I am so sorry to hear that at your young age, you have this kind of injury. There are alot of folks on this site who have experience with TBI, either with themselves or a loved one. I do know, that things can get better. I am by no means any kind of expert, I just read the posts, and know that many younger folks do recover and have a normal life. As far as Gabepentin goes, if this drug is effecting you so negatively ( it does me too) contact your doctor before you up this medication. It made my own condition and my mood with depression 10 times worse. Do call and get advice before upping the medication. Many get over the initial side effects, or get none at all. There are others who just don't tolerate it. Keep posting, and don't give up. There will be support here, and information. Hope is something to cling to. Your young age, works for you in recovery. Mark from Idaho, is extremely knowledgeable about this injury, and I sure hope he can respond to you, giving you some positive feed back. This site has done me a world of good with my own conditions. I hope you receive the same kind of help that I did. Please be good to yourself every day, in some small way. Do you have support at home?, or with some good friends? that is important, and we all need that compassion in our lives. ginnie

Hi Jaystar,

I know it's tough, but try not to give up hope.

I've been recovering from a mTBI for almost two years and I wasn't able to work at all for more than a year after the accident I was in. It's been almost two years, and I still couldn't imagine going to school right now - my brain is just not in a good enough place to be able to handle it - although I am working more than I was when I first started, I'm still not working full time.

The good news is that, even though I'm still living with the help of my boyfriend and family paying for my expenses and loaning me all sorts of cash to do so - I can finally see that someday I'll be able to support myself again.

And, if I continue to heal, that I'll be able to return to school.

Right now, I kind of think of this time as a "pause" button has been hit on my life and I'll get back on track someday if I'm lucky. But at my age, it's not the best time to have a "pause" button hit!

I don't know whether I'll need another degree or to change my career since the one I'm in is very demanding and stressful and I'm not sure that my brain will heal enough for me to be able to do it to a satisfactory level. About six months ago I told myself that I'd give myself another year and try to reassess what's going on.

I suggest you do the same. Don't jump to the conclusion that you're never going to be able to support yourself, or finish school - that probably only makes you feel bad. Try to focus on thoughts that make you less stressed out or actually feel good because that will help you to heal.

Just keep your goal of getting better in mind as much as possible.

I've gained weight too. It's not fun. I get sick of this process too. Just try to persevere as much as possible and after some time you can hopefully look back at this time and think, "Hey! I'm doing a lot better now that I was then!"

My therapist tried to tell me that after it had been ten months after the accident I was in and even though I knew I was doing better - it wasn't enough to make me feel better emotionally - now it's been enough time and even more improvements that I am able to recognize it and feel good about it. Just hang in there!