Facts About Concussion and Brain Injury

To the wife of July 2014 posting. Can husbands different behavior be from accident of brain injury. I have had a tbi for over 11yrs. My answer is yes. 

It can be from different reasons. The questions of you lying can be from his lack of memory and not having the cognitive to put a, b and c events together. Meaning that he may not know what effect his memory has and is questioning you for the problems. Here is what happened to me. I moved items and did not recall that I had....therefore I became paranoid, thinking that someone else was doing it. I not only did not recall, I had cognitive, transitioning and multi tasking issues, all that come into a play.

Another item that happened. I would have spells I called deregulation and after my personality would be different, as would be how i did things that would be different. I may be aggressive, happy, or osculate very rapidly in emotions where did not before. The mixes where not the same each time, often being different. My sugar levels changed as did sodium levels, there was a behavior, physical, metabolic changes. Speech ability (slurr) to communicate in context too ability to read began back wards or down to up.

I read that these can be internal changes, as you were suspecting, such as a very slow blood leak in brain, aneryreasum, stroke etc all being not bold and straight forward but effecting none the less. My suggestion is to keep a daily journal. What to write environment that can have effect but specific to above try going to the Mayo Clinic site, pick some areas of symptoms and changes that happen. The go to the section that says how to prep for appointment....Document....Then take this to the doctor.

Try if possible to get a doctor that has some interest and or knowledge in brain injury as it is complex, subtle, hidden and they do not get it. Get support for you and him via brain injury associations etc. These problems will not go away quickly. As you may be aware tbi improves with time, slowly.

Do not take his issues to personal, distance your emotions when you are umm accused. Its just the medical condition. Take extreme self care and go out and enjoy your self, take time out for you. 

I was in a 5 car pile up on the free way. After Getting hit 4 Times I was in complete shock and wasnt thinking I ran out the car and ended up getting hit by a car. I was knocked out for about 10 minutes max and when I woke up I suffered short term memory lost. When I got to the hospital I was told I had no broken bones. I had a concussion, whip lash injuries, some back injuries, Sprained leg and ankle. I'm 20 years old and its been 4 months since my accident I have good days and bad days. I still sleep a lot nd when I do too much in one day I get bad migraines. I still get confused sometimes especially when my head is hurting still have some eye problems like double vision but mostly when I lay down and its very random. My memory is getting better however I had a great memory before the accident. I was very active and a fun love able person. I know God has a plan for me leave your healing to God don't loose faith!

My husband had a car accident 13 years ago. His car had stalled on the highway so he pulled over to the shoulder, called me to come and pick him up and call a tow truck. When I got there about 30 minutes later, there were police, a fire truck,  no husband, no tow truck but a smashed up vehicle. The officer approached me and told me the ambulance had taken my husband to a near by hospital.I got back in the car and went there right away. When I walked in, my husband had an egg size bump on his foot, his knee hurt and a couple of scrapes on his forehead. Thank God! This was a Saturday afternoon and someone thought the shoulder was a lane and crashed right into the back of his truck. The doctors stitched up his forehead, gave him some pain pills and told him to make an appt with his PCP. We were home a few hours and he had headache, and nausea. Asked me to take him back to the ER. Very unlike him, so I did this as fast as I cold without making him even more nauseous. Everything looks fine, sent him home with the same instructions as earlier in the day. Just keep an eye on him, and boy was he lucky. You see when I saw the police report, he had been thrown 80 feet from the vehicle, and unconscious laying on the highway, (My husband was very fit with al lot of muscle, but still approx 200 lbs). Thank heaven for a lady form the nearby army base ( think she was a nurse) that stopped to help. He didn't tell me this, except for after we got he police report. He said , he remembered someone over him talking to him. He lost his cell phone that was in his hand and his flip flops from his feet, never seen again. We felt very fortunate that he was OK and those things were all that happened. Years later he started hearing his heartbeat in his ear, and his equilibrium was off. So he went to the doctor, she told him he might have an annuerism- he went back alone did some tests and told me everything was fine. Again we move forward in time- his behavior started becoming different, cant truly explain how, but different. He started asking me a lot of questions about where I was , what I was doing and with who, much more than the normal relationship questions. He then started a quest to catch me lying or doing something questionable to the extreme.(BTW, I was just going to work) My question if anyone can answer is; we thought we walked away lucky- I am wondering how much trama may have been caused internally that was not picked up. All I know is that the man I know now is not the same man I married. Could this accident possibly be a cause of his new behaviors?

