[sarahelevy]

Hi. I am a 23 year old female. I have had two concussions in the past: one severe concussion in 2013, when I blacked out and vomited upon being hit in the back of the head, and one less severe concussion in 2014 when I hit the front of my head. Though my first concussion was more severe, my post-concussive symptoms went away after a month or so. With my second concussion, I found I had post-concussive symptoms for much longer - about 3-4 months.

Since these injuries I have found that every time I hit my head, I have a tendency to become paranoid about having re-concussed myself, because I know that the effects of prior concussions are compounded. I also find that every time I hit my head I tend to have headaches for much longer than I did before. On Friday night (3 days ago now) I accidentally hit the left, top side of my head on a metal pole, relatively hard. I did not black out, feel nauseous, or vomit after this happened, but I have had a bad headache for the past few days. I feel a dull, constant pressure in my head that is similar to the headaches I had with my prior concussions. Yesterday I had some ringing in my right ear for about 15 seconds, but it went away and hasn't happened since. Today I feel slightly nauseous, but it comes and goes.

My question is: Is it normal to experience headaches like this for a few days after bumping your head? As someone with concussive history, should I be worried, or should I calm down?