When a concussion occurs or is suspected due to head injury, it’s important to seek immediate medical care. Typically this involves a trip to an urgent care facility or the emergency room. Unless complications or severe brain damage are suspected, the individual is often sent home with advice to rest and to use a mild pain reliever for headache or discomfort. If you’d like to facilitate the fullest recovery possible and efficient healing, there’s another option for follow-up care besides rest.
A functional neurologist will focus on finding structural dysfunctions that may result from a concussion. This type of care starts with a comprehensive evaluation that is quite different from the type of exam emergency care typically involves. Functional neurologists rely on advanced technology and precise tests and techniques to examine brain function in very specific ways.
Functional assessment can detect any changes in brain function, even those that are very slight. Changes in brain function may affect cognitive or motor function, so it’s important to be fully and properly evaluated after a concussion. If neurologic dysfunctions are identified, a functional neurologist can provide care that promotes a full recovery. Measurable changes in brain function can be brought about through therapeutic support that is safe and natural.
The type of therapy functional neurology provides involves gentle stimulation or calming of specific parts of the nervous system and brain. This is achieved through sensory experiences that facilitate the formation of new connections. By taking advantage of neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to adapt and change, healing and recovery are possible. Concussion recovery is thus a dynamic process that involves measurable results. This is much different from a ‘wait and see’ approach to concussion care.
Sometimes people who suffer concussions fail to fully heal. They struggle with ongoing symptoms like headaches or dizziness, agitation, depression, problems with balance, or trouble with memory. The type of brain based-therapies functional neurologists use to support concussion recovery may be able to help, even if the injury occurred a long time ago. A thorough evaluation could identify areas of the brain that need targeted support. Symptoms may then fade as a natural result of recovery.
Every brain injury and concussion is unique, so it’s important to seek out support that takes into account the need for customized evaluation and care. Functional neurologists understand that each patient is an individual who needs care that is based on in-depth testing is truly customized. Functional neurology can help you achieve the swiftest, fullest recovery possible through care that is exactly right for you.
If you regularly participate in sports or physical activities that put you at risk for a concussion, a functional neurologist may also help before an injury occurs. Baseline testing can make post-concussion evaluation and recovery more efficient should an injury occur. Baseline testing is a great way to be proactive about brain health.