For all the fellow PCS sufferers out there....


Do you have any advice on educating friends/family members/loved ones on the nature of PCS or its effects?

I've been gathering articles on the subject and posting them to my blog (unfortunately, most of these have been some of the horror-story ones from professional athletes, mostly American football. I live in Pittsburgh and most of my friends and family are in or from Western PA, so this is the context I felt would sink in most ), unfortunately, it seems like most or all of them aren't reading any of the things I've posted and referred them to. They seem to fall into one of three groups...

A)the group that thinks I'll get better with time, especially if I don't do things that involve the risk of further concussions

B)the group that doesn't quite get how bad the symptoms are. I had to explain to my roommate repeatedly with analogies like "See these shoes? 2 days out of 3, I have to sit here for 10 minutes trying to figure out how to tie them." All I get back are blank looks.

C)the group that has mental disorders that are more conventially treatable, and think that because their issues were corrected by medication, mine should be as well. Most doctors and neurologists won't prescribe anything but antidepressants for me since nothing really shows on a MRI or CAT scan that points to anything. I actually lost a relationship with a girlfriend in this group over some of my more erratic behavior about 5-6 months ago, and she was always adamant about me poking and prodding every head doctor I could get an appointment with, because that's what she had to do to get meds that helped her with her bipolar disorder.

Any suggestions?

Thanks