[cjoelle85]

I'm not sure where to start I'm 25 as a child I had seizures and by the time I was 13 I was told that any more concussIons could result in permanent brain damage or death I've had more than a dozen since. I got a concussion about a year and a half ago and after almost 2 weeks I was still struggling with symptoms so I went to the doctor and that was the first time I heard anything about post concussive syndrome and I've had 2 minor concussions since. Usually I'm good at avoiding hitting my head but it means constantly being on guard and paying attention but at the same time it's exhausting. I'm used to dealing with the memory loss and the mental part of it but since the concussion a year and a half ago I've felt so disconnected from family and friends even from friends I've made since. I've never been an overly emotional person I've always preferred staying calm and thinking things thru rationally rather than feeling. But now I feel emotionally disconnected from my life and I have no idea how to explain this to anyone that while I feel empathy for them I don't feel anything more for than that for people that I've known most of my life and no one notices. When I'm with friends or family I'm able to talk laugh and enjoy the moment and while I still feel upset or happy I don't feel emotionally connected to anyone and I don't know how to fix it.

[Mark in Idaho]

cj,

Welcome to NeuroTalk. The emotional disconnect you talk about is not uncommon. Some of us need to use a mechanical style of thinking to connect. The heart felt connection may be absent but that does not mean you can not over-ride the lack of natural impulses to connect.

It may help to seek a counselor/therapist who understands Post Concussion Syndrome and the flat affect and other emotional issues tied to PCS.

Can you tell us a bit more about your struggles ?

How did you get so many concussions ?

My best to you.

[cjoelle85]

I have a complicated medical history I got sick at 18mos and suffered from prolonged lite oxygen after several months of trying different antibiotics my mom argued to treat me for asthma he refused and she got me treated by a different doctor but by then damage done I lost motor skills speech and had minor brain damage.

But after that I had just about every type of seizure I also have global dyspraxia, spatial issues, congenital hip dysplasia, low muscle tone, an unspecified connective tissue disorder that isn't bad enough to be ehlers danlos but follows it, asthma and due to low oxygen my left side is weaker and damaged similarly to how a stroke can cause damage I know there's more that had/have but I space on the long list.

What it pretty much boils down to is that as kid I was seizure and accident prone I'm prolly one of the few people that can say they've done the Charlie Brown flip lol sadly it was on the sidewalk and hurts a lot more than they make it look sadly I wasn't trying. And by the time I was a teenager I hard enough bump to the head could result in a concussion and I learned to be aware of everything around me but sometimes I would miscalculate and hit my head or not notice what someone's doing and end up getting hit.

I've thought about taking to someone but it's only been the past few months that it really got to me. And it wasn't until I was trying to date someone that I enjoyed talking to and hanging out with but couldn't emotionally connect with home even tho I wanted to and I tried and I just felt guilty.

Since I grew up getting a new diagnosis every few years I've learned that the best thing to do is research I've learned it's better to have an idea of what's going before going to doctors. I knew it was connected to the concussion at first I thought it was just that I lost some of my memory and while I haven't regained any memory I lost I thought maybe making new ones would help and while I don't have the memories I have the information kinda like reading a book

I can tell you the facts and I can piece together what happened but I have an almost photographic memory and can usually recall things easily in detail so I thought at first it was just my brain struggling or that it was my subconscious showing frustration at the lack of details in what I could remember and that I didn't lose just memories from a block of time like I did with other concussions

I'd lose a few months and would have issues connecting names and faces this time it was scattered and with some I know what happened but I don't remember going thru it and others it's just blank. It's frustrating at times.

[Mark in Idaho]

You sound like a very capable person. With some proper counseling and guidance, you should be able to learn some relationship skills to use to overcome your weaknesses. It may take some time to find the right help but the search should be worth it. A good place to start would be to check with a neuro rehabilitation clinic/hospital.