TBI 18 year's later....
 

I'm new here and I decided to make an account to share my tale with you....

I'm Alex, a 32 year's old man from Quebec's province Canada. In August of the year 2000 I hate a "severe" concussion; I was on my bike (I was 14 year's old...now almost 32...) and I don't remember how, but I was cut off by a car. I was brought up in an ambulance to the hospital where I was unconscious for about 4 hours, more or less. The right side of my face was bloodied. Sadly, the hospital didn't make any check-up on me, no scans, no nothing and not even a follow-up. When my mom came, they sent me home and that ended there.

The thing is that I slowly started to feels some symptoms, but it took me a time after starting the new school year to realize it, but I didn't know what it was and being a typical teenager I didn't really talked about it to my parents.

So, time went by when things started too slowly add up on each other; anxiety, depression, memory and concentration problems (fog feeling in the head), sensibility to light, migraines and headaches and things started to get worse when around 17-18 year's old I started getting severe insomnia and sleep problems.

But, the thing is when it started to become really to much I tried to tell my mother and we tried to see eye doctor and many doctors but they all just told me it was probably "only" anxiety and left me there alone.

Things thus started to get rough around 18 year's old but during my 20's I was able to have a bit of stability, tried to rest when I could and the symptoms weren't really that bothersome. But, sadly it didn't stayed that way.... Me and my ex GF broken up in 2013 around the time when I started to feel a bit more tired that usual even with good sleep, but the doctors still weren't helpful like usual and so I just continued on... I when to college a bit studying computer networking (CISCO) for a year and a half, got a degree. I was unemployed for almost 6 months when I realized like two year's before how tired I was and how unable I was able to rest and feel better.

So, after a while, I got a new internship/job for 3-4 months, but I was realizing how when I was coming back from work how dizzy and lightheaded I felt and it was alienating but I just sucked it up and continued my life as usuall. Sadly, then around two year's ago things wen't bonkers..... it took a fraction of a second while I was laying asleep when my left hear started ringing like CRAZY to the point that it "hurt" me for some reason and that's when huge insomnia kicked in (I still have daily sleep problem since then) and the rest of my PCS problems went crazy up high and still are a nightmare to this day... I had to leave my job and since then my life as been a literal hell.

No doctors seems to understand me or want to help me. They make me feel like a useless idiot that is not doing enough effort to find a job back when my PCS are crazy alienating.... but I now that my symptoms are real, but they never listen or believe me like if I'm making all of this **** up!

Things are so bad that two year's ago I was seriously considering suicide and now since I'm stuck on welfare unable to pay myself a decent livable rent that is not a rathole, unable to feed myself properly, I'm started to think about it again...

I really don't know what to do.....I'm looking for help and can't find any.... If only I had the money I would seriously wanted to live the crap Canadian Province I come from and go be treated in the USA...

So, yeah...I don't know what to do anymore.

uebec
 

Saoghal,

Welcome to NeuroTalk. I am sorry to hear you are struggling so.

The usually protocol after your injury would be for the hospital to recommend a follow up with a Primary Doctor. I was released from the hospital after a 4 day stay and my mother was never told anything about my prognosis or need to follow up with a doctor. That was in 1965. Not much has changed. I had a bike fall and was unconscious for some time, too. I spent years going through all the same issues. My mother was lost as to how she lost a son and brought a different one home from the hospital. Nobody gave us any counsel until 6 years later. Even then, it was barely any help.

At this point, you need to find a doctor or clinic that will recognize your concussion history. If there is any way for you to get to care in Toronto, Ontario, the Ontario NeuroTrauma Foundation would be an excellent start. onf.org +1 416-422-2228
You may be able to call them for a referral to a Quebec based clinic.

Please tell us about your current symptoms and anything you are doing to try to deal with them.

Check out the Vitamins sticky at the top and the link to the updated post. It helps many of us.

Feel free to tell us anything or ask us anything.

My best to you.

Thanks for the answer. I'll maybe try to call them soon to see if they can help me.

The thing about vitamins made me remember that I had a "old" unopened multivitamin with full of vitamins Bs that I bought more than a year ago and that is still good. I'll see if that can help me a bit.

Vitamins are not a short term fix. One takes them to help the brain tolerate stress and work at the best it can considering the injury. It can take weeks of a strong regimen to start to see a difference. Most multi-vitamins are of minimal value to an injured brain. It needs more nutrition. But, it is a start.

I have not posted for a long time, but i have just started taking curcumin.
It has helped me sleep deeper which makes it less tiring to stimulation.

Creatine is another substance that helps with brain energy.

Tryptophan and Melatonin for Concussion Insomnia
 

#Melatonin is made in the body to cause you to sleep. A precursor to melatonin is L Tryptophan. Think turkey at thanksgiving. Many foods contain tryptophan like chicken, turkey and eggs. You can buy tryptophan capsules on amazon etc. You can also buy melatonin capsules or sublingual lozenges which work best for me.

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Actually, the process goes from L-Tryptophan that is converted as needed to 5-HTP which is the precursor to serotonin and melatonin. L-Tryptophan does not convert until the brain asks for it. Taking L-Tryptophan supplements will not directly impact melatonin levels. L-Tryptophan converts as it crosses the blood brain barrier.