Concussion Management:A concussion is an injury to the brain. Since the brain is very complex, so can recovering from a concussion. Concussion management interventions will depend on when you received your injury and what symptoms are involved.
Acute Concussion:You have experienced a head injury or whiplash injury in the last 2-3 weeks. Early intervention strategies will help to expedite your recovery.
Persistent Post-Concussion Symptoms :
You have been struggling with concussion symptoms more than 4 weeks since your injury or have received multiple concussions or whiplash over months or years.
For both Acute and Persistent Symptoms the First assessment will be to devoted to reviewing how you received your injuries, symptom evaluation and discussion of how to begin symptom management.
There are many systems that the brain is responsible for and there are systems that also communicate with the brain. These systems can be affected after a head injury or whiplash, and could be contributing to your ongoing symptoms.
Follow up, or subsequent treatments, will include addressing these systems. The systems that can be addressed in Physiotherapy are; Visual processing, Vestibular Rehab, Balance retraining, Cardiovascular retraining, Emotional Regulation (ie. anxiety/depression) contribution and Energy Conservation.
Assistance with Return to Work and Return to Play/ Sport will also be addressed
Referrals will be recommend based on findings.
Visual Processing: Vision does not equal eye sight. If your eye sight is compromised referral to an optometrist will be recommended. However, Visual processing happens in the brain. If you are having trouble retaining what you are reading/screen work, bumping into things, having issues in grocery stores or driving, your visually processing may be affected.
Vestibular: The Vestibular system is apart of your inner ear, you have one in each ear. It is responsible for detecting gravity and also communicates with the brain to tell you where in space your head is moving. A disruption in the vestibular system can lead to dizziness, vertigo or feelings of being imbalanced. Either the vestibular structure itself could be affected leading to feelings of the environment moving while you are sitting still or increase dizziness when changing positions. Or communication between the vestibular system and the brain may be altered leading to feelings of being on a boat, spininess or light headedness.
Balance Retraining: Balance can be affected post injury. Balance is a combination of vision, vestibular and proprioception. Balance will be addressed in both the vision and vestibular assessments and on its own as required.
Cardiovascular Retraining: There is a brain-heart connection, and after having a concussion your system may have trouble with processing increased blood flow to the brain. Reaching a certain level of hear rate can increase your symptoms. This may be why you experience dizziness, fogginess, nausea, or increased H/a etc. when exercising or walking up hill. Cardio assessment evaluates how your system can handle an increased heart rate and associated symptoms. If this systems is altered, a training program to help you retrain this system will be provided.
Emotional Regulation: Feeling overemotional or having trouble controlling your emotions can be associated post concussion. Strategies to help manage these increased feelings will be addressed. Referral to psychologist or counsellor will be considered or encouraged if identified as an issue with your injury
Energy Conservation: Fatigue is a major symptom of a concussion and can often be ignored. Addressing your fatigue, understanding why you are fatigued and how to manage your energy will be addressed during treatment.