Fell off of steep embankment onto rocks...
 

On saturday night i fell over a steep embankment onto rock. i had been drinking (just a little...but enough to not pay attention where i was walking at midnight). it all happened so fast so i don't recall hitting my head (but i have a horrible headache), but i can say for certain that i landed very hard on my back and then rolled violently down onto the rocks (right by the river's edge).

last time i became suicidal/in some sort of psychosis; symptoms which took like 8-9 days to manifest. i can't even fathom going through that again. granted last time i was beaten by multiple men in the head with fists and feet.

can you suffer a concussion from tumbling down a steep embankment without hitting your head (i have no lumps...i have a wee bit of pain when i touch top right part of my head...but no lumps)...i do however have a wailing headache that has not let up. also my neck muscles are very sore and my neck is stiff and needs to be cracked constantly. whiplash?

thanks.

Nobody can say if you suffered a concussion from your description. It does not sound like you have the symptoms of a concussion.

The wee bit of pain suggests a mild contact. As I have commented many times, The skin over the skull have many layers that are full of nerve endings that can easily be traumatized without an impact that is of a concussive level.

The stiff neck suggests it may be the cause of your headache.

If you are a habitual neck cracker, you may be developing some arthritic like issues.

If you were drinking enough to not pay attention, that suggests it was too much for a PCS brain and also enough to put you at risk of falling or antagonizing another attacker.

i do feel as this is a concussion, but a lot milder than the one i suffered last year. i feel this because i still have a headache, i feel *more disoriented/dizzy, brain fog is increased and i have that feeling of being all amped up while also being super-down (which involves apathy and loss of appetite). that full-on psychosis of last year has not happened and hopefully will not hit me at all (crossing my fingers for dear life).

i was doing very well with my drinking until recently (stopped going to AA). 90% of my concussions are alcohol-related. Going back to meetings asap.

i have two questions... is it okay for me to take a valium for this anxiety, as it is almost unbearable...SSRI's take weeks to kick in. I know that benzos can have a very negative effect on recovery.

and i also have infected (despite proper cleaning/hygiene) cuts/gashes (+major bruising) from the fall. i have an auto-immune disorder , so i think that's why i am not healing as well. i suspect i will have to take oral antibiotics for the infection and NSAID's (which amazingly i have avoided since my diagnosis) for the swelling/pain. are these bad for a pcs brain?

thanks.

NSAIDs should be OK. There is a product that is fabulous for infected wounds. The vet version is Vetricyn. It is available at pet and animal care stores. It is used on horses when they get cuts and scrapes. There is a version for humans but it is the same and just goes by a different name and costs more. Microcyn is harder to find.

What is triggering your anxiety ? Fear of psychosis ? Any benzo should be used at the minimum dose and frequency. Using a benzo only as a rescue for times when symptoms peak is best.

There have been studies that show the brain is more tolerant of impact when alcohol is on board. The alcohol appears to disrupt the cascade of concussion chemistry.

Ibuprofen is fine. Aspirin is too. Tylenol/acetaminophen is not recommended.

i've been using polysporin...but still infected and getting worse.

the anxiety just happens out of nowhere. i never used to be like this until the third-last concussion. the fear of psychosis is definitely causing its own anxiety. yes, i only use the oxazepam when i absolutely need to; just didn't like the idea of using them so close to the injury. i really don't like their rebound effect, but the temporary relief is great.

does the amount of alcohol come into play? is there a tipping point? because other than this last injury (which was a minor concussion), every other one was suffered when i was nearly or completely black-out drunk.

thanks.

I don't think your alcohol level makes much of a difference.

The Microcyn or Vetricyn is more of a treatment that triggers your system to fight off the infection. It kills the topical infection then triggers your body to push the infection out. Polysporin is just a topical that helps prevent infections more than it stops existing infections.

Benzos are greatest risk during the first 72 hours after injury. Not as much of a problem at later times.

I would encourage you to get professional care to learn skills for dealing with anxiety. We have had others who self-medicated their anxieties with alcohol. It is tough to get and stay sober without learning skills to reduce anxiety. Maybe somebody can help you change your thought paradigm. Many of us have benefited from Christian faith to deal with these issues. Others have suggested other ways to try to reduce anxiety levels.

It is a tough road, especially if you try to do it alone, but the benefits to getting free of anxiety are worth the effort.

i took 1/4 of a 15 mg oxazepam the day after this fall. hope i didn't do more damage. that is a very small a amount, though.

thanks for the recommendation on the Microcyn/Vetricyn.

see, ever since the concussion of 2014 (when I fell backwards and smashed my head/knocking me out for a brief few seconds) and *especially since my concussion of last summer, I've had these random moments of intense thoughts/urges to be violent or flashes of suicidal thoughts (which was never ever me). it's almost animalistic. it is not me. sober, i am a very non-violent person. it causes me A LOT of distress, almost paralyzing distress, because i can feel the tension in my jaw (clenching) and everything (in anger) ---. would SSRI's treat this? i've seen 3-4 counselors in the past few years, they don't do anything for me. i need some relief from this. i will try anything. vitamins have only helped this so much. thanks.

how did you recover from getting beaten in the head like you did? sounds pretty brutal