New to the site. Had a concussion 14 months ago snowboarding - cracked helmet, saved my life probably. Blurred vision problems have finally corrected after 12 months. Headaches daily. Nausea comes and goes depending on the day. No specific triggers to feeling worse or better. Just basically living with feeling not like myself all the time. Been very cautious about activities but have been running and working out (weights) from past 3 months. Not on any drugs nor have I been. Have only missed 1 week of work right after it happened. Am definitely better than I was but progression has been extremely slow. Very active before concussion - surfing, ice hockey, squash, running etc. Have been cautious and only biked, and lifted weights. Can get my heart rate up to 160's now again wihtout feeling natious - generally. Still feel bad though regardless.

Positive person so depression not a problem but I'm just quite frustrated.

Here's where I'm asking for input from someone who's been suffering as long as me. At what point do you say screw it and just do the stuff you used to do assuming you can handle feeling bad? For example I started running again - sometimes feel crap sometimes don't. Doesn't seem any worse than if I do no exercise. The way I feel after really makes no difference. I want to play basketball, surf etc. Get back to normal.

I know it takes "time" but at what point do you just go for it again assuming you can handle feeling bad? Over a year of waiting and being cautious is driving me nuts.

Any input is valued.

Glad you found this forum! You will find many caring folks here!
If you want, you can introduce yourself in the New Member forum and more people will see your post......
Here is the direct link to click on:

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/fo...aysprune=&f=88

I'm so sorry about your accident. You seem very strong and determined.
Please stick around and let us get to know you. While getting support from others here, you'll find that they also are inspired by YOU

Welcome aboard my friend
Rae

It sounds like you have already observed that your activities do not seem to change your symptoms. If you add some more strenuous activities and your symptoms do not increase, then why not do those activities?

Be aware of your risk of Second Impact Syndrome and Multiple Impact Syndrome. There are many here on NT who have lifelong issues due to Multiple Impact Syndrome. Be aware that your surfboard can whack you in the head so big wipe outs might be worth avoiding.

Regarding depression. Depression is a physiological illness cause by emotional and/or physical stresses. The emotional stresses can all be positive and still cause depression. Depression is common in the PCS community due to the physical stresses put on a brain that is less tolerant. Add just a bit of emotional stress and you have a double whammy of causes. You are very fortunate to not be experiencing depression.

My concussions have caused a roller coaster of depression after each concussion.

Just remember. You have a whole life to live. Short term risks can cause a lifetime of struggle.

My best to you.

Mark - thanks for the note and comments. Sound advice regarding risking hit #2 to the head and longer-term permanent injury. Like many others on this site I have changed my lifestyle - no surfing, no ice hockey, no motorcycle riding. It's been a very long road just to get to this point where I can actually do basic things such as wash my car and play in the yard with my kids. A year ago I couldn't even walk around the block wihout feeling sick. Too many people depending on me to risk it (3 kids).

Like many others though, it is a very long frustrating road. Waking up feeling like crap is just part of daily life now. When I don't feel dizzy it's a good day.

The question I still struggle with is at what point is it permanent and can you go back to normal and assume the feeling crap won't end? Rhetorical question. That's the biggest struggle for me. I know I need to continue to be patient.

To anyone else who reads this stay positive and don't look at progression on a weekly basis - look at it month to month. Also don't put timelines on things - it can get very frustrating. Final comment - going through PCS builds character and you learn something about yourself. Try to take the positives from what you are going through. Whatever the situation is it could be worse.

surfer,

You need to determine what symptoms are permanent and what symptoms are due to daily or other triggers.

My most importunate point for you is singular. Have you ever had anybody observe you sleep? If you wake up feeling bad, you likely are not sleeping well. I have central sleep apnea since my concussion in 2001. If I sleep correctly, I wake up refreshed. If I roll onto my side, I stop breathing frequently, have stressful dreams, and wake up feeling lousy. I will be in lousy shape all day unless I take a good nap.

I often can get a good nap in a recliner. I cannot roll to my side on a recliner.

In bed, I roll my pillow so that it supports the side of my face so my head does not turn to the side too far.

Someday, I hope to find out what is wrong with my neck that is causing this problem. I can't yet afford the local upper cervical chiropractor.

My wife can tell how my day will be by observing how I am sleeping when she gets up. Sometimes, she will try to get me to roll onto my back. She can also tell by my facial expression as I sleep. Sometimes, I look like I am at total peace and relaxed. Other times, I have a scowl on my face.

I was a right side sleeper most of my life. Now, if I roll to my side and my head drops forward or to the side, my breathing goes haywire.

You seriously need to get your sleep issues understood.

