I have my first of 7-8 visits scheduled by my neuro psychologist today.The rehab they say will help build my skills in the following areas.Memory,ways to remember ect SO THEY SAY>

I went through this 4 years ago and after 3 months quit the program.After talking to my physciatrist he said if you feel the rehab is not working and it makes you feel strangled just stop.He was right it is hard to sit and be talked at like you are stupid when you several years before were in most cases smarter than the person trying to help you! The problem now and before is "the anxiety related to the treatment".It brings back the memories of the accident the fact that I am now a byproduct of what happened to me because someone did not care enough to do things right.The feelings of this is what I have to live with now.Its the in your face reality being thrown at you after the initially problem.

Its hard to be under a microscope and know weather the people looking at you are good at there job or in fact just getting a paycheck on Friday.I still have a hard time with the fact I was hurt and left to get by with what I am now.I had a great psychiatrist but he has died and I have never found another to replace him.H e clearly stated my head injury was the cause of my problems not what they use as facts now.They now say weight,bipolar,smoking and other things are what are contributing factors to my problems.The only Dr.that saw me before the accident and after was the one who died 2 years ago.He treated the bipolar,he knew me for over 15 years saw me work and hold jobs with great income.He was the only one that stuck up for me and said "THE REASON WHY HE IS WHAT HE IS BECAUSE HE GOT HIT IN THE HEAD" seems LIKE THE OTHERS INCLUDING THE NEW DR.WANT TO ADD LOTS OF OTHER STUFF INTO THE MIX.

I was working 80-90 hrs a week before the accident,had a weight problem all my life had bipolar diagnosis years back and still got the job done better than after the accident.I guess I don't understand why they seem to throw all this other info in the pot and just don't read all the findings and say" it is because of this reason".Mark you have stated here that they have no golden bullet for a fix for us so why not say just that? Why is it so bad to say we don't have all the answers to this problem? I would think it would make many peoples lives much easier to deal with.

I will go and see the rehab people and enter a door I wish was closed again forever.I will have all the overwhelming thoughts re appear and all the anxiety that goes along with my life now after the accident.I guess hope for the best and see what progress can be made in 6-8 visits at rehab.

hi I have been to my nuro psychologist twice now for assessment I think I had a hi IQ before, but its the processing and being overwhelmed that stopping me functioning I have asked for help with dealing with my personalty changes, like I need to unload big time but I suppose all the tests have a purpose,but how can they tell what someone was like before a brain injury if they dident know you, my family know I am changed and the chart show below normal in some areas but whats normal, as a project manager in a life safety industry my memory ,processing, conceptualizing. and multi tasking and attention to detail , were all highly developed, for me to function at the level I was at ! so for me, to show below normal in these areas is a bigger loss than it may be for another person and there for more debilitating

I know what you are saying about BEFORE.If you never tested the person before the problem how can you make any kind of accurate decision about NOW.

The battery of Neuro-psycvhological tests should include some tests that can approximate prior abilities. The WAIS-II tests measure different IQ factors. The WMS (Wechsler Memory Scale) tests show current memory skills. If the WAIS-II IQ scores are high but the memory and processing scores are low, this shows an inconsistency that means the IQ prior to an organic brain injury was high. The research based theory is that high IQ can not be developed without high processing speed and great memory skills.

Commonly, the neuro-psych will say the the big disparity in scores means that the patient did not put out a best effort. Mine said this despite my scores being in the highest levels on the validity and effort/malingering tests. Low scores signify poor effort and malingering.

The low memory scores often correlate with a 10 to 15 percent or more drop in WAIS IQ scores. Many neuro-psychs will put causation as psychological due to elevated MMPI-II scales 1,2,3,7, and/or 8. These same scales can also be elevated due to brain injury without any depression or other psychological/psychiatric factors.

Lloyd L. Cripe has developed a system for accurately differentiating organic brain injury from other causations that may be indicated by the MMPI-II (Minnesote Multiphasic Personality Inventory, edition II)

Many of the therapies are designed to 'help you lower your stress levels thus causing a reduction in cognitive dysfunction.

Yesterday, my OT wanted to do some hocus pocus yoga therapies to lower my stress levels. THIS MAKES ME MAD. Oops, there is not a tongue in cheek icon. LOL

If my blood pressure was any lower, I would never be able to get out of my recliner. 116/76 is low enough. No, I am not very stressed.

As someone else said, what do you do when it appear that the patient has a greater intelligence that the therapist? I think this just gets them mad and determined to try to control us.

Do a google of neuro-plasticity. The therapies to maximize neuro-plasticity do not show up in the OT (occupational therapy) and ST (speech therapy) rehab programs. I wonder why. Could it be that they do not generate paychecks for the OT and ST personnel?

As I said to the program coordinator yesterday, I am not in rehab just to fill up the schedules of the therapists. So far, the therapy has been very elementary.

Years ago, an OT had to work overtime to find ways to challenge me. Yesterday, the OT said the same thing.

Could it be that those of us with high intelligence have such highly developed work-arounds and other accommodations that we can make up for the symptoms that other need therapy to help them with.

Even though I have no visual memory worth a lick, I have learned to convert visual images into verbal images. I can remember the verbal images. For example, If I am driving, I cannot remember where the cars are around me. But, if I come to an intersection, I can look to the left and say to my self; there are no cars coming from the left. Now when I look to the right, I have the word memory of the image to the left.

Since this only works in very limited situations, I only drive when these limited situations are all that I expect, i.e. back country roads where other cars are rare.

The OT and ST do not know these skills to teach me, so why do I need the the rehab costs?

If you neuro-psych report has you confused, ask for the scores and research what they mean.

Raymond,

Have you looked into neurofeedback? Might be worth checking out. Helped me tremendously when other therapies failed, especially OT and PT.

Mark - don't be so quick to discount yoga and meditation. SPECT studies have actually proved that meditation and yoga can increase blood flow to the brain and also activate certain areas of the brain.