Hi! First time posting, and I sort of wish it wasn't just because I need some understanding ears to vent to!
I had a minor head injury almost a year ago now. There's no pain anymore- that faded in about 4 months, but I still find myself a bit vacant and scatterbrained, and my short term memory has gotten pretty bad. Honestly I kind of didn't want to reach out for help for this stuff- I didn't think my injury was bad enough to have this kind of impact (the doctor at the hospital said it was nothing too serious) but I was wondering if that was normal? And maybe how other people deal with it?
My housemate got annoyed at me today because I forget things he's told me sometimes and it makes him think I don't listen, and I don't know, it kind of upset me because I /do/ listen, or I try to, but sometimes things just. Don't stick in my head the way they should. And I worry that people are always just going to think I'm selfish or ignorant or useless because I come across like I'm not listening. I worry that I'm always going to be forgetting important things and people are going to think it's because I don't think they're worth talking to.
I'm not sure what I'm asking here to be honest. I suppose I'd like some confirmation that this is normal? Am I right in thinking this is because of the injury? Or am I just being a scatterbrained weirdo who needs to pay more attention to his surroundings?
Thanks for reading, I look forward to being introduced to everyone.
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reluctantOracle
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Hi Oracle and welcome. Minor head injuries are being taken more seriously nowadays and they've been found to have longer-lasting effects than once believed, especially concerning memory and concentration. Please check out the following link (& maybe show the contents to your housemate)….
Best wishes, Cat x
PS we're always here for tips on coping with forgetfulness 🤔
Go to your GP and tell them to refer you to a neuro-psychologist for an assessment, you've probably got post concussion syndrome, it needs assessing so you can learn how to deal with it.
Hi Zoe, you can ask your GP to refer to a neuro-psychologist for cognitive testing, they can identify any cognitive problems. Yes I have had this done, I had five two hour sessions over a period of a couple of months. A number of problem areas were found and I have since been addressing them via cognitive therapy techniques I have found through the American veterans association and brain injury 'coaches' on youtube. I've had some really good results. I am also starting a mindfulness based cognitive therapy course next week, I am expecting a big jump after this.
For visual and balance and auditory issues I had to take a different approach via youtube as the brain injury unit ( where I got the cognitive testing) do not test for these problems. I went private for the visual as it is not recognised yet by the UK NHS system. I think the visual treatment via coloured lenses had the single most positive impact during the 'journey'. I think it reduced the sensory overload to such an extent that I started recovering in a big noticeable way.
I would say push to get as much as you can get via the NHS system and get the rest done via private means and through youtube especially the American VA who seem to be very adventurous in therapy methods.
Hi another thing that may help, if your GP won't do anything then change practices. Another thing with me was that my GP (after I changed) referred me to the BI unit but they did not assess me until a neurologist referred me. My new GP said I would not have got anywhere without being optimistically strong and pushy and that my background work to get informed about the subject helped so much. As he said he knew nothing about the subject himself and my finding triggered him to look much deeper into the subject himself. He is also a young doctor and I think open to ideas rather than the older one I had before who is stuck in old ideas about PCS and visual problems.
Sorry you still have problems. All I can say , head injuries can take a long time to get better . The brain needs lots of rest and water . You should tell your housemate that it will be some time before you are back to normal , if ever . I wish you a happier time in the future but please take your time .shona 🤗🏴
yeh its frustrating, i get caught in mid sentence, or ill ask my wife what i was talking about.
my wife has been with me through the ups and downs. she goes with me to appointments because since my stroke i dont leave the house without her ( but even thats stopped unless its really necessary ) and if i did go to an appointment on my own, i would have forgotten what had been said by the time id got up off the chair.
find your nearest monthly headway meeting and take your flatmate along, hell realise that yourre not ignoring him.
It does seem it would be helpful to know what the possibility of recovery is for you. Finding ways to work around memory issues is helpful, prompts, a notepad, post-it notes etc. My brain injury occurred over 15 years ago and i’ve found my iPad a great help with the calendar and notes, reminders etc. Also when having some Cognitive Behavioural Therapy years ago the idea of keeping a diary was helpful, at the end of the day find somewhere quiet where you can relax and concentrate and try to write down the events of that day starting from getting up in the morning in as much detail as you can. It helped my memory recall a lot just doing that regularly.
