Traumatic Brain Injury and Post Concussion Syndrome For traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post concussion syndrome (PCS).


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Old 07-29-2015, 09:56 AM #1
Sportsaddict Sportsaddict is offline
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Default Need help. 4 months in

After 4 months in still suffering from severe headaches, insomnia, neck stiffness, fatigue, memory problems, and just feel lost. I go to the doctors multiple times a week but I'm not sure what for. Nothing seems to help and no one in my life seems to take it as serious as I do. I can't sleep and I've fallen into a major depression.

This is all new to me. Like others have said, before my injury I was a very active and happy person. Now I'm a mess and a shell of who I was. It's been 4 months and I still can't sleep well. Can anyone give me advice on what medication has worked best for them? Mainly for sleeping. I'm on my third one called clonazepam. Before that I tried trazodone but didn't react well to it. It seemed to make my headaches worse.

I'm really confused on if I should continue trying sleep meds because I worry they ate making my headaches worse and I worry about longterm addiction to them. Should I not be thinking this way? Should my priority be getting sleep now whatever it takes? I'm confused. Hurting. I need a glimpse of hope.
urtng.
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Old 07-29-2015, 10:39 AM #2
Mark in Idaho Mark in Idaho is offline
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Sportsaddict,

Welcome to NeuroTalk. You situation is very common here on NeuroTalk.

What are the doctors visits about ?

What are you doing to help with your recovery ?

What do you do in the 4 hours before trying to go to bed ?

Activity levels, diet, nutrition and other issues can effect sleep and recovery.

Clonazepam is definitely not good for long term use. It is not a sleeping med. It is an anti-anxiety med in the benzodiazepine family. Benzos are not good.

What other meds have you tried ? What happens as you try to sleep ?
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Old 07-29-2015, 11:20 AM #3
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I am going to pt one or two times a week. I see a neurologist and neuro psychologist about once every two weeks each. They seem to think my main issues are stress and anxiety. While I do agree I have those, it's not typical for me. I feel they are symptoms of my headaches/pain and lack of sleep. I originally asked to be put on ambient and they gave me a strong antihistamine instead. This drug really dried me out and made me feel worse. Then I progressed to the other two drugs I previously listed.

To try and help, I try and avoid electronics but I know I don't do it enough. I rest as much as possible. I'm on std from work. I sit in dark rooms and listen to the radio or play my guitar. I also have been trying to go out more and start becoming more active. Walking mostly. I take Tylenol and ibuprofen daily along with vitamins and omega3.

My bed time routine isn't the best but falling asleep isn't my biggest issue. It's staying asleep. I have two boys, 6 months and almost 3. I read to them and then try and go to sleep.

My issue is I almost always wake up after 3 hours. I'll be tired, go to sleep, but then after 3 hours its like I'm jolted and my brain is fully awake and there's no chance of falling back asleep.

The Clonazepam has helped some with sleep but like I said I do worry about using it long term and that it might be affecting my headaches like previous drugs. Also like you said I worry I've been prescribed it for the wrong reasons. I feel I'd be better off treating my sleep issues directly rather than anxiety and depression. I feel those are products of my sleep issues rather than the other way around.

Thank you for responding. I apologize for any typos I'm writing using my dimmed phone. I still can't use a laptop for very long due to continued light sensitivity.
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Old 07-29-2015, 11:23 AM #4
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Addict,

I have been active all my life. Running and gym so I can ski water and snow. 16 months into this and no way.

I swim for 25 minutes and can walk 2 miles now every third day with slight repurcussions but. Occasionally I feel a pop in my head while swimming and I have trouble sleeping for the next couple of days. I can use 1lb weights for exercises..not happy about that but it is better than sitting still.

No running,weights or skiing yet.

Sleep is much better now but still inconsistent as to what it will be like for any given night, but much better...I am happy with an uninterrupted 4 hours now and being happy about it makes a big difference. You actually adjust to it pretty nicely. Some nights are 6 hours and I wake pretty regularly at 10, 12, 2 and 4, the good news is most of the time I can return to sleep.

I haven't used any meds.

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Old 07-29-2015, 04:48 PM #5
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Thanks for the responses. What's the general concensus here on medications for concussions/pcs? Does the majority try and stay off medications even for sleep?
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Old 07-29-2015, 09:11 PM #6
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It's definitely best to avoid all meds if possible but I would venture to say that constantly switching medications and not sleeping properly are the worst things you can do to an injured brain. If the clonazepam helps with sleeping and you can't find any other way to sleep don't be afraid to use it. Benzos are not the best option but they can make the process a little more barable until you find something more suitable.

