[hannah's mom]

My daughter suffered a mild concussion from a car accident in August. Her symptoms appeared almost immediately, little did we know what we were in for. Her CT's have come back clear. We had a completely different girl on our hands for 10weeks. She had severe headaches that whole time also. We finally saw a neurologist who put her on cymbalta. Five days later we had our old daughter back (personality) and her headaches were gone. She has since had a week of fainting and blacking out along with some breakthrough headaches so she is on more meds. She feels as if she is in a dream and has to ask herself if she is dreaming or if this is for real. She is having a terrible time taking tests at school. She is not as sharp as she was before the accident. Forgets things easily. The doctors have said this will get better. Will it? I'm so thankful for this group, as this has been a lonely, long journey. Thank you!

[Mark in Idaho]

Hannah's mom,

Welcome to NeuroTalk. Sorry to hear about your daughter.

I have never heard of Cymbalta being used for Post Concussion head aches.

Her school situation needs to be carefully considered. If she is struggling, she needs some accommodations for test taking and maybe even note taking. She likely needs an IEP (Individual Education Plan/Program).

The struggle with tests can be a symptom limited to the stressful time of test taking, or it can be a more global problem with recall.

A full battery NeuroPsychological Assessment would be worthwhile. If there are legal issues related to the car accident, you should check out www.tbilaw.com before getting a NP Assessment.

Was she going to school with the severe head aches?

or has she taken any time off from school?

What are all of the meds she is on?

Who diagnosed her as having suffered a 'mild' concussion?

What kind of doctors have said this will get better?

Sounds like her doctors are clueless and just taking shots in the dark. This is not uncommon.

I am confused as to how she has her personality back if she feels dreamy or disoriented. Is she a very laid back person?

Sorry for the questions when you are looking for answers.

My best to you and your daughter.

[Eowyn]

Please think seriously about taking her out of school, at least temporarily.

School can be a very sensory-intensive experience. I am a teacher, and I found that trying to keep up with the concentration required as well as keeping track of all the classroom activity was very very difficult.

I pushed through a week of teaching and end-of-semester grading. Even after I stayed home to rest physically, I was still checking work email and sending in lesson plans, etc. I did not really start to recover until I stopped ALL this and actually got brain rest.

[hannah's mom]

Thank you for replying to my post! The cymbalta has helped for her headaches. She still has some, but nothing like it was before she began taking it.

She is getting a cognitive thinking test this coming week. Hopefully this will help us find out exactly what she is struggling with and how we can help her in school.

As far as legal action, we are not suing, even though it was another driver's fault. Do I still need to check out that web site?

Yes, she was going to school with severe headaches. Unfortunately school started 3 days after the accident. She would not stay home for anything b/c she was just starting high school and couldn't imagine missing it. At that time we had no clue how serious all of this was or we would have insisted! Our neuro told us that if she had been his patient at that time, she would not have started classes.

She is on the cymbalta and also propranolol. I give her 2 aleve's when she is complaining of a headache.

The ER dr. and her neuro's diagnosed her with mild concussion as well as post concussion syndrome. Both neuro's have also said this will get better.

When I tell you her personality is back I mean in a way that right after her accident, for 10 weeks, she was a different person. Mean, edgy, just nasty. I totally would not have been surprised to get a call from the school saying she told a teacher off or something. She would hardly speak to my husband or myself and was always mad at her siblings. She was mad at the world!! Since being on the cymbalta she has been very pleasant again. Some of her teachers have noted that they will be talking to her but she isn't really there. I'm assuming this is the times she is feeling "dreamy".

She is a very laid back, "cool as a cucumber" type person. Since the accident she gets stressed much easier.

Eowyn: I don't know how in the world I would pull her from school!! That's a very scary thought to me! I can't imagine homeschooling her. I don't know how she would get her credits......sometimes this is such a lonely lonely road! Very thankful for this group!!!

[Eowyn]

Really what she needs is brain rest. You would be taking her out of school and postponing her education. She could likely make up the classes she misses over a summer or something.

Think about it this way: if she had cancer and couldn't stand up because of chemo side effects, would you still try to make her pass Intro to Chemistry? No, you would wait until the chemo was done and then try to catch up on what she missed.

This is the same thing, only the damage is invisible to you.

[Mark in Idaho]

hannah's mom,

First, You should check out the TBI Law web site so you can protect her. Or do you plan on picking up the cost of her care if she does not recover?

At least get some good advice from a knowledgeable concussion attorney. I waited too long to pursue my Work Comp case and lost my chance for a good settlement. I got nothing. Now, my wife has to support us.

Her 'not there' condition is an important symptom. The Cymbalt is likely masking symptoms to give you a false sense of security. If she has these 'not there' times frequently, she needs to be home. She can always catch up. She can not erase a bad year or two's grades.

If she is so intolerant of stress while taking the Cymbalta, it shows that her brain is seriously struggling.

I was straight A's as a freshman. I was injured first quarter of sophomore year. I hardly got any A's. I was able to get my grades back up for junior year. I had a serious relapse in college. Almost flunked out second semester of freshman year. If I did not have such bad grades that year, I would have been competing for Valedictorian or Salutatorian. My 4.25 would have been a 4.4 or so.

The brain is undergoing too much change at her age to be put under the stress of such a concussion and school stresses. And.... Homeschooling her will not be that hard. I know from experience. Our three kids were homeschooled through high school.

If you email me from my link under my name, you can reach my wife and hear some ideas about working with her. She can't be much different than my two girls were. Just click on my name to see the PM and email options.

If you have concerns about suing, maybe we can discuss them privately. I understand the religious concerns and some other concerns. Maybe I can help you understand the situation better.

My best to you.

[roadrunner63]

Originally Posted by hannah's mom

As far as legal action, we are not suing, even though it was another driver's fault. Do I still need to check out that web site?

Similar situation. Car wreck; other driver's fault. I had no intention of going through any legal action. $18,000 worth of medical bills and continuing. Permanently disabled with traumatic brain injury (post concussion syndrome). Ended up taking insurance policy limits.