Over two years ago, at the age of twelve, I suffered a concussion from playing basketball and hit the back of my head on a concrete floor. In the process, I also broke my arm, so when I went to Urgent Care, they only asked me if I had passed out, and when I said no, they ignored my head and only focused on my arm. I actually had to go back into Urgent Care the next day because I could not focus as well and was having double vision. They had me take a CATscan, and when it came back clear, they diagnosed it as a "mild" concussion. Well, it's been almost three years, and I still cannot go to school full time. I cannot do my homework without being tired, and I can barely do any physical exercise without getting an extremely painful headache. Since getting my concussion, I've gone through many phases. I could not listen to loud noise or be in bright light (I had to put blankets over my window just so I could stay in my room), I went to eye therapy for over a year to get rid of the double vision, which worked, but it was very tiring, plus I was not able to go to school at all for two months straight. Because of the lack of social activity in my life, my friends continued their lives without me and stopped calling me, so I became depressed and had suicidal thoughts. I felt as if no one cared, but I never attempted anything, so after going through months of therapy, I was more emotionally stable. I have an extremely difficult time falling asleep and waking up. When I do fall asleep, sometimes it can already be five or six in the morning. Aside from that, I have acid reflux, terrible heartburn, migraines, three MRIs, several blood tests, and awful stomach problems that have been occuring for years. Since no doctor has been able to diagnose what is actually wrong with my stomach, I have to go to another doctor this month. I've had to go gluten and dairy free, because one of the many doctors I've seen suggested it. It doesn't seem to be making much of a difference, since I've been doing it for a while now, but every time I try to get back to eating gluten, my stomach has a bad reaction since it isn't used to it. At fourteen, I should be out having fun with my friends, but now I'm too afraid I won't feel good enough, so I never call them. I should be excited for high school, but I'd prefer to be homeschooled. Life has its bumps, and I'm trying to be patient, but sometimes it's so hard, and I get mad at myself for letting it happen to me. Please understand that it can happen to anyone, even you. If you get a concussion, even one that heals quickly, don't rush into everything and put yourself in more danger. Ease into things, and think about what your life will be like long-term. If you keep getting concussions, I can basically guarantee you will have problems later on in life. Be careful, and God bless.

I fainted yesterday; hit my face/ side of head on the floor. My chin is swollen, bruised and numb. I also have bruising on my knees so luckily they took impact too. About an hour later I felt fine. But then as I went to walk again vision went blury. It's the next day and my chin is still numb and I get the odd ache in my head...I also felt extremely tired and sick today think I'm suffering concussion. Never had it this bad before.

Think I am a bit late to this but...if anyone is still on here, I wish to say my experience and how the doctors system is stupid. 

In 2009, 2nd October. I remember this date as its my birthday. That day I turned 18. Was having a party at my house, got silly drunk, ran down the stairs, was pretty much falling asleep while running, I fell about 7 ft like a pencil down the stairs and landed on the corner of a table, small table. Top left of my forehead caught the edge of the table. I also hit my stomach. I am positive I blacked out during my fall, because when I landed I then remember being turned over by friends and being asked my name. I was not sick, head was painful, but not a lot came up. I did not go to the hospital. Still to this day get pains in my head. Also the next year, around June/July 2010; I again was drunk, round a friend house, believe I got alcohol poisoning. Was in my friends bed, threw up down the wall, then fell out of bed, hit my head on the corner of the door frame, forgot the say I am not the smallest of people, so my weight falling is fairly high, I then repeat idly hit my head on the door frame as I thought it was a pillow, remember that bit. Crawled the the bathroom, threw up in the bath, then laid on the floor, threw up, and slept in my sick till lunch the next day where I was then ill for around 4 days. Happened Wednesday night, still ill Sunday, had to call in sick work 2 days. Also this was the same place in which I hit it before. 

I have seen the doctor a number of times who just palm me off saying its nothing. I have had a blood test, tried 3 different meds, which did not help. Saw a nurologogist who tapped my knee, asked me general questions and put it down to my weight. Despite me hitting my head extremely hard in the same place twice. 

Still to this day I get pains in my head. I swear I am getting dumber as the days go by. I struggle to concentrate, sleep, speak, I will be in mid conversation then all of a sudden my head will just forget what I am saying, I will try n think of what it was but my head is thinking about crap, that is all my head thinks about is crap. My head twitches, I get de ja vu, get it where it makes me heave for some reason. I am constantly in a day dream. 

