“For fast-acting relief, try slowing down”  – Lily Tomlin

Source: http://www.sportsoverdose.com/nhl-players/sidney-crosby

Quite the title, eh? Sounds like I have delusions of grandeur! Just call me Sid! (That came about because a colleague teased me about being on a project team with me and having to deal with my days “out of the game”! )

So, what do I have in common with Sidney Crosby? Besides a good ol’ Canadian love of hockey (his love would be much stronger than mine), we both contend with lingering effects of concussion damage. Concussion effects are more serious than previously understood – and thankfully, Sidney Crosby’s situation is shedding more light (and money) on the subject.

In a recent post, I lamented about my vertigo and lingering effects after meeting some turbulence on a trip back from Ottawa just before the holiday season. I recently was sent by my neuro team to a specialist in treating concussion effects. Boy – did I learn a lot of fascinating information about the brain and how it recovers, or doesn’t recover, from concussion damage!!

It turns out that the concussion I had back in March 2007, as a result of a tonic-clonic (grand mal) seizure, is still causing me grief to this day, and likely for a long time to come. In my own case, I had a severe enough seizure to cause permanent damage to my left ear in the form of hearing loss at high and low levels (for example – I cannot hear crickets out of my left ear).

After my concussion in 2007, I was sent home from emergency and told to “take it easy” over the weekend. That was pretty much the full extent of my medical advice – “Ms. Marshall, take it easy this weekend, and don’t work your night shifts. Go back to work next week”. I suffered from serious vertigo for 6 months or so after that (no driving, walking with a cane, etc)…and finally got sent for more testing when my neuro team, after complaints from me, realized that there may be another cause for my vertigo besides my MS alone. So they then confirmed that I had had a pretty severe concussion, and pretty significant damage as a result. But no one told me what that meant to my life and managing my health.

I am still learning what that meant to my life and managing my health. For example, I now know that traveling by air will be an on-going issue for me, as turbulence will affect me each time…even the cabin pressure changes alone will be enough to cause some issues. I have learned that proper hydration is even more important for someone that has brain damage such as a concussion. I learned that even diet can affect concussion effect  – and that repeated concussions are really NOT a good thing! I learned that I have to plan for MORE rest before, during, and after travel in order to mitigate any effects. And I am sure I will learn even more as my personal journey continues to unroll.

I am so grateful that I have my yoga practice to help me further understand my “complicated yet fascinating” body! LOL!

“Your body has the amazing ability to naturally realign and heal itself, if you’d just give it some basic attention!” – Diane McLaren

Namaste

Carolyne