Post Concussion Syndrome Recovery with Functional Neurology: Myths About Concussions. What Does Concussion Treatment Look Like? And What To Expect With Functional Concussion Rehab at Axon?
As we gear up for football season, wind down from mountain biking, and prep for ski season (only 1 more month until most resorts are open) we figured it would be great to get some proper concussion knowledge out there!
What is a concussion?
A concussion is a physical trauma from the brain moving within the skull, resulting in a stretching of the neuronal cell membranes.
This causes a diffuse inflammatory response triggering complex neuro-metabolic cascades and inducing an energy crisis and dysregulation of Calcium/ Potassium pumps, Glutamate metabolism, and neurotransmitter production. This can lead to: blood flow dysregulation like migraine, fatigue, and exercise intolerance, neuro-psychological effects like anxiety, physical effects like dizziness and visual disturbances, excitotoxicity effects like brain fog and inflammatory hyper responses from the dysregulation of the blood brain barrier, gut effects like IBS from the disruption of the gut brain axis, and hormonal disturbances like menstrual and libido changes.
What does care at Axon look like?
First, we start with a full health history conversation to understand you better.
Then we move to extensive testing to determine your specific subtype or combination of subtypes of concussion. This allows us to properly treat you rather than guessing and not being effective- like many other “concussion specialists” tend to do.
Our battery of assessments includes:
- Neurocognitive Testing
- Cranial Nerve Testing
- Cervical Spine Evaluation
- Vestibular Testing
- Autonomic Testing
- cTSIB (Clinical Test of Sensory Interaction and Balance) and BESS (Balance Error Scoring System) balance tests
- Oculomotor Testing
- VOMS (Vestibular Ocular Motor Screen)
- BTT (Buffalo Treadmill Test)
- qEEG Brain Map (qualitative ElectroEncephalogram)
Once we have completed a full assessment (sometimes taking multiple days) we will sit down and review all of your findings, educating you about your injury, and answering any and all questions.
Once we have determined your subtype of concussion then we move into treatment – a mix between in clinic treatments and at home exercise plans.
Our proprietary program incorporates a range of intensive therapies, including exercise tolerance and programing, chiropractic care, neuromodulation, oculomotor training, vestibular therapy, exposure training, mindset therapy (busy and external thoughts rather than internal symptom monitoring), photobiomodulation (red light/laser therapy), corrective exercise, sensory motor integrations, neurocognitive training, neuromuscular reeducation, IV infusion, PEMF, HBOT, metabolic interventions, applied psychology, and functional medicine. By combining these powerful methods, we aim to provide a comprehensive approach to concussion rehab that empowers patients to take control of their recovery and get back to what they love.
We Reduce and Remove:
- Headaches/ Migraines
- Dizziness
- Visual Disturbances
- Brain Fog
- Sleep Disturbances
- Brain Body Disconnect (not feeling yourself)
*Females and Children/Teens are shown to have longer recovery times and more severe symptoms.
Some Ways to Reduce the Risk of Concussion:
- Wear a mouthguard
- Strengthen Neck Muscles
- Improve Peripheral Vision Acuity and Processing
*Helmets DO NOT reduce the risk of concussion- they protect against skull fracture (in fact, they increase likelihood of risk taking which could arguably increase your risk of concussion).
**It is imperative that you get a proper evaluation from a Concussion Specialist as soon as possible, ideally within 72 hours of injury. The evidence shows the longer you wait before getting checked there is a resulting exponential increase in recovery time. Don’t wait, see us as soon as possible and get back to the field, mountains, or office!
If you are in the Denver area, or wanting to travel to Denver for intensive care, contact our office today and our patient care coordinator will reach out to you to set up an initial discovery call with one of the doctors.
