Hello Everyone!

I am so glad to have found this forum! I'm glad I am not the only one going through this. I am a 25 year old female and suffered my latest concussion on January 29th 2013. My first concussion happened at the age of 3 and I have had several subsequent falls and accidents where I may have sustained mild concussions but was never diagnosed.

This latest concussion occured because I was in a rush and I had a huge load of laundry in my arms (I couldn't see my feet) and I lost my footing going down the stairs. I only fell a short way (two or three steps) but my momentum was stopped by me going face first into the wall immediately in front of me and rebounding off to finally land on my back on the stairs.

I am not sure if I blacked out for a second or not, but it really would not have been long if I did because a significant amount of time had not passed. I knew I had probably re-triggered whiplash in my neck from a previous car accident and I knew my face hurt where it made impact (the bone at the end of my right eyebrow and the cheek bone directly below that). I got ice for it and rested a little, but got ready to go to work that night as usual.

3/4 days later the symptoms set in...headaches/dizziness/"out of it"/insomnia/lack of concentration/depression/photophobia. I have been getting these weird headaches where my right temple feels like it is stretching and becomes a void in my head twice its normal size. I don't know if that sounds familiar to anyone, but it feels weird and leads to nausea and severe dizziness and inability to concentrate on anything if it gets bad. It is only this bad when I get tired, which happens a lot quicker than it used to!!

I took 4 days off of work and life in the beginning to rest and sit in the dark listening to audio books, basically. This helped somewhat but when I went back to work, even though I was on half days, it was bad. We have to be able to concentrate at work because we are dealing with patients lab tests and they cannot be messed up, and any area in my job that does not require concentration, requires walking back and forth a lot, which makes me dizzy.

I had FMLA and am getting it again, I had short-term disablility which gave me some of the paid-time off hours I used for the half-shifts back, but it eventually wasn't enough and I had to go back to work full time in the beginning of April. I have just recently had neuropsychology testing done and the results show that my memory, learning, and ability to access information is fine, which I am extremely glad for.

My current problems are in lack of concentration (due to my brain tiring quickly), dizziness brought on by motions like standing and I know it sounds odd, but looking down or under things like desks and/or crouching. I sleep better most nights which is awesome but other nights I might get 3 or 4 hours. I also still have problems with photophobia. It is improving, but very very slowly. I've been wearing sunglasses everywhere since the beginning of February!

I think because of the depression, I have had a lack of appetite except for junk, although even that doesn't appeal to me. I haven't lost weight because I try to get one good meal in per day. I have also had NO motivation except if I have something specific planned with a friend. I go to work, but just because I have to get paid. I used to love to work and be active and do a lot of stuff but now that I am not allowed to, I just feel like I'm existing and that's it.

I am not patient at all, so this whole ordeal has been very frustrating, maddening, and I sometimes have a lot of anger towards people at work or friends who simply don't "get it". I am SO fed up and I feel horrible about continuing to complain to my good friends who have been listening to me say the same things over and over for the last 4 months!

Having read several of your posts, I have a complete respect for those of you who have had a MUCH LONGER road and much worse symptoms and for those who have children, my heart goes out to all of you. I am on my own and I only have to worry about myself, but in some ways, that is not really a good thing. So sorry, I know this is extremely long...I've just been frustrated for sooo long that this kind of venting is what I need! Any comments or questions are welcome and appreciated!

jac3sr,

Welcome to NeuroTalk. Sorry to hear about your fall. Thank you for the double spacing. It makes it so much easier to read.

You symptoms are quite common. You really need to get disciplined about nutrition. Your injured brain needs good nutrition, even more so if you can't take time off work to lower your brain's stress load. Read the Vitamins post in the sticky at the top.

You sound like you need to be very careful about your neck. Whiplash can magnify concussion symptoms.

As you said, body movements are a problem. This can be related to twisting and turning at your neck. Avoid these movements. Turn at the shoulders with minimal neck straining.

More later. I am distracted with my grand daughter.

My best to you.

Thank you Mark!

I have been reading a lot of the posts on here and I feel like I have a lot of the emotional symptoms, but I think for the most part I should feel lucky that I don't have vision problems or memory except for not being able to come up with a word more often than previous to this injury. I do have the slower processing and concentration deficits and I really really hope that they resolve themselves.

Again, I know I should be glad to have hope that my symptoms may resolve! I "hear" what you are saying about nutrition and I am slowly trying to get myself motivated to eat healthier. It's a process because of the fatigue and lack of motivation I seem to have most days. I appreciate that nutrition is extremely important though.

I am working on finding a counselor to help with the depression, because I almost feel like it is holding me down, yet I can't think my way out of it with any gumption. I hate the idea of taking any drugs, especially because elavil made me such a zombie in the beginning. But I am becoming more open to the idea of an anti-depressant because I think in my particular case, it will be mind over matter that will make the difference. Or, I guess, I hope it will. I know the brain takes time to heal, but I've heard that depression and anxiety can lead to prolonged symptoms as well.

Not sure if I should hold onto that shred of hope or not, but for now, it helps me not drown, so I guess it's ok.

Rather than getting stuck trying to eat healthier, get started on supplements. Healthy eating will help but it is difficult to get the extra nutrition the brain needs for just a healthy diet, especially with any consistency. Getting started on a supplement regimen means that every day you have at least a good start.

I was started on this regimen 30 plus years ago by a psychiatrist. I was suffering severe depression. I could not finish a sentence. Withing 8 weeks, I was back on top of my game. The most important supplements are the B-12, B-complex, D3 and fish oil. You will be surprised to see how improved you can be just from properly feeding your brain.

The gumption to eat healthy every day is difficult. I keep my regimen made up weeks in advance in zip lock baggies. I just take the contents with a healthy beverage with a simple healthy breakfast (usually cereal with fruit).

My best to you.

Jac3sr

If its any help I found Cymbalta very helpful in my recovery, I came off it recently and that made me realise just how much it helped me overcome PCS. Now I am back on it. It may help or it might not suit you at all.

It takes a little time to get used to and I am only on the minimum dose, but that is all I need. It is equally helpful for depression and pain.

The theory that depression and anxiety prolongues or exacerbates symptoms is in my opinion correct. So some people (myself included) need a temporary helping hand through medication to reduce symptoms.

Thanks! I'll mention it to my dr and see what she says!