Even after 15 years I find that my close friends and family don’t really have an appreciation of how i’m effected day to day by the brain injury even after i’ve tried to explain it clearly to them. The funny thing is that a lot of them are reaching an age when they’re starting to experience memory recall issues and complaining about how frustrating it is!
It absolutely your injury. Brains need a lot of healing.
My dad has suffered a massive TBI and is now severely brain damaged. I have researched loads and I am a believer in alternative and natural healing.
My advice to you would be to make sure your diet has brain boosting foods as your brain needs certain things to heal well. Google "healing your brain with food."
I give my dad fish oils as your brain will need extra Omega 3 to heal. The 1 I give my dad is VERY high quality but also VERY expensive. You must make sure you take a good quality 1 or it could have negative effects on u rather than good. Make sure the DHA and EPA are both high and of a similar amount each. It's worth researching.
Take a nap during the day as you may suffer Brain Fatigue which is extremely common with brain injury.
Sleep in the dark.
Exercise if you can
Use essential oils. I use frankincense as it has molecules small enough to pass the blood brain barrier and carry oxygen to parts of the brain deprived of it. Also, sandalwood, cedar wood. Rosemary, good for memory. Dilute in a natural oil (sweet almond, grape etc- anything normally used in massage) NEVER INGEST. you could also buy an electric diffuser and vaporiser. Add to your bath. I use both methods for my dad. Massage his head and neck daily in oil. Diffusing is much less messy lol.
Please do a little research if you can manage.
There is a flower essence called "Cognis" which is all natural so no side effects. Buy from Helios.
I hope this helps a bit. Feel free to ask anything else.
Dont worry, you need time and patient people around you. It is ot your fault and you are doing the best you can
As others have said, you are completely normal. I have short term memory issues as well. My experience is that people rarely understand unless they have similar personally. All you can do is try your best to explain calmly and rationally why you are as you are. BI is something that normally stays with you always. But I feel it is better to be positive about what you are going through than negative. For example, try to make light of it. Laugh things off where you can and joke that yes you know your memory is bad but it isn't the same as not listening in the first place. People need to know they must be patient with you and those that care will at least try to be understanding.
concussion- i slipped and hit my head on a sink and was knocked out, didn’t get to a hospital until a few days after (which shows it wasn’t super dangerous but still should have gone sooner)
I had a brain haemorrhage, so a bit different but I can relate to the symptoms you describe. But I was very obviously vacant, I would just stand and stare into thin air in shopping centres or on the street, like in a dream, until snapped out of it by someone. This is apparently normal after a brain injury, but no one told me. I had to find out a lot of things for myself and I found doctors not very knowledgable in this area. Did you have any scans or medical investigations?
Maybe keep a diary of these moments, for yourself but also to bring to the doctor, he may refer you to a neurologist or someone who can help. And having them written down you don’t have to remember when your next doctor appointment is.
Hiya! I would say that the VERY BEST thing you can do is to call the Headway helpline on 0808 800 2244. They are amazingly good and will help you to understand what is going on with you. When I first had problems after my brain injury I actually phoned the mental health helpline that MIND run because I thought that I was going mad! Thank goodness the person I spoke to recommended that I call Headway. Best move I ever made. They have so much knowledge about every kind of problem but it is also so helpful to talk to someone who understands. Good luck!
It took me a long time to try and connect to anyone in a head injury community, and I remember feeling really relieved that even though everyone's story is unique, there are things that I finally felt other people could relate to.
In this case after reading your post-
Doubting yourself. Or rather accepting yourself.
That's a major part of the recovery process, accepting that you have a few more needs than you used to, and that's fine. People might have bad days occasionally as everyone does, and they might take it out on you by accident and as you have taken a knock it can seem quite big, but don't overreact. Try and speak to yourself with care.
Hi Reluctant Oracle, sorry to hear of your problems. I do understand as I am in a similar situation. I was found unconcous after a fall six months ago. Ct scan was normal. Six months later I have headaches, fatigue, slowed mental processing, lack of concentration and forgetfulness. Its difficult for people to understand I think. We don't have a visible injury.
From the reading I have done, it takes induviduals varying amounts of time to recover completely. So, in answer to your query, it's normal - for us!
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& my third & final post - the power nap !!!
Post concussion syndrome
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