Tbi??? - Brain & Nervous System Disorders Message Board

kehorner · 11-27-2006, 09:59 PM

Is it possible to have a traumatic brain injury that nobody noticed?

I seem to have pretty much all of the symptoms, but no major brain injuries in my history. I did take a header out of a shopping cart when I was young, plus fell down the stairs in my youth. But my mom says that I never lost consciousness, never vomited, wasn't confused, and after I was done crying (as most 3-year-olds will after getting hurt), I went on about my business with no trouble.

I have memory problems, migraines, get overloaded easily in loud/crowded/overstimulating environments, have never slept well, definitely have fatigue, have been depressed since early childhood, have word-finding issues (either can't find the word or will say the wrong word without even noticing), and I have seizures. That's pretty much every symptom that goes with a brain injury. Plus, I have prosopagnosia (face-blindness), which can be congenital, but can also be caused by brain injury or stroke.

There's just not been anything else that I can find that would explain so many of my symptoms. But I don't have a history of any one major traumatic injury. Is it possible to get a cumulative effect, or to have so many symptoms from a small injury?

I've had a head CT, MRI, and MRA, which were all completely normal. My eeg was slightly abnormal.

I'm currently getting accomodations in school for reading, memory, and attention problems. I'm not sure exactly what they put it through under. I originally registered with depression, but then registered with my seizures to try to get help with reading. The disability coordinator seemed like she wasn't sure if she could do much for me until she read my chart from the neuro, which documented my history of hitting my head as a child. Plus, the coordinator that I'm seeing is the one who handles both chronic health issues and brain injuries.

Am I just grasping at straws and trying to make a whole bunch of random stuff into a single problem? Or is this reasonable? Is there anything that can be done?

PearlDoves · 12-02-2006, 12:45 AM

Ever had an MRI of your neck done? After a fall down the stairs, I got some pains here and there in my back, and I also started feeling like I was depressed or had Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or something, body felt heavy and eventually i started getting numbness and tingling and was in so much pain i just didn't want to get off the couch. I also think my anxiety was hightened.... well as things went on and got worse, It was found that I had stenosis in my spine due to a bone spurr and I had neck surgery recently. Its possible something may be off in your spine, might be worth getting check out, but could be nothing as well and totally unrelated, just thought I'd thow it out there just in case it helps somehow. Perhaps you have a reverse curve in your spine (kyphosis) or some sort of narrowing in the spinal canal that might be pressing on a nerve or the spinal cord, which could possibly be contributing to your problems, especially since you've had some falls in your past. Might even be worth looking into a spinal tap just to see what is going on in there... Neurosurgeon is the kind of doc you would need to see I think, he/she could have these tests done for you and might also have some good insight as well for your condition in general should it be anything else... try to find a good one. Neurologist might have insight too. Good luck and God bless, hopefully something here is helpful.

mimgregg · 12-14-2006, 12:40 AM

Hi, I have had multiple head trauma due to a very active childhood, wrecks, and the final straw a backwards fall out of a doorway landing at an angle on my neck and head. I only lost consciousness once for a few seconds, but due to the accumulated trauma am now unable to work. They call it multiple concussion syndrome. I also have other health issues which are worsened due to the results of the damage to the brain. You do not have to lose consciousness to sustain injury. Think whiplash. I would suggest neuropsych testing to evaluate your abilities. Unfortunately tbi is the silent disability b/c we look fine but don't function fine. Some people it is very obvious, me I was so high functioning before but lost 30 IQ points and now have bad short term memory and cognitive issues as well as trauma induced mood disorder. It would also help to get your thyroid checked as an imbalance can mimic cognitive issues of brain injury. Hope this helps! Hang in there!
MimGregg