I am convinced that my father had the same problems. he would stop breathing while sleeping as long as I can remember. He slowly deteriorated with dementia. After 30 to 40 years of deterioration, it finally took his life in 2007. He refused to have a sleep test even though he recognized his slow decline. .

Hi, Surfer! Sorry to hear of your injury. I'm glad you have had some gradual improvements.

I'm wondering if you've read the book Brainlash by Gail Denton? She started vision therapy 6 years post injury and was surprised at how much better she felt. I noticed you mentioned vision issues and nausea, so thought I would throw that out there for you.

Hello. I am new to this site. I have PCS and TBI caused from a surfing injury where I was "dropped in on" as I was paddling out and a surfer forgot to look before making a drop and my head took the main impact and I went through a 4" glass job and through the foam of the board. It has only been 2 months but it feels like an eternity and everything that I love to do has been taken from me. Without no visible bruises, and days where I feel mostly ok its hard to explain to others the extreme pain that comes and confusion I feel at times as well as the spine pain (few discs are angry with me as well). No doctor can say "don't surf till...this date" or you'll feel better by x...
I'm the girl in the line up that loves the waves, the dolphins and well right now my job is on the line as well as this is not a work related injury. I was always the happy "shorty" in the line up. I just want to pull out a board and go for it. I've never felt so alone, crazy or hurt so much (I surfed North shore 3 weeks after my knee was scoped so I am far from a person who has a low pain tolerance ) yet I feel down right crazy right now. Which is funny considering I am a licensed MFT and am an administrator at a residential facility. I guess thanks for letting me vent. Shorty

shorty,

Sorry to hear of your struggles. You are not alone here. What you are experiencing is very common with PCS. It will help if you can find ways to relax and get away from the stress of your job.

Is there any way you can get some time off or even an assistant to help you at work?

You will likely be able to get State Disability Insurance. California's program is a good safety net.

Stress is counter to any recovery. You need good sleep and nutrition. The brain needs to rest because this is the only time when it can heal.

If you are concerned about your job, you have the credentials to become a specialist in the dynamics of concussion is family life. There is a huge void in services available to families/caregivers of TBI/mTBI/concussion subjects.

Go to www.tbiguide.com Down load and print out the TBI Survival Guide. It is as good as it gets. It should help you understand how to moderate your life and job to help you go on.

If you can post yopur specific symptoms and struggles, there are lots of experienced PCS sufferers who can help you.

My best to you.

Shorty - I can totally relate. Just to be clear I'm a bit of a kook but love surfing....one of the toughest things is not being in the water. I've kooked it up in Maui a few times, Tofino and Oregon and Oahu in summer.

That's a brutal injury.

Thank you for your post. I've been struggling so much with wanting to get in the water and I even did in Maui 6 months after my injury which could have been disastrous if I took a hit to the head - thankfully it was only in 3-4 ft and I really took it easy. Your post just reaffirms that surfing is still too great a risk until 100%.

I was OK and actually didn't feel too bad when I was out there despite serious nausea.

That said, here's my piece of advice - you can't risk another injury to the head before you recover. Don't do anything that risks a hit to the head. For me it means no surfing, snowboarding, motorcycle riding or hockey. I'm 14 mths in - doing much better but not yet 100%. No matter how hard it is you can't put a time on it. That's one of the hardest things about PCS - no time limit.

You have to give up doing what you love hopefully only for a period of time. I'm doing many things now I couldn't do just 3 months ago.

Hang in there and I'd love to see you in the water someday.

I wrote before about getting in there and doing it, but I also want to caution anyone.
I hit my head at least six times after my initial concussion. The first one was falling off a horse, then two weeks later I was sitting twenty feet away from a volleyball court and a soccer player kicked the ball as hard as he could and it slammed into my head, then my brother was trying to catch a ball in the pool and his head came right down on mine, then while dancing I was dipped and another girl who happened to be dipped near me kicked me in the head (this happened twice two months apart, then I went sledding because I was having only slight headaches and the jostling of the sled cause me to have four months of intense nausea and dizziness, the dizziness caused me to fall on some snow jostling my head again and then it caused me to stumble and hit my head on a metal heater.

Right now, the nausea has mostly gone unless I get too warm, the dizziness is gone unless I get too cold or my pulse gets too high, my headaches are as bad as ever and are causing me to be grumpy and have a lot of trouble remembering little things.
I have seen at least six doctors, had 2 CT's and one MRI, and the only thing I have been told is that I'm either imagining it all or that I will just have to learn to deal with it because it might not ever go away.

So, the moral of the story is one concussion makes you more vulnerable to a second...Be careful! Good luck all!