1. < Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
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How long does post concussion head pain and cognitive fatigue last?

Posted by jenniferctbisurvivor @jenniferctbisurvivor, Jan 4 1:41am

Hello and happy new year everyone,

I was rear ended twice in the last three years and I am really struggling the second time with the TBI, post concussion syndrome and the returning to gradual activity. First does anyone have any experience with how long the head pain lasts with activity or cognitive fatigue? I found taking breaks every time the head pain worsens helps but it’s so frustrating as it’s painful and takes forever to do anything. Thank God that all the MRI’s and CT scans were good but I am seven months post accident and just wondering if any has experienced anything similar and has some insights. Still struggling with the memory, brain fog, cognitive fatigue, confusion and multitasking is next to impossible which doesn’t help as my career requires all of those things. My speech pathologist is optimistic and just wanted to know what is everyone else’s experienced opinions.

Thank you so much everyone and I hope you are all doing well and are having a blessed new year so far.

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cor17 | @cor17 | Mar 17 7:54am
In reply to @valka "I take breaks and drink lots of water when I begin to get that feeling in..." + (show)
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I take breaks and drink lots of water when I begin to get that feeling in my head like it’s done. Before the pain starts. So yes that works for me too. I’m 18 months in.
As for the headaches. The whiplash has calmed a lot. The headache pain is less intense and doesn’t last as long. When the headache kicked in, it lasted a few days. Usually 4ish. and sometimes it was more intense. But yes, about 3 months ago it took a leap further away from the intensity.
I do light weights for mood stability. And sometimes I have to lessen the lbs because I feel that headache warning. I do lite arobices too help clear the debris from the electrical storm of the concussion. And I do yoga for peace. (I can’t recall what, but it means or leads to peace of mind).
I don’t sleep on my left side or on my back with my head looking anywhere near left. Or I wake with the concussion headache and the day or 2 is almost non functioning. With pain and fog and concussion.

There is hope! My heart goes out to you.

How’s your digestive system? Mine is wacky. Like right now it’s offline. Well glitching it is. It’s weird. But it’ll get back to work within an hour or two.

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@valka
My guy is off as well new allergies and I have to eat the same foods or I react. Second brain is the gut.

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cor17 | @cor17 | Mar 17 7:56am
In reply to @dollyjaneprenzel "@markmac I am the same. Jan 24 2024. I will never be the same. Tough to..." + (show)
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@markmac
I am the same. Jan 24 2024. I will never be the same. Tough to live with. Dolly

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@dollyjaneprenzel
Same April 25, 2024, never the same!

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kayabbott | @kayabbott | Mar 17 9:26am
In reply to @cor17 "@kayabbott Yes I see a neuropsychologist I am a month from two years yes the first..." + (show)
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@kayabbott
Yes I see a neuropsychologist I am a month from two years yes the first year and a half was hell! But I'm still suffering. Especially with the fatigue. Yes it's up and down for sure and pacing is what I focus on. It's very hard. Unpredictable.
Did you find after 2 years you felt much better? I also had many other injuries.

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@cor17 As you have found, healing from TBI is hard and very slow. I didn't have physical injuries beyond my TBI and skull fracture. Physical injury adds to the fatigue. After 2 years I felt better, but still some physical and emotional fatigue. I exercised my brain and body when I wasn't fantasizing about naps. I still had to heal from the social isolation; every time a coworker joked about me being brain damaged I felt gut punched. Most people will have no idea of what you are going through physically and emotionally, and having at least one person for support is important. I was also working on integrating who I was with who I was now; even just having a TBI will change you for better and worse. I lost trust in my self and abilities until I had healed enough to recognize what a difficult journey I had been traveled.
Most of my recovery took about 2.5 years (as marked by smell and taste returning and word finding mostly returning). It actually took more than 8 years for my final-point recovery, when my left temporal EEG was normal and driving felt like cars were not aiming for me (processing incoming noise, motion, colors). It has been 33 years, and my word finding didn't recover completely, but it means I have a good excuse to cheat on crossword puzzles.

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lopez | @lopez | 1 day ago

May 2019 - still deal with headaches, dizziness, cognitive impairment, brain fog, irritability, depression, etc. This was my 3rd concussion and by far the most severe - point of impact in 4-car pile up. Neurologist is very supportive, but recovery has plateaued. Put on a brave face, but struggles at home & work are taking their toll.

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davelunt54 | @davelunt54 | 1 day ago

Hello, and greetings from Somerset, UK
My story is that about 15 weeks ago, while out cycling in the wet, i came off the bike and hit my forehead smack on to a Scaffold bar, which was used as support for a wire mesh fence; i didn`t black out, but the day after i looked like a Panda !
2 weeks later, bending down in the kitchen, i took a step backwards and collapsed , didn`t know where i was etc, etc. Straight to AE, diagnosis, after a CT scan was PCS
I`m finding this very difficult to come to terms with ; i am 72, and fitness wise not bad, but the symptoms i am now having are knocking me sideways. The fatigue is horrible, foggy head , headaches, confusion, slight dizzy spells and an almost huge effort on my part to keep doing things. I`m sure people reading this can relate to what i have described, and i am struggling .

Good luck to everyone who has PCS, it is a constant battle as we all know and to realise there`s no timescale for this , is pretty depressing

Regards
David Lunt. North Somerset, England

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