Actually, in my early days of PCS, I did not understand as well as I do now and my family was totally out of the loop. I was somewhat of an outcast with my struggles and behaviors. But I did figure out the need to Be Still.

After an earlier concussion in 1995 or 6, I developed a very apathetic attitude. This did not work well for me. The "I don't care" thought process is damaging. The "I can let go of or get beyond of what just happened and go on with life" has resulted in a much better state of mind and fullness of life.

Those in my TBI support group who are doing the best have also learned this 'Turn the page' attitude. It is liberating.

The only past that is bad is those times where we over-reacted and made things worse. The rest we can deal with and try to make amends if possible.

It is a philosophical or for some of us a religious decision to accept what has happened without making things worse by reacting or over-reacting.

It can take some serious and deep introspection.

Those of us who comment how our lives have changed for the better even though we still struggle with annoying and disabling symptoms have most likely arrived at this decision.

Mark I agree...it has made me realize what a wonderful husband I do have...and for that I am greatful...but I still need to get my life back so I can take care of my kids the way I need to and they need me.

I play mental gymnastics with "what did I do to make my symptoms worse today" all day long and need to stop. I think I will finally start to see improvements once I take that load off me...but don't seem to know how.

I am learning...do things in very short intervals...doesn't bring on the headache as strong.

Like computer...few mins...check here...do bills, etc...then off.

Just wish I could stop my mind from racing all day...the what if I try this or that...or what did I do yesterday that caused the dizziness so bad today...etc.

I think we are all so used to such fast-paced lifestyles that the slow down we need seems to be a huge change. If I just live and don't think much about it I'm much better.

Yes, yes, yes, short intervals. It was like I was a butterfly.

Stop trying to fix yourself and then second guess yourself about yesterday. When you start to notice trends, then you will start to find answers. Some are successful keeping a journal. For me it was more ah ha moments when I finally connected the symptom with the trigger.

Take small steps and remember to "Turn the page."

I am so used to small intervals that I have to set the timer at the stove if I have a pot on. My habit of small intervals causes me to turn away from tasks like the stove easily. So, I set the timer for 5 minutes or even less to call me back to the stove.

I do this same thing working on cars. If someone watched me, they would think I am nuts. It is just how my mind works. If I find any kind of thought block, I quickly switch to something else and return tho the previous task a while later. It is very counter productive for me to try to push through the mental block.

Sounds like you are learning how to work with your mind. Be patient. These skills are slow to come.

Mark...could reading be causing the problem....could that make me over stimulated? I only read 60 or 70 pages of my book in 3 days...and in short intervals.

I know I shouldn't be looking for an answer ...as my friend calls it --the mental gymnastics -- but I just want to lay off what brought on the symptoms.

Reading could be a problem. It was for me. What kind of reading are you trying to do?

I found that I could not read overly descriptive articles. I do quite well reading technical information. I get overwhelmed by formatting that does not have enough paragraph spacing. Without paragraph double spacing ever 5 or 6 lines, I get overwhelmed trying to find the start of the next line.

If I tried to read fiction, I was easily over whelmed. There are just too many balls to juggle and keep in the air at the same time in most fiction. The many persons and plots, etc with descriptive terms is too much for my mind to handle. I can crash within a page or two.

If it is a newspaper article and the author uses too much "in the know" style, I get overwhelmed. Say the writer is writing about many people who he mentions once then not again until many paragraphs later, the writer will now abbreviate the name Dr Jonathan Strangename as Strangename. I will have to look back in the article until I find out who Strangename is. Otherwise, the writing become meaningless.

"In the know" is a common problem with doctors and professionals who live everyday using their knowledge. They forget that not many of us have the same 'in the know' knowledge. For those of us with PCS, the frustration comes when we start doubting ourselves for struggling to understand what the ?????? he is talking about. Our brains want to understand but we fail to understand and start blaming it on ourselves.

The basics of understanding the impact reading has is to become aware of the thought processes during reading. Do you reread the same line trying to understand it? Do you lose your place on the page? Do you struggle to keep all of the juggling balls (names, plots, timelines) in the air? Can you remember what you have already read and add to that information?

A trick that works for some is to use a reading aid that covers the text below the lines you are reading. By covering the other text, you are reducing the stimulus that your brain has to process. I have to do this if I need to fill out a complex form with lots of fill in the blank spaces. I will even put a blank paper over the text above and below where I am writing.

My 80 something MIL and her even older husband have found they can read much easier with a Kindle. They can limit the amount of text on the screen and make the type larger, etc. Many of the PCS symptoms are common to the elderly as their brains deteriorate. I sometimes say that I am a 50 something with an 80 year old brain.

I hope this is making sense and is helpful. Everyone has different experiences. I have just had years of various experiences to analyze and try to overcome. Some I do, others I don't overcome. Then, I just turn the page and go on.

My best to you.

More good tips here - thank you. I especially like the idea of blocking out text below.

Aireyden, I just wanted to mention that I too often don't know exactly what has caused me to have a bad day. But I have found that sometimes, I don't have that bad day until 2-3 days after a stressful or overloading event.

It's like this: I overdo it on Saturday (shopping, visiting, whatever), Sunday comes and I watch some TV with my hubby, then I start to feel a little more out of it on Monday, so I only do a little more TV or computer. Then, I start feeling a bit worse on Tuesday so I do very little that day maybe 10 minutes of reading. Then, wham Wednesday comes and hits me hard and I'm basically sleeping or staring at a wall with soft music.

It quite often takes me several days to recover from this type of episode (lots of staring at the wall and sleeping). GRRRRRR... so frustrating! But, I'm starting to recognize this pattern. It wasn't the little reading I did on Tuesday, it was the Saturday followed by the rest of the little stuff. It's good to know this - next time I have to catch it much earlier and quit while I'm ahead. Hope this helps.

Soccergal

I think you're right because Fri was the day I overdid it...and Sunday I felt the worst!

I did very little on sat....

so how do we overcome it...if I didn't do much on Saturday anyway??