I also have a congenital squint and 2D vision, depth perception, these have all gotten better since growing older. 6 operations, still find it difficult going down stairs as I feel like I am falling off a cliff. My right eye has gotten worse, sight wise, and over the past few months has been going off to the right. 

Just so fed up with docs not believing me. Is my head something to worry about. The pain is horrible, and so distracting. My head has never been checked. Can the pain still last this long? I feel like I am becoming stupid, mentally retarded. I just cannot think, or focus, concentrate, my head does not function the way it use to. :( feel so crap, no one will listen to me. 

I am a testing psychologist and I've seen people with Traumatic Brain Injury. I've seen a lot of people on here hurting and talking about their frustrations with "proving" the injury is affecting them. Let me give you some tips on how to help your case (and the assessing psychologist). 

1) Make sure the assessing psychologist is someone with trained experience with traumatic brain injury. Ask them how many assessments like yours have they done (it should be in the dozens if not hundreds). Ask them if they are supervised and if so by whom. Also ask them if they are a certified neuropsychologist (not all psychologists who qualified to evaluate will have that level of certification but it will help you to know they're credentialed)

2) Give as much PAPER evidence about your premorbid functioning as you can. Things like grades, previous testing reports (especially important), awards, commendations, letters of recommendation, etc will provide the assessing psychologist an idea of how well you were functioning prior to the injury (often times referred to as "premorbid functioning"). This helps establish impairment (especially if you have a 1:1 example--i.e. lower IQ, lower grades, poorer job reviews) and is very important if you are trying to claim disability or service eligibility. 

3) In terms of what tests psychologists should give you should most definitely ask for "neuropsychological testing." This is a VAST term and can encompass a lot so try and be specific as to your difficulties. Here are common problems associated with TBI: Language problems, memory problems, visual problems, and executive functioning problems. This last one is a fancy term that we use to describe the function of the "Frontal Lobe." It encompasses many different things (quite a bit of debate about it actually) and includes things like decision making, emotion regulation, attention control, flexibility in thinking, problem solving, etc. In the vast majority of TBI cases problems with executive functioning is extremely common and should be a STANDARD aspect of any good battery. You should insist that the psychologist checks this. 

4) Medical check-ups. It is really important that you have a team of professionals helping you to manage these difficulties. TBIs can be complex and the effects subtle. Insist that your providers talk with each other and FOLLOW UP WITH THEM. Yes we're busy, but we want to help! It really helps to have you coordinate what you can. If part of your TBI causes difficulty with that please let your team know and ask that you be assigned a case manager (often times a Social Worker) who can help keep track of all your appointments. 

Best of luck and don't give up! You inspire us with your fortitude and commitment. And to our wounded soldiers. Thank you and God Bless.

I served in Operation Iraqi Freedom and got hit twice by roadside bombs. The first one was the worst in that I fell back into the humvee and my Kevlar came off of my head and I went head first into the radio before being thrown from the humvee which I landed on the back of my head and right shoulder and was unconscious for around 5 to 8 minutes. I was transported to the hospital and diagnosed with a concussion. After being home for 2 years I started getting very bad migraines losing focus and concentration with a lot of things. I've been fighting the va since then for tbi which they will not award me although I have paper work from hospital in Baghdad with concussion diagnosis. I have learned that tbi has severe coincendences and is very hard to get help and treatment for, especially through th va. At times aside from the headaches one side of my face eye and hair hurts almost like it's sore at times and not always the same side or place. Really wish I could get help.

I was bending over and I hitt my head on the top metal bar of my bunk bed really hard, and the next day I woke up and I had a headache and my throat hurt but then it go worse, I got a fever up to 103.5 for two days straight and I refused to go to the hospital becase I'm terrified of needles and ivys. Plus, I'm not even sure if I have a concusion or not. When I'm laying down my head doesn't hurt but, when I stand up and walk aroumd I feel this sharp pounding pain In the right Side of my brain.

