[MomWriterStudent]

I'm about 7 weeks into my concussion. I originally thought that the concussion occurred on a different date than it actually did, but after reading old messages to family members, I was able to figure out that I somehow lost a week of my life. Sigh.

Anyway, about 10 days ago, I woke up feeling great. I thought I was myself again! My rent was overdue and I had a ton of bills coming up, so I went back to work. I'm a writer, so my work is very mentally demanding.

This was a huge mistake. I was able to work for a few days and even hung out with friends for two days in a row. I also took my kids to several different events and ran all of the errands that I had put off.

Now I'm back at square one, minus the brain fog. The headache is back. The depression is back. I can barely read. I can't handle loud noises. I'm typing this with one eye closed (for some reason, I started doing that on the days my concussion symptoms are the worst). The nausea has returned.

I'm incredibly depressed. I feel like this concussion will never go away. I just want to work and play with my kids. I never realized how much I took my old life for granted until now.

I just don't know what to do. I can't afford to miss anymore work. In fact, I need to somehow force myself to write a bunch of articles tonight and tomorrow or I will be in serious danger of losing my home. I already had my cable and internet shut off this week, and my phone is next. I'm a single parent and have nobody who can help financially, and because I'm self-employed, I can't get paid vacation time or anything.