Living with a head injury

[lm3314]

I have been living with a head injury for about 5 and 1/2 years now. I have never known so much pain, fatigue and stress. I acquired my injury in an RTA. I didn't see the driver as I crossed the road on my way to school. I was taken to the late Frenchay hospital. Where they discovered I had an extradural hematoma on the left frontal lobe. I was in the hospital for 5 days, wanting to go back to normality I made it my challenge to back to school and within 2 weeks I was back in lessons. I was told that I need to take a year off but I was too afraid to let my school work to suffer. I know regret go back so soon. My whole world was changed I had to keep dropping subjects and the teachers didn't know how to help. It became this huge black hole in my life swallowing everything in its path. I'm still being accessed and taken to hospital for MRI and CT scans. I get dizzy and faint a lot of the time. Currently, I'm taken prescribed morphine for how much pain I am in. Does anyone have any advice or stories they would like to share? Mainly because no one in my family or friends knows what I am going through or what I will have to go through.

[Hidden]

Get in touch with Headway and ask them to send you lots of information to show your family, that should help them to understand what is happening to you.

[Nks425]

Hi In3314,

First known you are not alone. I had an AVM brain aneurysm in my cerebellum which caused a SCH stoke. This was 6 years ago on April 25,2013.

Like you I have a lot of head pain I believe mine was caused by the Gamma Knife surgery ( 9/30/2013). I have tried all kinds of treatments. Nothing completely gets rid of it. I take Gabapentin 300mg 3 times a day it’s a nerve blocker. I use to take 600mg 3 times a day but found there was little difference so why take more when it really doesn’t help. I also have Butalbital-Acetaminophen-Caffeine 50 Mg-325 Mg-40 Mg Tablet that I can take when it gets so bad I can hardly move. I have found going to a Good Chiropractor really helps with my head pain. It’s not gone but much more tolerable. Give your self time to adjust to the “new normal “ as people like to say. I always disliked the saying but it’s true. Our mind and body now work in a different way. We need to figure out how to function with this new brain in our life. You learn by doing but take it slow. It’s a marathon not a sprint. I use to be a runner I have just started back trying to figure out how I can do it without too much head pain. I’m here if you have any questions just inbox if you want. I believe I have my story posted. Some point I will update it. You name it I’v tried. I wish you all the best moving forward. Just remember to take things slower than you are use to and be patient with yourself.

Niyani

[jayne_h]

Very sorry to hear you are in so much discomfort. Have you tried alternative therapies like aromatherapy? Not sure if diet could help you but you could try it. See if you can get a copy of Tina M Sullivan, Nourish Your Noggin. (This works more for PCS but could be worth a try).

[sospan]

Hi,

A lot of the issues with a head injury, is the mental attitude which at the time is one of the hardest things to build especially when you feel your whole life is collapsing.

So the first thing, your still here which is a success and you can build on it. I had my accident in Jan 2012 then because of my injuries fell down the stairs in Nov 2012 and compounded the damage.

I lost my high paid job and haven't worked since. It took me two years after my injury to work out that the only one that is going to help me get better is myself. All the doctors, specialists, therapists will examine you, tell you that you have an injury and will keep you going round and round in circles for years.

After my injury, money was tight there was lots of advice on healthy eating, diet etc. So I decided I to resume cooking. My first dish was a cottage pie which took me 3 1/2 hours to make but gave me something to build on and improve.

Some 7 1/2 years on, I am so much more improved than I was in 2012. I still can't go to work, still have chronic pain which requires constant medication but I am mobile and keep as active as I can.

So I would sit down, work out what you can do and what you want to be able to and move upwards form there - but slowly

All the best on your journey

[Nhojh]

First and foremost, my heart goes out to you. It seems like you are having an incredibly tough time at the moment. It may seem as though you are alone but there are others who are in the same boat as you. It seems a short amount of time since your accident, to then being back at school. I was in a rta as a pedestrian hit by a taxi on 11/2/17. I had a sub dural as well as a sub galeal heamorrhage, 3 fractures of the pelvis and 12 broken ribs. I was in the hospital for three months and cod not return to my previous job. A new vocation is unexplored. Unless you have had the types of injuries we have had, no matter how empathetic they are they will not be able to understand as they cannot directly experience it. That doesn't give you the right though, to cut then out (as attractive as that may seem)! It can be a very lonely place but reaching out on forums like this can be helpful. I found meeting other people who have had similar injuries really helpful and that is from someone who is not social at all. I know headway is nationwide and have coffee mornings and social events. I really think it's helpful to meet other people who have had similar injuries. Being young gives you the time to plan what's next and formulate your future. It may seem flippant but I'm forever counting my blessings, because it could have been so much worse. My sister was with me when the taxi hit me and she thought I was dead. My Glasgow coma scale was the lowest possible reading. I'm constantly having to remind myself that I'm lucky that I'm alive and I have enough marbles still rolling around to be able to compose a post on a message board like you have, because it could so easily have been very different. I presume if you were at school you are living with your family and are still able to. If this is the case it's worth appreciating. As frustrating as that may seem, especially as it's the last place you want to be stuck, I think it's worth realising not everyone has that option. And this is coming from someone who's approaching 40 and having to live with his folks! It's far from ideal but the alternative would be worse.

As clichéd as it sounds you do have time to plan your next steps with the second chance we've been given. It will get better than it is now. Hang in there and keep going.

All the best