Hello All Love, Peace, Joy & Hugs. May we all be instructed and provided with the necessary help we need to let go of this tortuous suffering brain injuries introduce us to. I am 46 now and have experienced 3 auto accidents with 2 cars written off. My recommendations are lithium orotate for anxiety and rage. You can order off the Internet, it is a lot less harmful than prescription meds and it works- I went 3 weeks without and bore the consequences this nutrient is integral to holding it together with no side effects. The other recommendations are yes the book by Dr d Amen Change your brain, Change your life but also your diet and incorporate brain nutrients. Look up low inflammatory diets and avoid all bad oils anything GMO etc. I do a living foods lifestyle and if I have any caffeine or bad oil I rage (partial seizures my doctor says). I do lots of phosphotydil choline and other choline a some by injection. I have come far since I found these helpful nutrients, and participated in a cognition program and I know you can too. I need therapy as well as my partner as we are challenged in perception and communication because I am so different. By the way the lithium orotate really helps with paranoia. May your healing journey be the best ever. Leigh

I was beaten in the head by my father when I was seven years old.  My life changed forever from that moment on.  I am sure at this point in my life, looking back at that traumatic moment, I sustained a concussion.  This triggered the terrible inflammation I still suffer from, and caused a post traumatic episode in college, that was even more physically and emotionally difficult to deal than the original episode.  I am starting to reverse the inflammatory nerve damage, a very long process, and am starting to connect with my memories of what happened.  I am also just starting to emotionally connect with myself again, something that had been slipping away from me ever so subtly over the years.  Is there a medication that will "calm down my brain" so I can finally start to get on top of this hideous brain injury I have had for so long?  I have been misdiagnosed all my life by doctors and my parents made my condition worse, I will skip the details.  At 59 years old I am finally satisfied that my condition "was not my fault", as explained by my ignorant parents, and can be helped by medicines designed to help a brain that is still sending out pain signals to my body, even though the event was so long ago. My condition is literally " mind blowing". I am for the first time in my life satisfied that I have the answer to the question I have been secretly been asking myself all my life, "what is wrong with me"?  Now that I have reached this point, it's finally time for me to get treatment, and mend a lifetimes worth of damage, before its too late!

Go to doctor As soon as possible!!! Like yesterday fast

I had a concussion 3-4 years ago, the bump on my head had a grapefruit size back then... i never went to see the doctor, about 6 months ago i start having sever headaches they last 4 weeks or so, I've notice that every time i feel sick the bump in the back of my head has this jelly-water weird sensation (to the touch). I'm scare now 2 weeks ago the headaches returned but this time are causing numbness on hands, legs n lower back, my neck hurts n i had an episode where a horrible stabbing pain occurred n my left side of the face got numb and the right leg had no sensation. Please if someone can give me advice, it would be really appreciated. (Sorry about the grammar n spelling, english is my second language)

My seven year old daughter sustained a concussion on March 20, 2014 a week after my mom passed. She and my oldest son were awaiting the school bus and a car accident transpired in front of the building which caused the cab in fault to jumped the curb and hit them. She had to receive several stitches in the back of her head and according to witnesses when she hit the ground her eyes were opened but she was unresponsive. She has been doing well, but I have recently noticed that when I call her to wake her, she doesn't wake as easily as she used to. She is still attending concussion therapy appointments and her first pain management appointment to assess the mental concerns from fear is coming next week. This has been a trial a serious trial for my entire family. I thank GOD everyday because it could have been far worse but it wasn't. Head injuries are nothing to play around with. I thank GOD everyday that my children were not injured worse then they were. I truly thank HIM... If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with a Traumatic Brain Injury, please, please monitor that person well. Also ensure they get all of the proper care to heal with the healing.

My daughter, who is now 22, had a severe accident when she was abour 17 months old. She was kneeling in a plastic kid's chair, facing the back of it, when she fell over and whacked her head on the corner of the stereo speaker. My husband, who was babysitting at the time, called me at my ceramics class and told me to come home, which I did. When I got there my daughter's bleeding had stopped but the cut was very deep and still oozing blood. We took her immediately to the pediatrician who advised us to go right to the emergency room. We ended up having to wait at the emergency room for over 4 hours (this was at 9pm at night) before anyone but the ER doctors and nurses looked at her. By midnight we were still waiting to be seen, my daughter was shrieking with hunger and boredom (we were told we'd be in and out, so we brought no supplies with us). Our opinion was that they thought we beat our kid and that's why they kept us there for so long. We finally had a plastic surgeon take care of our daughter around 1am, had 9 stitches put in, but nobody ever said anything about any concussion or what to do about it. She seemed to recover perfectly fine, but now 20 years later, she has severe social anxiety, depression, and wants to do professional judoka fighting so she can beat people up. This makes me wonder if her personality has changed due to the injury at 17 months. She was very aggressive with children when in daycare, and used to bite a lot until she was almost 4. Is this all due to the head injury? I sometimes make myself crazy wondering.

