Lion's Mane is thought to help memory. There are a lot of foods and supplements that can help your brain heal.
Ask HN: How to navigate the world as a brain-damaged 17 year old?
71–80 of 113 posts
Re: Ask HN: How to navigate the world as a brain-damaged 17 year old?
#72There's Dr. Lewis's mega dose fish oil protocol for recovering from head trauma:
http://www.brainhealtheducation.org/resources/brain-injury-p...
You can use any brand of fish oil that's decent quality.
Re: Ask HN: How to navigate the world as a brain-damaged 17 year old?
#73You might look into neurofeedback. It has helped some people regain brain function. When it works, it can work well, and it's non-invasive so you don't have to worry about side effects. The book Symphony in the Brain is probably the best intro. There's also a chapter in the book The Body Keeps the Score.
+1 to neurofeedback, it helped me a lot
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Re: Ask HN: How to navigate the world as a brain-damaged 17 year old?
#74How can I get in touch with you? This same thing happened to my sister and now she is a doctor at Harvard and helps a lot of people in the disabled community. She healed her brain and can share how she did it. She was older than you and had less neuroplacity.
Re: Ask HN: How to navigate the world as a brain-damaged 17 year old?
#75As someone who’s been in a similar situation, I want to give you some hope.
A lot of healing can happen within a couple of years. But you need to start now. If medical tourism is an option, there are plenty of countries that will treat you for cheap.
And if you are self driven, meticulous in your research, and are sensitive/aware about your body and consciousness, look into r/nootropics. You will find many people who were let down by the medical system who have recovered from TBI. But you need to be VERY careful.
Btw: what are the painkillers/medication you’re taking? In what dosages?
How soon were you treated immediately following the injury? What was done? Any diagnostic/tests/reports?
Re: Ask HN: How to navigate the world as a brain-damaged 17 year old?
#76I'm not sure what the situation is like in the UK but is this all stuff that needs to happen now ? Because you don't sound like you're doing too well. You're studying drugged on caffeine and painkillers and then wonder why you don't retain information well. From what I've seen first hand a concussion like this needs time to heal. Your brain, the organ responsible for processing information, has been harmed and needs…
Agreed. In your shoes I would take a year out to recover. University is not going anywhere. A year can seem like a long time when you’re 17, but it’s really not.
I entered college at 17. I remember there were two "Mature students" in my year who seemed old. They were in their mid 20s. They hung out together between classes, and didn't stay on-campus getting involved in clubs, societies, drinking competitions etc. In short: they were adults, and being a student, I felt that I had deferred adulthood for a few years. Looking back as a 47 year old, it feels utterly ridiculous. I dropped out of college, farted about for a few years and only started to get somewhere on my career years later, and still passed out my old graduate friends. By the time I hit 35 I was debt-free. I now work a 30 hour week, by choice. Taking a year or five out at 17 isn't a big deal as long as they help you heal and grow.
Re: Ask HN: How to navigate the world as a brain-damaged 17 year old?
#77Regular intense cardiovascular exercise is great. Having had over half a dozen concussions myself, the increased cerebral perfusion it affords makes a marked difference in recovery trajectory.
That said, obtaining medical clearance first is always best.
Sleep, healthy diet, exercise, and low amounts of bad stress will pay dividends. Since you're turning 18 soon, try to avoid heavy alcohol consumption at least until you're feeling better.
You want good stress—be it mental or physical—the kind that lets you push yourself in a way that builds you up such that you can claw your way back to function and feel good doing it. Avoid the bad kind that tears you down and degrades function. Sometimes, no stress is best.
A psychiatrist could potentially work wonders for you, especially if they have experience with brain injury. They're experts in psychopharmacology, and their armamentarium includes a lot more than caffeine pills.
You're still young, so you have a lot more time than you think to heal and still live the life you want. Best of luck!
Re: Ask HN: How to navigate the world as a brain-damaged 17 year old?
#78Hi, my wife has post concussion syndrome, she was lucky enough to see an NHS consultant after just a 6 months wait.
The consultant told her not to take pain meds every single day, you need to limit it, otherwise the headaches will get worse.
Also, darken your screens with a privacy film, wear sunglasses, and get as much rest as possible.
Caffeine may not be helping either.
God speed.
Re: Ask HN: How to navigate the world as a brain-damaged 17 year old?
#79I'm not sure what the situation is like in the UK but is this all stuff that needs to happen now ? Because you don't sound like you're doing too well. You're studying drugged on caffeine and painkillers and then wonder why you don't retain information well. From what I've seen first hand a concussion like this needs time to heal. Your brain, the organ responsible for processing information, has been harmed and needs…
Agreed. In your shoes I would take a year out to recover. University is not going anywhere. A year can seem like a long time when you’re 17, but it’s really not.
Ya investing in healing is the best thing to do right for yourself in my opinion. 17 is really young even more when at this age you already know Rust, Python, and TS well… At this age I was barely starting to code. You could be 22 and know those well and I will still say you are young have a heads up. Not many people have this advantage.
So use this heads up you got at your advantage to negate what is happening to you right now, by taking the time to heal first. It will literally pay dividends of a lifetime.
I will be praying for you.
Re: Ask HN: How to navigate the world as a brain-damaged 17 year old?
#80I wonder if you could obtain stimulants and if it would help your particular situation. It's not like ADHD meds are somehow chemically designed to help only with ADHD. They can help with working memory issues and with chronic fatigue like symptoms.
I'm thinking about something like Concerta, aka extended release Methylphenidate. Probably low or medium dose. I'm specifically mentioning this because you seem like you could be at risk of burnout or just pushing yourself too hard. And being on a lower extended release dose limits how much a stimulant enables you to push yourself too hard, in my experience.
The idea isn't entirely novel: - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9214912/ - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26991608/
I've read studies referring to stimulants as helping "normalize" an ADHD brain over time, so it's not unthinkable it could help "normalize" a brain in other situations, though what exactly that word means is probably medically tumultuous. But, in short, I think stimulants have the ability to change a brain over time, not simply be a "pick me up".
I don't know what the chance of this helping is, but I felt obligated to mention it, because in your situation I'd be willing to try anything that didn't have a chance of further messing me up. And stimulants in therapeutic doses have an extremely low rate of long lasting side effects, but again, your situation could be really different.