The Ghost of Concussions Past: How old head injuries may still be haunting you today.
Concussions are quickly being recognized as an important public health issue. Many schools and sports teams are taking steps to help prevent this serious and widespread problem. While most people appear to be able to recover from concussion or mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) with rest, what many don't know is that the neurological patterns caused by a concussion can hang around for years following a hit to the head and can cause a myriad of subtle unpleasant psychological problems.
As an example from our clinic, we recently treated a middle aged father of 2 who came in complaining of high levels of stress, irritability and most of all extreme fatigue. Despite being physically fit and in general good health, he felt drained and anxious throughout the day often not having the energy and focus to get the things done he needed to. When we asked about his history, he revealed that he had worked for many years as a combat instructor, teaching police officers and security personnel martial arts and self defense. Needless to say this line of work involves being thrown to the ground and occasionally being hit in the head in mock violent scenarios.
While he could never remember being formally concussed, there were numerous times where he would suffer headaches and occasionally "bell ringers" following accidents that happened during training. He was surprised when we were able to point to several sensitive areas in his brain that looked to us like concussions, and even more surprised to learn that his history of being jarred in the head may be the main cause of his high levels of stress and exhaustion.
Concussions are quickly being recognized as an important public health issue. Many schools and sports teams are taking steps to help prevent this serious and widespread problem. While most people appear to be able to recover from concussion or mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) with rest, what many don't know is that the neurological patterns caused by a concussion can hang around for years following a hit to the head and can cause a myriad of subtle unpleasant psychological problems.
As an example from our clinic, we recently treated a middle aged father of 2 who came in complaining of high levels of stress, irritability and most of all extreme fatigue. Despite being physically fit and in general good health, he felt drained and anxious throughout the day often not having the energy and focus to get the things done he needed to. When we asked about his history, he revealed that he had worked for many years as a combat instructor, teaching police officers and security personnel martial arts and self defense. Needless to say this line of work involves being thrown to the ground and occasionally being hit in the head in mock violent scenarios.
While he could never remember being formally concussed, there were numerous times where he would suffer headaches and occasionally "bell ringers" following accidents that happened during training. He was surprised when we were able to point to several sensitive areas in his brain that looked to us like concussions, and even more surprised to learn that his history of being jarred in the head may be the main cause of his high levels of stress and exhaustion.
It's not just fighters though; anyone with a history of contact sports or who works in jarring physical occupations may be suffering from problems they aren't fully aware of. If you've participated in hockey or football and have been concussed or even just had your "bell rung", you may have visible signs of inflammation and damage that would show up on a brainmap even years later.
Another gentleman informed us that he had been hit on the right side of his forehead with a bat at the age of ten and was badly concussed from it at the time. Although he made a full recovery and was a highly functioning adult, even 26 years later his map revealed inflamed brain activity, exactly over the area where he had been it. When we treated him to relieve this brain pattern, he noticed he was much calmer and more at ease while going about his day.
How Concussions Work (In a nutshell):
The brain works by pumping positively and negatively charged ions like sodium and potassium in and out of the cells. When enough of a difference between the charge on the inside of the cell and the charge on the outside of the cell builds up, electricity is created and the cell fires.
Another gentleman informed us that he had been hit on the right side of his forehead with a bat at the age of ten and was badly concussed from it at the time. Although he made a full recovery and was a highly functioning adult, even 26 years later his map revealed inflamed brain activity, exactly over the area where he had been it. When we treated him to relieve this brain pattern, he noticed he was much calmer and more at ease while going about his day.
How Concussions Work (In a nutshell):
The brain works by pumping positively and negatively charged ions like sodium and potassium in and out of the cells. When enough of a difference between the charge on the inside of the cell and the charge on the outside of the cell builds up, electricity is created and the cell fires.
"Blausen Gallery 2014"
When the brain takes a hit, this natural balance of ions gets disrupted, cells get leaky and the ions leach out disrupting the important chemical balance the brain needs to keep itself running. In order to make up for this imbalance, the brain turns its ion pumps on over drive, desperately trying to push everything back into the normal balance.
This state of overdrive can eventually lead to the cells burning themselves out by overworking, causing the inevitable fatigue, headaches and brain fog experienced by people with post-concussion and mTBI. Although most of these symptoms heal with time, the brain sometimes never fully calms down after being hit and the cell's ion pumps can stay hyperactive sometimes for years. Not only that but this state of neurological hyper-arousal puts you at greater risk of being injured in the future should you hit your head again.
Imagine your brain like a cell phone, with a massive energy demanding app that gets opened, a "concussion app". This program remains open, running in the background taking up a huge amount of processing power and energy, slowly draining your brain's batteries. By virtue of running in the background, this extra activity never gets closed down, forcing the brain to drain and charge its power reserves more often making the battery worse over time because it's being over used.
(For a full explanation of the science of concussions check out our in-depth 45 minute presentation by Dr. Peter Deshane Here)
The Effects:
The effects of a mild, hidden or old concussion can vary dramatically and cause many unpleasant day to day problems. Many teenagers who come to us seeking help for their depression and anxiety, have a history of playing contact sports and can remember having taken at least a few significant hits to the head. Their brainmaps frequently show classic signs of a concussion and when we treat them as if they were a brain injury case, they get immense relief from their complaints.
Old head injuries that aren't fully healed can cause;
- headaches
- Brain fog
- Attention issues that mimic ADHD
- Exhaustion and burnout
- Busy brain (people who can't shut their mind off)
- Impulsiveness and lack of self control
- Decreased tolerance for work and life stresses
- Anxiety
- Irritability
If you suffer from any of these issues and have a history of; diagnosed concussion or mTBI, car accidents, contact sports, martial arts or work that involves repeated physical stress to the head, you may be living with the ghost of concussions past.
This state of overdrive can eventually lead to the cells burning themselves out by overworking, causing the inevitable fatigue, headaches and brain fog experienced by people with post-concussion and mTBI. Although most of these symptoms heal with time, the brain sometimes never fully calms down after being hit and the cell's ion pumps can stay hyperactive sometimes for years. Not only that but this state of neurological hyper-arousal puts you at greater risk of being injured in the future should you hit your head again.
Imagine your brain like a cell phone, with a massive energy demanding app that gets opened, a "concussion app". This program remains open, running in the background taking up a huge amount of processing power and energy, slowly draining your brain's batteries. By virtue of running in the background, this extra activity never gets closed down, forcing the brain to drain and charge its power reserves more often making the battery worse over time because it's being over used.
(For a full explanation of the science of concussions check out our in-depth 45 minute presentation by Dr. Peter Deshane Here)
The Effects:
The effects of a mild, hidden or old concussion can vary dramatically and cause many unpleasant day to day problems. Many teenagers who come to us seeking help for their depression and anxiety, have a history of playing contact sports and can remember having taken at least a few significant hits to the head. Their brainmaps frequently show classic signs of a concussion and when we treat them as if they were a brain injury case, they get immense relief from their complaints.
Old head injuries that aren't fully healed can cause;
- headaches
- Brain fog
- Attention issues that mimic ADHD
- Exhaustion and burnout
- Busy brain (people who can't shut their mind off)
- Impulsiveness and lack of self control
- Decreased tolerance for work and life stresses
- Anxiety
- Irritability
If you suffer from any of these issues and have a history of; diagnosed concussion or mTBI, car accidents, contact sports, martial arts or work that involves repeated physical stress to the head, you may be living with the ghost of concussions past.