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I have a brain injury [video]

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Re: I have a brain injury [video]

#22

Brain injuries are nightmares. I hope he feels better in the future. Neuroplasticity is at least a reason for optimism

So far, the following parts can fail without a person losing its humanity: Heart, gonads (testicles), lung, kidneys, liver, stomach, pancreas, limbs. But you can't transplant a brain out into a new body. Take care!

Eyes, ears, skin, nose, tongue, many bones, etc. Our bodies are very redundant and resilient!

Re: I have a brain injury [video]

#23

Reminds me of my injury in 2016. At first I felt optimistic like this guy, looking forward to full recovery. But as the years passed, I realized it will never go back to the way it was before. You just have to adjust to the fact that this is your life now. It sucks

What happened? How severe was it?

Herniated disk. Used to be in constant pain. Now it's mild discomfort.

Re: I have a brain injury [video]

#24

Brain injuries are nightmares. I hope he feels better in the future. Neuroplasticity is at least a reason for optimism

About ten years ago I had the right side of my face go limp. I was under the most stress of my life, in a management position I was not built for. After a CT scan, ER told me it wasn’t a stroke rather stress induced trigeminal neuralgia. I’m not convinced that’s what it was.

They gave me some anti-inflammatories for my nerves and sent me on my way, and everything seem to get better. I quit that job within about a week, and I’ve never experienced that kind of stress since.

It took me a long time to notice but my face still kind of droops on that side, and I don’t think I ever went back to feeling … normal. I genuinely feel like my personality changed, but maybe that was just the stress’s effect on my life, I don’t know.

The point of my story is who we are is just so much more malleable than one would think in our day-to-day lives.

Re: I have a brain injury [video]

#25
post #17

I had a brain injury a few years ago and I literally am not the same person. Be careful with your head, folks. It’s really easy to permanently change your existence.

Same. 2006. (In hindsight) I had some frontal lobe related issues beforehand, so it’s hard to really “blame” one thing or the other.

Overall, not worth the insurance settlement. If anything, the idea that I cashed out ended up alienating me from my entire support network. Friends and family, people I’d just met who had been told my story before hand… Yuck. Glad to now run in different circles selected for maturity this time.

Re: I have a brain injury [video]

#26
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, sounds terrible. I wonder what medical treatment he's seeking? My understanding is that there wasn't much you can do other than rest https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/concussion/di... but there must be something hopeful if he's willing to move states to seek it.

I went to Mayo after a stroke. I was (am?) a fairly high iq person, national merit scholarship, 99.8%tile SAT scores, etc. Degree in mathematics, compsci. I had a stroke in my 30s, and it was thankfully mild (slight dysarthria that went away in a month) but I'm certain it impacted my intelligence and ability to concentrate. I can't focus/concentrate for long sessions anymore. I used to be able study without problem u…

> I just wish it were easier to find doctors interested in helping you be the best you can instead of simply not broken.

I wish there was a searchable index of Dr's that fall into this category. I have no idea how you'd reasonably determine this though... Plenty of Dr's I've tried based on reviews are no different than the others. Maybe friendlier, but that's about it.

Re: I have a brain injury [video]

#27

I'm not sure if the submitter is Scotty from the video, but I'm sorry to hear this. I hit my head on a rock surfing almost 4 months ago and have been dealing with similar issues. I don't have any tips or tricks to share about relieving symptoms, but just wanted to share in case it's helpful in any way to know there are others, because just watching this video was helpful for me. Feel free to message me if you want to…

I had a brain tumor removed 2 years ago, and I have very similar symptoms still, although everything seems to be improving. I don't know how comparable these situations are medically, but I do know it is very difficult to find doctors who will listen or even group for people who have had brain injuries, except for random online message boards etc. It is extremely frustrating to not know if this is normal, or psychosomatic, if it will last forever, or what.

Re: I have a brain injury [video]

#28
post #4

Brain injuries are nightmares. I hope he feels better in the future. Neuroplasticity is at least a reason for optimism

Yeah, sounds terrible. I wonder what medical treatment he's seeking? My understanding is that there wasn't much you can do other than rest https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/concussion/di... but there must be something hopeful if he's willing to move states to seek it.

Often the treatment includes visual therapy, but it can also include special glasses, eye patches, therapy for balance, psychotherapy, exercise programs, inflammation management, sleep quality, and a lot more.

It really depend on the exact issues and symptoms involved. Maybe the visual system is damaged, or the vestibular (balance) or other areas. Thankfully, the brain is incredibly fault tolerant, so it can still find workarounds and co-op other systems to make up some of the difference.

But the workarounds are less efficient and this creates a tremendous load on attention and working memory. In hardware terms, imagine you're playing some graphics-heavy game and your GPU gets fried. The CPU can still run it, but it'll be really laggy and overheated. Luckily the brain can (sometimes) heal and rebuild broken systems. But it takes work.

Somewhere around 90% of concussion suffers have visual problems. Poor tracking, double vision, light sensitivity, difficulty focusing. Their brain compensates so well they might not even notice, but that sort of thing interferes with memory and wears out the brain really quickly. Therapy involving eye tracking, smooth pursuits, focusing practice and the like can get your brain to repair or rebuild those skills. That frees up all that processing power and gets you feeling more normal.

The Shaken Brain by Elizabeth Sandel goes into the known science of concussions. Highly recommended if you've had one. https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674987418

Re: I have a brain injury [video]

#29

I concussed myself (because yes, I was at fault) trying to swing on some monkey bars during an evening involving some rather excellent (hard) cider in Bristol. I felt ... "wrong"? ... for maybe two or three months afterwards. Just never at ease. Forgetful. A bit confused and detached. I didn't even realize the fall was the cause until long after the hangover went away, but the hangover .. sort of didn't go away. Unti…

A friend of mine was recently in a mountain bike accident in which she hit her head. Despite her helmet, she sustained a concussion. Her experience mirrors yours almost identically, including the timeline.
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