditation and breathing exercises to get rid of these anger symptoms. Btw thank you very much for replying to my posts. I appreciate your help! Oh one more thing my ct scan was negative but I've been noticing I stumble sometimes. I notice it happens when I'm anxious or nervous. Do I need to get another ct scan in your opinion?

Anxiety can mess up coordination. CT Scans have very high doses of radiation. They should be avoided unless there is a serious indication of a need. You do not have any indication of a need for a CT Scan.

I would bet your outbursts are not immediate. They likely follow a build-up and trigger. Learning to recognize that build-up and trigger can be very helpful. If your outbursts include spikes in blood pressure, they can be causing an increased risk to your health.

Do you have a home blood pressure kit ? The automatic wrist models are affordable. Knowing how your BP responds to the outbursts will be very helpful.

I had to learn that as much as I wanted to explode, I did not have a right to explode. The explosive outburst never improves the situation. It usually only makes things worse. Learning some new thoughts to moderate your outbursts can help. CBT (Cognitive Behavior Therapy). Here is a good example:

Grandpa in the Grocery Store

A woman in a grocery store happens upon a grandfather and his poorly behaved 3 year-old grandson.

It's obvious to her that Gramps has his hands full with the child screaming for candy in the candy aisle, cookies in the cookie aisle; same for fruit, cereal and soda in their respective aisles.

Meanwhile, Gramps is working his way around, saying in a controlled voice, "Easy, Albert, we won't be long -- easy, boy." Another outburst, and she hears Gramps calmly say, "It's okay, Albert, just a couple more minutes and we'll be out of here. Hang in there, boy."

At the checkout, the little terror is throwing items out of the cart, and Gramps again in a controlled voice says, "Albert, Albert, relax buddy, don't get upset. We'll be home in five minutes; stay cool, Albert."

Very impressed, the woman goes outside where Gramps is loading his groceries and the boy into the car. "You know, sir, it's none of my business, but you were amazing in there. I don't know how you did it. That whole time, you kept your composure, and no matter how loud and disruptive he got, you just calmly kept saying things would be okay. Albert is very lucky to have you as his grandpa."

"Thanks, lady," said Gramps, "but I'm Albert -- the little terror's name is Steve."

Hi Kelly

I think that your idea of using meditation and breathing exercises to help with your anxiety is great - I live with mild/moderate anxiety and both work for me.

I also think that Mark's idea of checking out CBT methods is a good one. Essentially CBT involves learning how to notice "unhelpful" thoughts and then "challenging" them - asking "Is there any evidence that that thought has any basis in reality?" Very often the answer to that question is "No.", which can be empowering. Examples of unhelpful thought patterns include catastrophising (focusing on the worst possible outcome), mind-reading (guessing, with no evidence, what another person thinks about you), fortune-telling (predicting a bleak future with no evidence), black-and-white thinking (focusing on the extremes), discounting the positive, over-generalisation (a single negative event is viewed as affecting everything) and personalisation (feeling responsible when not at fault).

CBT takes time and practise to learn but it has been valuable to me in dealing with my Major Depressive Disorder.

All the best.

Thanks to both Mark from Idaho and Kiwi for the tips on CBT. I notice I do a lot of those negative thought patterns that Kiwi described. I'm going to try and implement those CBT questions Kiwi described. I'm a little worried about the high blood pressure issue. Is it ok to indulge in sexual activity? Sorry tmi.

Rather than worry about the high blood pressure issue, get a BP kit and check your BP.

As the saying goes, If you don't like the dark, light a candle.

Choose to do the things that can answer questions rather than worry about the answer being bad. More often than not, the answer is much better than expected.

My wife has white coat syndrome. Her BP increases at the doctors office (white coats) for no reason. She also will spike her BP from stress so we try to minimize stress.

Take your worries and make them into choices. i.e.

I'm worried about my BP. My choice is to get a BP kit and check my BP.

I'm worried about having sex and my BP. My choice is to check my BP before and after to see if it changes.

Usually, sex increases hormones that stabilize BP in a positive way.
Check out Number 4 at :
1 Surprising Health Benefits of Sex

Kelly, here is a real example of how CBT can help. A while ago I used to go to a therapy group for people with mood disorders. Another member had been invited to go on a boat trip and got very anxious about this "There might be a big storm and the boat will sink." - in CBT jargon this is catastrophising.

