Traumatic Brain Injury and Post Concussion Syndrome For traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post concussion syndrome (PCS).


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Old 12-18-2011, 06:54 AM #1
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Default PCS and noise sensitivity

About six weeks or so ago, my mother suffered a concussion when she banged her head on a kitchen cupboard door. When it first happened, she felt OK, and it took a couple of days for the symptoms to show. As she was feeling a bit "foggy", having a few memory issues and her head hurt, I took her to see the doctor, who diagnosed a concussion and said that if her symptoms got worse, to call an ambulance straight away. The very next day, she felt really rough, with a number of the alarm symptoms she'd been told to look out for. The main one of these was that her balance was severely impared - Although she's in her early 70s, she still works as a dance teacher, so has really good mobility for her age, but was finding it difficult to even walk. The ambulance took her straight to hospital, and when the consultant there saw her and how she was having trouble walking and remembering things, he sent her for a CT scan. That came back clear, and all of the other tests indicated no sign of critical problems, so he sent her home after making arrangements for her to be contacted by the neuro rehab specialist (the improbably named "Dr Brain"!!).

For the past few weeks, she's been making OK progress. Her memory has more or less recovered, her balance has really improved and she's been able to walk OK and even turn around fairly quickly without going dizzy. However, she seems to be having something of an issue with noise sensitivity. In addition to working as a dance teacher, her and my dad are also involved in the local organ & keyboard club - He's the chairman, and she does the refreshments. While she seems OK with the music at the dances they run each week, she does seem to be having problems with the music at the monthly organ concerts the club organises. After last month's concert, not long after the concussion, she felt "a little bit rough", but put that down to having been on her feet doing the refreshments and also the flashing lights - In addition to the concussion, she also has a number of other long-term medical issues including limited vision that makes her quite sensitive to bright or flashing lights.

Yesterday, she seemed to be doing really well early in the day, having gone shopping for a couple of hours, and then done lots of jobs around the house that she'd not have been able to do a month ago. However, that all changed after she came back from the organ concert. She started off by complaining that the music had been very loud, while my dad said it hadn't been any louder than normal. (Although it has to be said that he's not really much of a help, as he says that all she's suffering from is "panic attacks", because he looked them up on a website and some of her symptoms are listed there, such as nausea and dizziness - He's one of these who thinks he knows more than the doctors, and when told that the senior doctor at the hospital had said that she'd basically "bruised her brain", he said he'd never heard such rubbish, stating quite emphatically that it was impossible for anyone to bruise their brain because it was protected by the skull!!) She also said that she'd felt a little bit rough during the concert.

After getting in, she made herself some supper and sat down to eat it. After taking just one bite of her supper, she suddenly complained of feeling really dizzy and nauseous, with a stiff neck, and felt like she was going to throw up (which she never actually does no matter what is wrong with her). She felt that rough that she had to lay down on the settee for around an hour before she felt able to make it up to bed. When she got up to walk upstairs, she was having trouble walking again - not as bad as when she was in hospital, but about the same as a few days later, before she'd got her balance back properly. That was now 12 hours ago, and she still feels too rough to get up.

Now, I know from the various websites that PCS can lead to sensitivity to loud noise and flashing lights, cause neck pain, nausea etc. However, what I'd like to know is if anyone here has ever come across incidences of PCS causing a delayed reaction to noise, with the nausea etc hitting an hour or so after the end of the noise exposure? Is this the usual noise sensitivity reaction, or does it usually hit as soon as the loud noise is encountered?
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Old 12-18-2011, 11:06 AM #2
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Welcome to NeuroTalk,

I am sorry to hear of your mother's struggles.

All of her symptoms sound classic PCS. The delayed symptoms are common, too. I think it goes something like this. The brain gets challenged by the noise or lights. It struggles to tolerate them. After some other stresses or just plain tiredness, if finally become symptomatic. This would be even more likely later in the day when her end of day fatigue finally hits.

I can have a bad day the day after an event even though the event went well and the period after the event went well.

Hope this helps you understand.

Check out the TBI Survival Guide at www.tbiguide.com

It is full of good information.

My best to you.
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Old 12-18-2011, 02:30 PM #3
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Six weeks is just a short time for recovery for PCS issues. I'm going on 4 months and while my symptoms have lessened, the one thing that I don't tolerate all that well is alot of noise. So I can empathize with what you mom is going through.

If I am thrown into a noisy situation (crying babies, loud music, loud chatter) I don't do well the next day. It's just still too much stimulation for my healing brain. I go back to having pressure headaches, feeling anxious and irritable...so I just go back to bed. I just purchased some earplugs and noise cancelling headphones, so I'll have to let you know how those work.

In the future, perhaps your mom can use some earplugs and see if that helps her when she is going into noisy situations.

