The fatigue I experience with PCS is being mentally drained and depressed, with the only relief coming from stimulants (coffee, nicotine, alcohol, and 420 ), an adrenaline rush or whatever OCD obsession I may have at the time...but when it wears off, I'm back to the drained and depressed state until my next mental stimulation takes place.

(nicotine free for a year now )

helps,

I have been on paroxetine (Paxil) for over 11 years. I need it to stop the obsessive thoughts. I can get caught looping on the most mundane or meaningless things. It can be a license plate number, the spelling of a word, etc.

It works great for me. I don't know if I would have problems with depression without it. I know that over the years, I have had serious problems with depression, especially after another head bump. A psychiatrist got me onto my vitamin regimen to pull me out of a deep depression about 28 years ago. He taught me how to use supplements to help my brain function better.

Stimulants are a problem, for many injured brains. They may help momentarily but then they leave the brain overworked and fatigued. I tried caffeine to overcome the fatigue and my doctor read me the riot act for doing it.

420 has effects on the brain but different strains can cause different reactions. I know people with early onset Alzheimer's who use 420 in very light doses (in cookies and brownies and in a tea concoction. It helps they with the rage and other outburst behaviors.

A specific substance in 420 has been shown to have neuroprotective effects. It only shows this effect in a very specific dose. It has not been shown to help with the symptoms after a brain injury.

All of the self medications you mention are considered problematic for the injured brain. I wonder if you are suffering a 'rebound effect' from this self medication. There are many drugs that cause a rebound. A rebound effect is when a drug helps to alleviate a symptom but when the drug is removed, the symptom become worse that prior to the use of the drug. This can happen with anti-histamines, head ache meds, and many others.

How much have you done with vitamins and other supplements? Your brain may be very needy of supplements. Mine is. I need up to 10 times the RDA of many supplements.

My best to you.

Can somebody please tell me what 420 is?

Thanks
Lynlee

Cannabis. 420 is a term coined by some Calif high school students who would meet to smoke pot at 4:20 after school.

LynLee, I didn't know either. I had to look it up.

As far as 420 your absolutely right on. I've learned which strains and the amount that best suits me, in my case I learned how to really relax and learn that anything can be thought through in a calm state of mind....

I have a low tolerance to alcohol and have only recently been able to tolerate it. No plans on long term use. I'd rather show up to the party when everyone else is already drunk.

I plan on reading up and starting a vitamin regimen in the near future. (fighting with myself to do it now, we'll see though.)

Peace