How long does post concussion head pain and cognitive fatigue last?

@kayabbott I have a history of concussions (student athlete) and my most recent concussion was this past January after a fall, I am also currently writing my PhD dissertation (in neuroscience of all things) and it has been very difficult with the lasting symptoms from the injury that still have not resolved. Your reply with your experience gives me hope that I can complete writing my dissertation while still recovering. It sounds like we both made finishing a PhD even more of an extreme sport than it already is!

@kayabbott I have a history of concussions (student athlete) and my most recent concussion was this past January after a fall, I am also currently writing my PhD dissertation (in neuroscience of all things) and it has been very difficult with the lasting symptoms from the injury that still have not resolved. Your reply with your experience gives me hope that I can complete writing my dissertation while still recovering. It sounds like we both made finishing a PhD even more of an extreme sport than it already is!

My moderate TBI was 32 years ago. My headache only lasted a week so best to check with a neurologist on ways to manage that. I was working and writing my PhD dissertation at the time, so recovery was my year from hell (1.5 years to get to 90%). Pacing onself and napping so you don't hit the extreme fatigue is important. If you have an office, close the door and take a short nap. Good that you are in speech therapy. The brain does rewire, but it takes a long time and is a bit like a staircase with steps up, plateaus, and then down as the brain heals. Single focus is important while healing; break jobs into easier pieces rather than trying to multitask. I still do crosswords, suduko, and other games and I keep learning (my version of the brain as a muscle). Stress is very hard, and difficult to avoid, but find whatever escapes that you can. Let us know how you are doing and your healing progresses.

@nanacate

You are doing great, been there with you! I keep hearing the same things too, rest, rest and more rest. I take short cognitive naps, about half hour, really helped in my circumstances but my speech pathologist says it takes time and it’s a gradual slow recovery that can be set back. I would definitely keep your speech pathologist and the neurologist in the know, so they can help you heal. Three TBI’s is a lot and you might ask them about your progress and how you are doing. I ask mine all the time so we can change and adjust the exercises, rest, activities ect. according to my fatigue levels. I had to sleep a lot in between to recover from the cognitive fatigue and sometimes still do, boring but it works.

You have got this, I will be thinking about you snd praying for you.

I alm 9 months into my TBI. No terrible symptoms but depressed and anxious and my balance is not good. I can drive and my speech is fine but I'm getting discouraged because I don't know when this will all improve. I'm told the first year is the worst and I have a lot of support so I guess I will just have to be patient is anyone in the same boat as me!

Hello everyone,

Been awhile but I thought I would share some new learned information.

A speech and language pathologist is a must have for the physical therapy exercises to help minimize the Aphasia and to prove options for physical therapy exercises to possibly rebuild the neuropathways in the brain and learn different ways to function. Notes and journals help enormously with the memory and helping the constant cognitive fatigue. Never let yourself get too cognitively fatigued as I have found with lots of experience that it can actually make the Aphasia speech issues, the physical balance that makes it feel or seem like a severe case of Vertigo, slow down functioning, memory and functioning all together. Lots of breaks help….taking short quiet breaks or power half hour naps with eyes closed helps prevent the fatigue as it takes days to recover from cognitive fatigue symptoms after becoming fatigued…The head pain I have found for me is a combination of eye convergence insufficiency….daily physical therapy exercises for the rest of my life helps the head pain a lot and when pushed to hard to become cognitively fatigued or overly stressed or pressured at work also causes more head pain….Prioritize yourself and your health, know your limits and learn your rights. Never ever let the stress stay unaddressed at be allowed to cause a physical stress reaction after a TBI as there are so many injuries, physical consequences relating to the Cortisol and Adrenaline levels.

Hope everyone is staying well, being your own advocates and doing as much research as you can, that has helped me the most and got me to the appropriate specialists needed to get as much treatment as possible. It has been and is still the toughest recovery and grieving process I have ever faced, but with God’s help I have been blessed with a different life. I still get very sad and constantly have to grieve the loss of who I will never be anymore but God has a reason for everything. I hope everyone is also finding a way back into some kind of life after their TBI’s and hopefully this information helps someone, even if it’s knowing you are not alone….I understand and see you too! You don’t need to be perfect, or the same, so what if we are different now we are all still beautiful, worthy, loved and so very special for being one of a kind originals.

After 3 concussions within one yr I was having difficulty with extreme brain fog, recognizing necessary driving needs like knowing which traffic light is for me or not; generalized physical exhaustion; short term memory recall. I did see a speech pathologist for cognitive therapy and she very, very helpful. She helped me organize my time, encouraged me to REST, and numerous other helpful ideas.