head/concussion

[Rachel W]

Hi,
My boyfriend accidentally hit me in the side of the head while he was sleeping. There is no tenderness where he collided with me but I am terrified of a concussion. It was at the side of the head which is more sensitive above and slightly in front of the ear. I have had the odd slight headache since, but to be honest I had been having the odd headache earlier in the week anyway. I am terrified of the slightest concussion as I have heard they can cause dementia later in life which is one of my main fears.

I have banged my head really hard quite a few times over the years (I had a sliding wooden door from an animal exhibit come down on me which cause my head to bleed and bumped my head quite a few times on heavy branches (I am a zookeeper). When I was little I fell down the stairs and needed stitches.

Are these the kind of things they are talking about or are they talking about serious head injuries that would have sever concussion where there is no doubt. I really need some reassurance.

Thanks.

Rachel

[nomorepanic]

I doubt very much you can get concussion from this to be honest so don't worry

[Rachel W]

Thanks. It was pretty hard as I sat up just as he turned and his arm really smacked hard against my head. Hopefully if it had been hard enough it would have at least caused a bump or a bruise on the surface and there isn't any. Hmm...

[Beyonderz]

I think it's not too easy to have such with some minor accidents :) So no worries.
I hit my head quite hard a couple of times all my life, once, fell off on top of my head from a 1m tall wall.
I guess boxers are in more danger than us :) Our thick skulls are useful in such situations.

[swgrl09]

Ive hit my head very hard and not gotten a concussion ... actually I had a similar instance, my boyfriend elbowed me in the eye in his sleep while rolling over! I had a black eye but no concussion.

I think you really only need to worry about concussions causing dementia if you are a football player or ice hockey player getting smacked in the head every day.

[Rachel W]

thank you for the reassurance. I have been already worried about losing memory even though I am only 41 since I met a family friend with it (she is late 70s) and noticed I was getting the odd word mixed up and have had trouble concentrating. But I have also been studying a lot and REALLY stressed. So after this happened it just upped my anxiety.