Your mom is lucky to have your support. PS: your father needs to read up on the TBI Guide as well as your mom and hopefully, he will understand what she is going through.
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Old 12-18-2011, 02:58 PM #4
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Most of my reactions are delayed. I rarely get a headache DURING an overstimulating event, but often afterwards. Unless you have an extremely spartan existence, this can make it difficult to determine exactly what is setting off your symptoms, especially in the early stages when almost everything is overwhelming.

In this case, definitely sounds to me like the concert did her in.
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Old 12-18-2011, 06:21 PM #5
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When the PCS is still this 'young' it's pretty likely that such over-stimulating environments will exaccerbate your mum's symptoms.

As time goes on, it may happen less freqently but quite dramatically even after perios of noticeable improvement. It's worth encouraging your mum to try to notice the warning signs that that's a bad day to be in a noisy, brightly lit place. Hopefully then she'll be able to juggle her days when a dizzy/foggy/fatigue hit is likelly to occur.

Good for you for looking into this for her. PCS can be lonely if noone around you really gets it.
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Old 12-18-2011, 07:34 PM #6
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I disagree with Ali B. I do not think she should put herself in a noisy or bright or flashing environment, even if she thinks she is having a good day. When she has be able to be symptoms free in normal environments, she can then try to introduce some more stimulating environments. The challenge of trying to second guess the brain's tolerance level is a losing game.

Like Ali said, she should pay attention to the times when she overloads and try to think back to the possible triggers. Family can often help her with this by noticing the look in her eyes. The eyes are often the first sign of overload. That spacey look or repeating herself or not understanding someone are all signs of overload.

At her age, recovery will take far more care to avoid triggers. The older a brain gets, the more struggle it has at recovery.

My best to you both.
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Old 12-20-2011, 09:49 AM #7
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Thanks for the replies - And appologies in advance for any terminology I use that you may be unfamiliar with, as I'm in the UK! It took her the best part of Sunday to get back to feeling anything like normal, although her balance has definitely taken a bit of a step backwards.

One thing this has done is encourage her to call the rehab department at the hospital. A couple of weeks ago, they sent her a letter saying that the doctors who saw her when she had to be taken into the A&E department had been in touch and requested that they contact her. The letter just said that if she was having any problems, she should call them for a chat and they'd then decide if help was needed. When she first got the letter, she said that she wasn't going to give them a call, because she felt like she was getting on OK and didn't want to "make a fuss". However, after this weekend, she decided (with a little bit of encouragement from me) to call them yesterday, and they said that they're going to send her an appointment for an initial assessment. Based on what she told them over the phone, they also said they'd probably be arranging for some physio sessions to help with her balance and memory to start with, and then see how she goes after that. So she is going to be getting some assessment and, hopefully, help.

And she's definitely going to be using earplugs from now on anytime she's in a noisy environment. I know that my dad probably isn't going to like it, but I also know from experience that earplugs are often vital for various reasons - I used to work as a DJ in a biker's pub, and went to a lot of quite loud concerts, which has left me with a bit of mild hearing damage, so I always use earplugs whenever I go to a concert now.
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Old 12-20-2011, 04:57 PM #8
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Hey, I know exactly how your mother feels, I've had PCS for 2 months and I'm suffering greatly with noise sensitivity. When our phone rings, which is just the same pitch and loudness as before, feels incredibly painful, as if someone stabbing a pickaxe through my head would be more pleasurable than the screech of the ringing phone.
Ear plugs are a fantastic suggestion, I'm about to get some for myself, as I struggle to deal with everyday sounds such as the tv or people talking. Also suggest she rests for a couple of hours, in darkness, for an hour or so most days. It really helps me feel more refreshed, alive and tolerate towards noises and lights. (Our christmas tree has flashing lights which result in horrible headaches)
I can sympathise with you and your mother with you father for not understanding. My family are still reluctant to accept that I have PCS and are finding it hard to adjust to my condition. But it's not that they don't understand, they're trying to cope in their on way, it's hard for them too, maybe your dad just needs some help expressing how it's affecting him. Because PCS does affect everyone, and it's scary to watch someone you love suffering, and feeling helpless... you know that...
I hope your mother recovers quickly, good luck
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Old 12-20-2011, 05:38 PM #9
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I think many family and friends who do not understand PCS do so out of a "What you say can't be true" mentality. When they decide to truly listen and accept the PCS sufferers description as reality, they will make light year leaps in understanding PCS. Often times, the PCS sufferer does not fully understand their own symptoms in a way that can be explained to others. This is where the TBI Survival Guide and the YouTube Videos "You Look Great" by John Byler can make a difference.

Achieving understanding of PCS takes effort and a willingness to listen to new ideas. Ego, stubbornness, and 'Just buck up and get over it' attitudes will work against the PCS sufferer. Even doctors and other professionals often have these detrimental attitudes.
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