my problem is maintaining sleep...im in bed and exhausted by 10...then I wake up at 1-2 am for no reason and get scattered restless sleep for the rest of the night...it is the most frustrating thing...prior to hitting my head I never had a sleep problem in my life

It was about 8 months before I could really sleep. I think I do better since I began sleeping good.

iggle -- read my prior posts. SAME exact thing happens to me. Its awful....wish I had some advice. I tried tylenol pm, advil pm, and then some presc meds... xanax finally helped...and it doesn't seem to stay in my system as long.

I could not sleep for 8 months as well. Incredibly frustrating.

blackzest has your sleep returned to preinjury quality??

please say yes!

I still have some insomnia but without my gabapentin (Neurontin), I have horrible insomnia. With it, I just need to use good sleep hygiene. I need to be in comfortable pajamas, soft sheets, proper temperature, empty bladder, etc. If I get any thought before falling to sleep, like, the garbage needs to go out in the morning, I am better of if I get up and do it then.

Then my brain can release the thought. Sometimes, I just need to go write a note on my white board on the refrigerator to remind me in the morning. Do not try to take any thoughts or tasks to bed.

I have needed to do this for over ten years. It works well for me.

Hey...I want you to know I'm going through something pretty similar and I'm going to use this thread as an emotional outlet for what I'm going through...because I really need it.

7 weeks ago I fell snowboarding and had whiplash and a concussion. I remember the events prior and after the accident, however unfortunately I did not recognize I was concussed and continued drinking many beers well into the night...the next morning I had a normal hangover.
It wasn't for 3 days later that I started to really experience symptoms...of which were: Headaches, dizziness, vertigo, fatigue, confusion, crazy ringing and pain in the ears, some nausea...then about 3 weeks after I realized my jaw alignment was way off and had major pain and clicking....so thats the physical stuff...as for mental and emotional, I couldnt agree more how alienated from the people in my life i feel. I'm feeling depressed, some anxiety, confused sometimes, irritable, mood swings.

The problem too was that I tried to mask my symptoms and never really gave myself enough rest in the first weeks prior the concussion...which i really regret now. Only right now 7 weeks later am i fully understanding how i feel and what i SHOULDN'T DO to make things worse...however, i know very little about what i SHOULD do to make things better.

The hardest part is definitely just not feeling normal/nonreality when im alone and with people...some of my friends dont seem to understand what im going through as i look and sound fine...but really inside my head things are not right...7 weeks later and these are still my symptoms: ringing in ears, light headedness, dizzy, minor vertigo, no alcohol tolerance, minor reading and concentration issues, sensative to sound, irritable, fatigue, and obsessing over my symptoms...I'm scared that I wont get better, however, I am optimistic I will.

These are things I am going to do improve my recovery:
-join a mediation class
-no alcohol
-remove myself from stressful situations
-have a better diet
-get support from a few trustworthy good friends to visit with daily and keep me stoked...this includes speaking with my brothers and parents over the phone as often as possible
-no intense physical exercise for the next month - a short light walk per day
-I've found photography has helped...i can walk slowly around town and be completely focused on taking pictures, with little to know focus on my symptoms.
-Also, I found one toke of good organic weed allowed my to really feel and understand my symptoms, however that was just once and i wont again until i feel better.

Ultimately, I am optimistic i will get better. The brain is fragile but also plastic and changeable...drink ginger root tea, think positively, try painting or drawing or just being creative on paper or with crafts, I've also been doing puzzles.

This felt great to get out and best of luck to anyone and everyone out there with this problem...DO NOT DRINK OR DO DRUGS if you had a concussion and DO NOT EXERCISE INTENSELY until you've recovered. Im not a doctor but both these things have hindered my healing for sure.

Any other advice would be great but I think ive already ready every last bit of information on this.

hey Nitro,

I feel for ya man...I was wondering if you experienced any sleep problems or sexual dysfunction? those are two things that are really frustrating me...I'm hoping they are just temporary affects of concussion...chemical imbalance whatnot...as they are truly frustrating me

best of luck on your recovery

Hey,

Fortunately I'm sleeping pretty well have not really noticed any sexual dysfunction...the time I did was probably because I wasnt attracted to the girl I was sleeping with...but anyways. Today I woke up things were really dizzy while i laid in bed with my eyes closed. Feeling really lightheaded and have a bad headache today. Ears still hurting and ringing like crazy...hoping this all just goes away soon.

Hello all,

I am a 40 years old. I was googling PCS and i came upon this forum. I just wanted to see if anyone could give me some answers to what i've been feeling. Eleven days ago (march 17) i was told i by my freinds i fell and hit my head a couple of times. I don't remember cause i was drunk. The next day (Fri) i just felt hung over. On saturday i felt ok went to work and all. On Sunday i noticed that when i woke up I felt a little dizzy. I could'nt really focus on anything for a long period of time. Felt a little bit like if i had just gotten off an amusement park ride. I still went to work and was able to function ok. On Monday I woke up and felt the same way. I went to work and felt very light headed. I got checked by an EMT at work and he said that my pupils were dialated and were'nt reacting to light. I was taken to the ER just for a check and they said my vitals were good. They took a long time to see me, so by the time the doctor saw me, my pupils were back to normal. They did some tests with me pointing and touching my nose. They did not run a ct scan or nothing, they just said i probably got a bit of vertigo from the fall and sent me on my wway with some motion sickness pills. Tuesday through thursday i still felt the same, just a bit light headed with no other symptoms. On thursday i went to a general doctor. He checked me and he said i had no signs of having a concussion and said the same thing, that i probably knocked off a chip of calcium from my inner ear and all i was feeling was vertigo. He sent me on my way and just ran some blood tests.
NOW HERE IS WHEE IT GETS SCARY FOR ME!!!!
That thursday night (7 days after the falls) i start getting very anxious and restless. I went to sleep after pacing around the living room for about an hour. I dont have any problems falling asleep, it just seems i am always sleepy and i sleep through the night, not hearing my alarm.
Friday morning i woke up in a bit confuzed. i felt like i had to assure myself of where i was at and had to start talking just to snap out of the daze. All that morning i felt an anxiety i have never felt before. After a while i felt like i was getting emotional and depressed. Called my family to get some reassurance that everthing was fine. I went to work and after a couple of hours i was fine. That night i felt really good like if everything was gonna be fine. Like if it was all over. Come Saturday I woke up the same way, all dazed. I went to work and started feeling ok. It feels like its in the mornings that i feel the worst. On sunday i felt ok most of the day, but i did start feeling a slight headache which is just always there. I still hav it right now, its just like a 1 outta 10 but its constant with a bit of head pressure.
Today is Monday, 11 days after the fall. The symptoms i am feeling include dizzyness/light headedness, loss of appetite, a constant (but weak) headache, fatigue, i cant focus on something to long, anxiety (just out of the blue), restlessness, emotional changes and i was depressed only that one time. I feel dazed and like everyone saysin a "foggy" state. Its only been 11 days but i am scared of how long this might last. Is it to soon to be having PCS?I have a doctors appointment tomorrow, so im hoping he can give me some answers. If anyone has been through this i would really appreciate some advice. THANK YOU and GOD BLESS