10 Things I Wish They'd Told Me After My Concussion(s)

By Broken Brilliant

Have you had a concussion? A mild TBI? If you've recently had a head injury, you're not alone. Millions of Americans have a brain injury every year. Sports, falls, assaults, auto accidents, and more all contribute. To take care of yourself and get better, there's a lot you need to know.

What can you expect? Why do you feel so weird? Why are you getting so angry? How do you take care of yourself? How long will it take for your symptoms to clear up? Will this fatigue ever end?

This "beginner's guide to concussion" gives you an insider's view of what it's like, what you can expect, what you might experience, and why you feel the way you do. Written by a multiple mild TBI survivor with decades of recovery experience, "10 Things I Wish They'd Told Me After My Concussion(s)" fills in the blanks of this puzzling condition and talks about anger, fatigue, frustration, the neurological basis of your situation, and more.

There is always more to learn with concussion. And this book is a place to start.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Mar 18, 2016
• ISBN: 9781329981164

Book preview

10 Things I Wish They'd Told Me After My Concussion(s)

10 Things I Wish They'd Told Me After My Concussion(s)

Updated and Revised

Copyright (c) 2016 by BrokenBrilliant

For more information and first-hand accounts on recovering from mild traumatic brain injury (Mild TBI or mTBI) and concussion, visit http://brokenbrilliant.wordpress.com/

ISBN: 978-1-329-98116-4

Introduction

I'll keep this brief. After you get hit on the head hard enough to alter your brain's function, the last thing you need is someone jabbering at you.

I have had at least 9 concussions (mild traumatic brain injuries) in the course of my 50 years on this earth, and those are the ones I remember. There have probably been more – getting clunked on the head was a way of life for me, growing up. My last one happened over 10 years ago, in 2004, and fortunately I have not had any since.

I spent most of my childhood dealing with post-concussion symptoms, without realizing it. And my adult life has been hijacked by mild TBI at the worst times possible. I've had trouble remembering, trouble figuring out how to do things, trouble finishing jobs I've started... light-sensitivity, noise-sensitivity, feeling overwhelmed in crowds and large, bright spaces... I've had extreme mood swings and outbursts, and people I love have not always felt safe around me. That's a heck of a thing to live with.

There's never a good time to have a concussion, but it seemed like I was always getting hurt when I needed to be the most functional.

While the vast majority (85%) of people recover from a concussion in a matter of weeks or months, ongoing symptoms from head injuries (that were never recognized or properly treated) robbed me of a productive, happy life. And it's happened to a lot of other people, too. Post-concussion symptoms can be pure hell, if you don't know what's going on, and especially if you have no hope that it's ever going to get better.

The biggest problem is not getting the right information at the right time – just after the injury. When you don't manage head trauma in a common-sense way, it's so easy for problems to balloon -- and your life can go off the rails. I have written this guide to help those who have had a concussion / mild TBI to understand what just happened, and what they may see ahead of them in the coming days, weeks, and months.

Unfortunately, doctors aren't always up on the latest developments in concussion diagnosis and treatment. Still fewer