Hello all,

Wish I didn't have to post here, but am sure glad I found this site. My story is as follows:

Exactly one month ago, I hit the top of my head very hard, in a moment of self-inflicted stupidity (I jumped up and hit my workout bar which was screwed into the door frame). The impact of the trauma went straight down my head into my neck and spine. I didn't black out, but my vision did go black for a second. Immediately after, I had all of the normal symptoms of a hard head knock: headache, pain on the head (no bump), etc. Later that day I was feeling better and decided to go jogging.

I later developed my most disturbing symptom either later that day or the next (can't remember): my ears were plugged, like I was in an airplane. They went away after that day, but reappeared a week later (maybe because I tried to return to working out?). Since then I've had good days and not so good days regarding the pressure in my ears. Sometimes it feels so heavy that I feel like I have tunnel vision and will pass out, other times I barely notice them. Along with the pressure is almost always fluid running down the back of my throat, which drains into my stomach/lungs as I sleep, giving me an awful cough, and suppressing my appetite. Oddly, the symptoms do subside greatly when I am laying down or sleeping.

My other symptoms include: intermittent headaches (hardly ever severe), a feeling of unsteadiness, but not full-blown vertigo - more like I'm less confident and agile on my feet. Also brain fog, noise sensitivity, restless sleep (always wake up before the alarm in a panic), difficulty concentrating, and difficulty focusing my eyes on objects, especially moving objects.

I had a CT scan done in the ER two weeks after my injury and it showed no bleeds. A week later I went to an ENT and he gave me antibiotics and a steroid nasal spray. Both the neurologist and the ENT seemed unconcerned.

I currently live in mainland China which is making things more difficult (I don't speak the language, and finding western specialists is not easy or cheap). I am a school teacher on contract, so taking time off from work is not a realistic option at this point. I have been watching my lifestyle choices though (no alcohol, MSG, caffeine, sugar or artificial sweeteners).

Anyway, thanks for reading my ramble... I'd really like to hear from others who share my symptoms (especially the ear pressure thing, as it is driving me nuts).