Hello All,

I am a newby on here, but I found this place and wanted to share my story in hopes that it will help you all in your road to recovery.

I am a 34 year old graduate student studying finance and economics. I have suffered from around 30 concussions from sports and car accidents. About 5 years ago, I had to give up on life and thought that my life was pretty much over. I attempted to commit suicide twice and almost moved to Florida to become a homeless person. At about that time, I discovered through my research, that you can heal your brain from a concussion, even multiple ones. So, I began a very long and very arduous journey towards healing. I have pretty much done every therapy there is, and I have had success from some and failure from others.

Although I still do have some difficulties in life from the brain injuries, for the most part, I am pretty much recovered.

I'd be happy to answer any questions any of you may have regarding treatment for you brain injury.

M

I'd be curious to hear about what approaches worked and did not work for you.

We always love to hear the success stories... please share?

Well, the list is very exhaustive but I'll start with the basics.

First and foremost, I had my hormones checked out by a qualified physician. Unfortunately, most endocrinologists and primary care physicians know very little about the endocrine system, so I was forced to seek what are called "anti-aging" doctors. Probably seems kinda contradictory that an endocrinologist wouldn't know anything about the endocrine system but I went through 10 of them and all of them told me my hormones were fine. When I finally got with a doctor who knew what he was doing, he put me on the right hormones and I began to dramatically feel better. Hypothyroidism, Hashimotos, Adrenal Insufficiency, Hypogonadism and Hypopiuitarism are all very common in head injury.

I also did some other therapies but I would say that getting your hormones checked out would be the first place to start.

M

Colorrado Mike,

I've recommended getting hormones check, especially for women who tend to be more prone to hormone imbalances. Womens International Pharmacy has a good referral system for finding a specialist. You are right that the anti-aging specialists usually have the best skills. Here is the link https://www.womensinternational.com/..._referral.html

What other therapies have you had success with and which ones were a waste of money. I bet most, if not all have been discussed from time to time. We always like to hear success stories.

What symptoms/difficulties do you still have? Maybe we have some tips for you.

btw, I think I'd rather be homeless in Hawaii. Florida can still get cold and have horrible weather each season. LOL
I could live a good life on the street in a good climate with SSDI each month. My wife would not like it though.

Googling Anti-Aging Doctors in the Los Angeles area didn't do me a lot of good.... there are way too many "anti-aging" service providers here.

My PCP has tested my hormone levels and confirmed they are fine. I specifically asked her about it because it's so common to have issues with these areas after a head injury. It might be a good idea for me to get checked out by a specialist.

Mark in Idaho and Fenton,

Well, the phrasing was meant to be a bit funny, so I'm glad you guys got a kick out of it .

Here is the list of what worked and what didn't work, but I'll have to elaborate on them next week as I'm in the middle of finals week right now...

Worked: Neurofeedback, HBOT, Balance Therapy, Hormone Therapy, Nurtional/Vitamin Therapy, Cranial Sacral Therapy from and D.O., Upper Cervical Chiropractic Therapy.

Didn't Work: Chiropractic Neurology, Accupuncture, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Anti Depressants, Stimulants, sleep therapy.

Women's International Pharmacy is a very good company. I'm glad that you are aware of them. As a matter of fact, I have gotten a lot of referrals for good doctors from them.

EsthersDoll,

Yes, I'm sure there are probably a million and one anti aging docs in LA. If you're serious about getting one though, I do know of one who specializes in TBI Post Hormone Deficiency Syndrome. The only caveat to these guys is that they don't take insurance because they have to spend somewhere around 3 hours with you on the first visit and an hour with you on each subsequent visit and insurance companies won't pay for their time with you beyond 30 minutes, I believe. However, if you do have insurance, you can usually get reimbursed through your out of network coverage, which is what I did. They will also sometimes put you on a payment plan if you are coming to them because of a disability.

Also, if you don't mind sharing, I'd be happy to look at your hormones and tell you if you need to seek out further help for them. The lab ranges are mostly outdated and need to be updated but, unfortunately, most docs aren't aware of this. For example, I had my testosterone levels tested and it was at 350, which fell within the normal range of 300-1000. So, I had 8 doctors tell me it was okay. I got to a good anti aging doc and the first thing he told me was that my levels were good....for an 85 year old man - I'm 34. So, as you can see, the levels are antiquated.