WHAT IS A CONCUSSION
A concussion is a mild traumatic brain injury caused by a direct blow to the head, neck or elsewhere on the body. This creates impulsive forces being transmitted to the brain and brainstem which can result in cellular and chemical imbalances, axonal damage, blood flow changes, inflammation and a neurometabolic cascade of events including energy production issues.
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SYMPTOMS OF A CONCUSSION & POST-CONCUSSION SYNDROME
Symptoms of a concussion can vary from person to person and can be dependant on the specific functional issues or damage that has occurred from the concussion. These symptoms may include: ​
- Headache
- Pressure in the head
- Neck pain
- Nausea or vomiting
- Dizziness
- Blurred vision
- Balance problems
- Sensitivity to light
- Sensitivity to noise
- Feeling slowed down
- Feeling “in a fog”
- Feeling “not right”
- Difficulty concentrating
- Difficulty remembering
- Fatigue or low energy
- Confusion
- Drowsiness
- More emotional
- Irritability
- Sadness
- Nervous or Anxious
- Trouble falling asleep
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And more
HOW LONG WILL SYMPTOMS LAST?
There are too many variables to determine how long your symptoms will last.
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Commonly, symptoms should start to ease within 7-10 days of a concussion injury. However, it has been shown that the brain can take up to 30 days to recover from a concussion, indicating that symptoms can last for this long.
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If symptoms last longer than 30 days it is classified as Post-Concussion Syndrome or Persistent Concussion Symptoms (PCS). There is no indication on how long this lasts, however PCS will generally be a result of an ongoing dysfunction. Our job is to help find out what is dysfunctional so that we can try to resolve your PCS.
DOES SYMPTOM RESOLUTION MEAN YOU ARE RECOVERED?
No, symptoms generally resolve before your brain has completely healed. This means that we need to assess your function and not just your symptoms. This is particularly important when returning to sport. If you rely on symptoms alone and your brain is not at 100% capacity then you can be more susceptible to another concussion, another injury, or prolonged dysfunction and symptoms exacerbation.