What dose of clonazepam and how often are you taking it?

I take lorazepam at night to help with sleep. I would not recommend it but not sleeping is worse than taking a low dose Benzo to get a full nights sleep, in my opinion.

It should be noted that I want to discontinue the lorazepam ASAP due to negative consequences associated with long term use. Unfortunately, I was on the medication before the injury and I doubt that going through the withdrawal now would be a prudent thing to do.

You really have to weigh the benefits to the possible risks as with any medicstion use.
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Old 07-30-2015, 09:19 AM #7
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My current dosage is 1mg. I've taken it almost daily for two weeks. I tried to not take it for 3 nights in a row and all 3 nights I woke up after only a couple hours sweating badly, restless, feeling very tired, but wide awake. I was forced to take the meds to get back to sleep. It makes me feel like my body has already become addicted to it after only a couple weeks. The first night I should actually add that I didn't take it at all. I just suffered through not sleeping and the symptoms I described. But the next day despite being extremely tired I did feel like my headache and dizziness was better. That's why I tried to not take it the next two nights too but like I said my body just seems to need it now. It's hard to say if it's now the pcs or my body needing this drug.


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Originally Posted by DannyT View Post
It's definitely best to avoid all meds if possible but I would venture to say that constantly switching medications and not sleeping properly are the worst things you can do to an injured brain. If the clonazepam helps with sleeping and you can't find any other way to sleep don't be afraid to use it. Benzos are not the best option but they can make the process a little more barable until you find something more suitable.

What dose of clonazepam and how often are you taking it?

I take lorazepam at night to help with sleep. I would not recommend it but not sleeping is worse than taking a low dose Benzo to get a full nights sleep, in my opinion.

It should be noted that I want to discontinue the lorazepam ASAP due to negative consequences associated with long term use. Unfortunately, I was on the medication before the injury and I doubt that going through the withdrawal now would be a prudent thing to do.

You really have to weigh the benefits to the possible risks as with any medicstion use.
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Old 07-30-2015, 04:48 PM #8
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Amitryptiline is a TCA antidepressant that can be helpful with sleep. It also helps with relieving some headache pain but has some undersireable side-effects once you go over 25 mg, in my opinion. There's nothing worse then having to pee badly in the middle of the night and taking 10 min to drain your bladder (my prostate is fine)

I hope things get worked out for you. It's tough when you go from an active personal/professional life to sitting in dark rooms.

Hang in there.
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Old 07-31-2015, 04:12 AM #9
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I read that you usually become dependant on benzos after about 14 days. I was prescribed tamazepam when my symptoms first appeared, I used it for 10 days and it sent me to sleep when I found it impossible otherwise. Contrary to what I've heard I still had dreams and my quality of sleep although short was good apart from being groggy in the morning. After the course I tried other stuff like magnesium and valarien, amitryptiline but it didn't have any effect so I gave up on them.

In the first six months or so I used to wake up continuously often in a sweat, I've since read that these are symptoms along with anxiety of serotonin deficiency, this might be why AD's often do a good job of improving sleep. It's just finding one that suits your body whether it's an SSRI or SNRI, but it's not a route I went down instead I went for relaxation techniques.

I'm 17 month in (just turned 52 still in denial of being in my fifthties!), I still wake twice a night but tend to get back to sleep, life isn't back to it was but a hell of a lot better than it was - I even went running last week (like an old man lol), so hang in there and stay positive you will improve.
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Concussion 28-02-2014 head butted a door edge.
.

Symptoms overcome: Nausea, head pressure, debilitating fatigue, jelly legs, raised pulse rate, night sweats, restlessness, depersonalisation, anxiety, neck ache, depression.
Symptoms left: Disturbed sleep, some residual tinnitus.
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Old 07-31-2015, 01:15 PM #10
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I really appreciate the responses. This has been the hardest 4 months of my life and the most alone I've felt. It's helpful to hear from others who have gone through it or are still going through it so I don't feel so alone. I've had a few really bad days in a row now including today. If I didn't have such bad sleep issues I think this would be so much easier. I think I'm going to try and stop taking the clonezepan all together. Has anyone here taken ambien with their concussion? I might just try a week of no meds even if it means no sleep. It's tough because I have two small children that will wake me up early in the morning even if I finally do get some sleep.
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