I had head injury 2 weeks ago had head glued and concussion now another lump has appeared on the back of Head still got headaches what should I do

I had auto accident bad concussion 1986 and PTSD from abuse because I had slurred speech, and confusion was in my bed and got abused by the police, I had a concussion I was 33 y.o. of the concussion. I HAD DONE NOTHING AT ALL..Took me ten years to deal with the PTSD, and at least 6 months to deal with the concussion. Heard in 1991 that the soldiers were coming back home with concussions and PTSD and tripling the affects.

Took me until 1991 to get back to work and I had ? eye therapy for PTSD that worked and I managed to relive my life.

7/2012 fell into huge whole in  the street and had a very bad concussion. Had to stopping working as a RN due to this, concussion and spinal injuries and pain.

11/2012 had a huge truck smash into back of my stopped car, throw my car 2-3 foot. I can no long function, but people around me don't see it, other than my partner and he can she the extreme changes and facial eye changes.He still can't understand the extreme horrible I'm dealing with. Extreme headache that just increase with doing anything that wouldn't do anything at all. Dry heaving , brain stem pain, neck pain can't function nor get the help I need..Spinal swelling and inflammation. What used to take me 10 minutes takes me 10 hours if I can even do it. I could do anything love to work as a RN critical care and no problems doing anything at all. Can't do or function at all. Hours and hours to attempt to do anything at all.

June 2012..PA LAW SUIT can't handle at all and the judge and atty could careless how bad I am...

My sister ( end stage COPD, O2) lived in my condo past 10 years, is dying but they are refusing to let her live there, as she has to have someone live with her a 24/7 AIDE that per MT POCONO PA is a tenant.  Therefore, she now at 66 yo lives in a nursing home.. This I could have handled, and done the legal paperwork today CAN"T FUNCTION to even address it, I getting sued for huge huge amounts and nothing I can do..

Judge in Stroudsburg Pa is abusing me I don't have a concussion, nothing wrong with me, atty gets anything they want...I can't handle anything THE CONCUSSION I can't function at all. This abuse as per the judge isn't affecting me at all.

This stress is make my condition worse and the judge could careless. As per him it doesn't affect me at all...Can't get someone to help.. Address or make someone help with concussion. Now can't function at all, no one can see the total affects but I can no longer function, do something anything and my eyes extreme pain, headache horrible, can't sleep at all 2-3 hours, you can see the extreme pain in my eyes, can't think at all. If I was stopped by police for drunking I can't walk straight, one one foot, get dizzy, nausea and dry heaving non stop is I lean or change position.

I'm 61 and no long can work and afraid I will never get better. Auto accident Geico refuses to pay medical bills, their IME says nothing wrong, even with bad spinal pain. Can't afford even the co payment to get the care I need. Doctors angry I don't follow thru CAN"T I CAN"T FUNCTION AND I"M AFRAID. Most doctors don't have a clue about them..Live on Long Island all I hear about in young people with sports injuries.. Doctors seem to be more interested in them....Any idea what I do or where I go for help...

Geico has been nothing but abusive..How or where do I get test to prove I have a major concussion and how do I deal with it.?

If I had a drug problem, alcohol issue, was suicidal there is somewhere to go and help to get better takes me 10 hours to write this and can't get any help or prove I have one....ANY IDEAS how I can prove my pain and concussion.. Stress causes more issues I understand with concussions...

HELP what test prove these things. CAT SCANS, MRI don't I'm told.... Would love to go back to doing what I love helping other people as a RN

I just left the hospital from seeing my teenaged niece wake for a few minutes after having slept for 4 days in the ICU. She was the passenger in a car that crash at a high speed and was ejected. She had a large head wound that was stapled shut and broken bones that were pinned and plated but her brain is not right. After a few minutes of waking up she went back to sleep and didn't wake up again. While she was awake she said words and made up words for things she asked for, she was unable to answer questions with replies that made sense and she roared like a lion. She knew my name but not who I am too her. She is not able to follow direction but drank when it was held up to her lips. What type of injury is this and what is the prognosis?

Candy