After more then 4 months i'm happy to say the concussion is healed but i have still 2 remaining sympoms (tinnitus and fatigue) that comes from extremr muscle tension in the neck area. Recently I'm starting to get trigferpoint massages for this and it really helps. Tinnitus in my left ear became intermittent, right ear is still continuous but not as loud anymore. The fatigue is still there but not as extreme anymore. I was wondering if i could have some tips on letting my muscle stay relaxed in between sessions. And I'm very curious if a tens unit can help? I want to buy a tens unit but reviews are mixed about it.

What I'm currently doing
1. Relaxing, no stress. Trying to move on with life within the boundaries of my fatigue.
2. Mild excersises like walking. Physiotherapist said my neck is still to tense to do excersise for neck.
3. Being mindfull about posture and careful with fast neck movement.
4. Apply heat to neck. No icing according to physiotherapist. Inflamation markers have been checked and are fine. It's all muscle tension.

Any other things i could do to keep it loose in between sessions? The doctor and i want to wait with muscle relaxants and try the massages first. We also chanced rhe massages from once every 2 weeks to twice a week starting this week. Doctor said i need more treatment since my muscle always tense up after a week.

Does your physiotherapist know how to make sure the cervical vertebra are not the cause of your muscle spasms? Are you using any anti-inflammatory meds? Aspirin. ibuprofen?

I dont really understand the question. But scans show that my spine is fine. both the doctor and physiotherapist think my spine isn't the cause because of the nature of the incident. My neck wasn't jarred during the accident. It was more of a shockwave going to my neck. They also don't feel anything abnormal about my spine. My muscles arent really spasming but they are constantly in contraction. They think it was because at first the doctor didnt think much of my injuries and let my return to my activities to soon so my neck became overexerted and is now stuck in contraction mode.

The neuro actually told my not to use aspirin nor ibuprofen because of the blood thinning properties. She explained to me that taking blood thinners can give a quick relief but can give problems in the long run. Idk what to think, i get a lot of mixed messages about that. The thing is i don't really feel pain so they told me not to use it anyway.

Btw do you know if a tens unit is good for releasing muscles?

I have no experience with TENS systems. They are usually used for pain relief. If they can relieve muscle tension, that is great.

Your neuro is odd. My neuro told me to take anti-inflammatories like ibuprofen and aspirin. Omega 3 fish oil also thins the blood. You are not at risk of a brain bleed so blood thinning should not be an issue. btw, I've been taking enteric aspirin daily for 25 years for its anti-inflammatory value. I bleed like crazy when I cut myself that is not a concern.

I'd like to know what the long term problems can be.

It has been long enough since your injury that any risk of a bleed should be long passed.

Constantly having muscles in contraction is just a constant spasm. Maybe you need to learn some muscle relaxing techniques. There is a concussion symptom called postural rigidity. I had it real bad. I held my upper body muscles in contraction for years. I had to get new clothes because I developed lats and deltoids that I never had before. I have to learn to release the muscle tension.

The subtle neck injuries that plague many of us do not show up on imaging or manipulation. They just cause inflammation that affects the nerves and blood vessels and blood flow.

Ok i will try out the tens and see where it goes. My physio told me tens helps with some people so i can try it. I just got some excersises too since my muscle starting to get a bit more loose.

The neuro didn't talk about bleeding. But she told me those meds can give me chronic headaches if i would use it evryday for months on end. She said the risk is higher with blood thinners. But i can't get those anyways since aspirin and ibuprofen are prescription drugs. I do use some fish oil and gingko for better blood flow.

For the posture. I'm very mindfull about it now.

I'm gettin physio twice a week now instead of once every 2 weeks. It's is already helping a lot. So I'll have to be patient and see where it goes.

Wow, Where do you live that makes ibuprofen and aspirin a prescription drug?

Do you have any NSAIDs that are available Over The Counter/ without a prescription? NSAID, Non Steroidal Anti Inflammatory Drug.

Yeah drug laws are very strict here. Even melatonin is a prescription drug. I was suprised to find out that you can just buy this without prescription in america. Well i can buy voltaren gel over the counter. Do you think that is helpfull for inflamation?


Yesterday was my second session of trigger point massage. I find it very helpfull after just 2 sessions. Tinnitus got a bit milder. I sleep better and feel a bit less fatigued. It's amazing what just tense muscles can do

Another crazy example of how strict out drug laws are, is that i went to buy a box of paracetamol and i actually had to sign a contract that i'm aware of the possible dangers of long term use etc etc. Recently they also make us register our id so we can only buy a certain amounts of it without prescription. The government wants to prevent over the counter drug abuse, since going to the doctor is almost free. Which is great but a drag to constantly go to the doctors office.

Btw i know there isn't a definitive answer to this. But do you have any idea how long it takes on average for muscles relax and repair itself? Just curious. My whole therapy consists of massaging the muscles untill they are loose again. A close relative of mine had the same problem after a neck surgery with all the same sympotoms and he told me it took about 3 months of massages.

I don't think massages will provide more than temporary relief. If the cause of the muscle tension is not resolved, it will come back. Reducing the muslce tension may allow the vertebra to self correct but that is usually a very slow process, if it happens.

The voltaren may help since it is anti-inflammatory. Can you get the enteric tablets? Topical gel may not give you the deep benefit you need. Paracetamol is only pain relief, not anti-inflammatory.

The chronic headaches from NSAIDS concept is a possibility but not the rule. I think it is worth the risk. As I said, I have been on NSAIDS for almost 3 decades. I had a problem with headaches for 6 months after hitting my head with a dropped transmission. My neuro tried a number of meds and suggested high dose aspirin and acetaminophen/paracetamol combined. It worked great.

Once again thanks for the info. I will ask my apothecary for some over the counter nsaid if it's possible.

The cause of the muscle tension is most likely physical overexertion and psychological stress as a result from the physical trauma. A bit like burn out. A week after the concussion i was feeling much better but not fully healed. My enviroment didn't believe i was still suffering from a concussion and let me resume full activity, including a lot of physical labour that had put stress on my neck. After a month of that i horribly crashed. And the psychological stress of it made it worse.

Over the following months my muscles started to relax but very slowly. Both my face and neck were extremely tensed. Now it's still tense but less. Im trying to learn how to relax and move on in life. I think that and with time it will get better. I agree that i can tqke a long while before the muscle is fully relqxed again