We helped her to challenge that unhelpful thought:

(Q) Whereabouts will the boat trip happen? (A) In a sheltered part of Sydney Harbour.

(Q) What is the weather forecast for the day of the trip? (A) Fine with light breezes.

Those and other questions led her to challenge that catastrophising thought. She went on the trip and had a great time.

CBT in action.

I have a hard time telling sometimes if my anxiety is causing a symptom or if it's actually real. Today for the first time I noticed my head hurt when I started talking. I can't tell if my anxiety caused this or not. Should I be concerned or just wait it out and see if this new symptom lasts longer than a day?ugh...just a week and half ago I thought I was getting better. Now I've regressed I guess and I don't know why.

I don't understand what you mean. Are you not sure the pain is real or not sure what caused the pain ?

Headaches are common with PCS. They come and go. Often with no pattern or way to make sense.

There is no reason to be anxious or concerned about a common pain level headache.

btw, A week or two of doing better then a relapse is not uncommon. It is the roller coaster ride of PCS.

I wonder if the headache at the same time as you were talking was just a coincidence. Agitated talking or excited talking can be a bit over-stimulating for some.

There could be other things that contributed or maybe the headache just happened.

it may have been a coincidence. Either way it was a normal grade head ache so I guess it's not a big deal. I notice sometimes the back of my head feels sore from where I hit it 3 and half months ago. Is that normal? I can't tell if that's a type of head ache or not

It can take months and months for the superficial nerves at an impact sight to heal. As they do heal, they can feel tender.

When recovering for a concussion, it is VERY helpful to go with the flow. Various aches, pains and odd sensations do not mean anything unless they are severe. The over-sensitivity to any sensory stimuli makes these issues APPEAR to be much more.

Give yourself a break and try to learn to tolerate and move past this minor issues.

Thank you for all your help Mark. I'm trying to just not get dragged down into the black hole that is anxiety and PCS symptoms. I don't really think any of the symptoms are that big of an issue but they still startle me when they come up. One last question... I went to an eye doctor a month ago who said my eyes were fine and that the black/blue floaters were normal. For awhile I thought my sight was getting better then it got worse again lately but maybe that's the PCS roller coaster. I did just see a red floater. Should I immediately go to the ER? I remember a post of yours saying red floaters are bad. I saw it when I closed my eyes. There was a bright computer screen on in front of me too so maybe that did it?

If you saw the red floaters through closed eye lids, that is completely normal. Floaters become very noticeable with PCS because the brain has lost its ability to ignore them. They are always there. Usually, we just ignore them. The anxious PCS brain becomes hypersensitive to anything.

I went through the same symptom of floaters becoming very obvious.

Agree with everything Mark says here. I had symptoms that completely debilitated me for much of last spring and summer, partly because I let them. This did not negate the fact that I have a very cognitively demanding job and my brain just wasn't working right as I tried to slog through. Paying attention to every little symptom makes things seem much, much worse, though. Like so many people on this board, I am also prone to anxiety and depression. It is a toxic soup from which one feels one may never recover.

There is also this; from everything I've read prolonged concussion symptoms have never killed anyone. They can be uncomfortable and even super weird but after that initial few week period when there might be a brain bleed causing severe symptoms, from everything I've read you just have to go with the flow, as Mark said. It sure did help me get back to close to "normal." Just try to relax and not stress about you condition.

Thanks for the replies guys. I saw a red dot I though the other day in the mirror. At first I thought it was a zit but it may have been a red floater. I made an eye doctor appointment. Hopefully my eyes aren't going to fall out. Just curious my friend offered me psychedelics the other day but I turned them down because I didn't want it to hurt my recovery. Would mushrooms be bad for my recovery or harmless?

I would never touch anything that was neuro or psychoactive. If you saw the red spot through your closed eye lids, I would not be concerned at all. If you see a red spot with your eyes open while looking at a white wall or sheet of paper, I'd see the doctor. But, ask the doctor to explain all of the different things you may see so you can alleviate any anxiety. My eye doctor did and I was able to stop worrying about all those spots.

Thanks for the honesty about the psychedelics. I won't touch them then. As far as the red dot, I saw it while looking at the mirror. The wall around it was white but I saw the red dot while looking at myself in the mirror with my eyes open