What is a Concussion?

A concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury (TBI) that occurs when the brain is jolted or shaken inside the skull. While many people associate concussions with direct head impacts, it is essential to note that you do not always need to hit your head to sustain one. A sudden change in direction or forceful movement of the head – such as a fall, a sports injury, or even a car accident—can cause the brain to move rapidly within the skull, resulting in a concussion.

Not all concussions present the same symptoms, and not everyone will lose consciousness after an injury. Some individuals may experience:

Loss of Consciousness : Some concussions come with a brief period of unconsciousness, but this is not always the case.
No Loss of Consciousness : Many concussions occur without eventful loss of consciousness. This can lead individuals to mistakenly think they are unaffected

Post-Concussion Symptoms

Post-concussion symptoms – whether from football or just hitting your head – can range from a slight headache in a mild concussion to severe headaches, dizziness, nausea or blurred vision in more serious brain injuries. Concussion symptoms in children can also range from subtle to extreme.

In this video, Dr. Marc Ellis, practicing in the metro Atlanta area, works to help people suffering from brain injuries better understand the signs and side effects of a concussion and how it can affect the different areas of the brain. He also seeks to help family members and friends gain a better understanding of what may be happening to their loved one. When people get concussions, they will often experience changes in brain function and behavior that they cannot explain.

Learn more about our Neurological Treatments.

Types of Concussions:

Vestibular (vertigo & balance issues)
Ocular (blurry or double vision)
Mood changes & anxiety
Migraine & headaches
Cervical (neck pain and radicular symptoms)
Executive function (foggy thinking, trouble concentrating, etc.)

Understanding the symptoms associated with different parts of the brain

Here we discuss the lobes of the brain and their specific functions, as well as the symptoms we commonly see when affected by post-concussion syndrome. Please note that many people have symptoms associated with more than one brain region.
If you have questions please feel free to contact us or call our office at 770-664-4288.

Frontal Lobe

Controls the emotional brain.

With post-concussion symptoms a person may experience:

May appear to not care
Might “give up”
Be Angry, Compulsive, Cry
Executive Functions – meaning they cant explain what’s happening to them
Zone Out

Parietal Lobe

Tells us information about our own body and where it is in space.

With post-concussion symptoms a person may experience:

Difficulty explaining the odd feelings they have in their body.
Spatially disoriented world; often times bumps into things.
Their world feels out of balance.

Temporal Lobe

Associates with emotions, imagination, memory and smell.

With post-concussion symptoms, a person may experience:

Changes in short or long term memory
Changes in emotion
Difficulty processing conversations
Hallucinations (they may smell, taste, see or feel things that aren’t there)

Often times the person suffering from these symptoms is afraid to share what they are going through. They are afraid people will think they are crazy.

Occipital Lobe

Visual processing center.

With post-concussion symptoms, a person may experience:

Visual disturbances
Double vision / Blurred Vision
Loss of vision
Bothered by flashing lights
Loss of visual processing (sees objects but don’t know what they are any more)

*Doctors will check the eyes and say “everything is fine.” But the patients symptoms are coming from the visual processing center. So the visual disturbances are brain based, not an eye problem.

Cerebellum

Balance and Coordination Center

With post-concussion symptoms, a person may experience:

Clumsiness
Weakness
Lack of Coordination
Speech and or Swallowing Problems
Nausea
Repetitive Ankle Sprains
Poor Balance
Double or Blurry Vision
Nystagmus

Upper Brain Stem

Sends dopamine to the whole brain and makes you happy. It also filters light and sound.

With post-concussion symptoms, a person may experience:

Tremors / Muscle Spasms
Light & Sound sensitivity
Become Impulsive
Hypervigilant / Controlling
Snappy / Violent
OCD
Anxious
Emotional Outbursts

Lower Brain Stem

Controls heart rate & blood pressure, anxiety center and nausea center.

With post-concussion symptoms, a person may experience:

Light Headed
Heart Racing
Sweats
Anxiety
Panic Attacks
Drop Attacks (heart rate goes very low)
Digestive Issues

Most people with concussions have already seen several specialists and have tried some concussion treatments.

They have had MRIs and CTs, they have taken the prescribed medications and rested. They have done the concussion protocols and rehab therapies.

So Why Do The Concussion Symptoms Remain or More Commonly Get Worse?

Because every person with a brain injury is unique and requires an individualized treatment plan.

Diagnostics

VNG – Diagnostic tool that gives insight into the brain & inner ear
Evaluation – Muscle, tendon, ligament, joint, fascia, nerve & organs
Balance Testing – Helps to identify different balance disorders

Treatment

We provide neurological treatments utilizing a brain-based model of chiropractic care. Our Healthy Brain Now™ treatment is customized based on your specific needs and exam findings.

Request a Consult

What Our Patients Say Regarding our Concussion Treatment

To many this picture captures our planet’s natural beauty. I agree, but to me this picture brings to mind joy, hope, and happiness.

Two years after my daughter played what would be her last soccer game, we brought her to Dr. Ellis out of desperation. We had gone to many specialists and no treatment was making a dent in the pain my daughter felt every day after sustaining her second concussion. Her smile, the light in her eyes, and her adventurous soul was slipping away.

The days at Georgia Chiropractic Neurology Center weren’t easy, but Dr. Ellis and his staff developed a customized treatment plan that gently pushed her brain to begin to heal. She is still healing but, as you can see, living her life to the fullest.

So, this picture – of her in Iceland, backpacking through Europe – represents much more to me than the combined beauty of the rainbow and waterfall. The fact that my brave daughter is standing there – in a far off land soaking it all in is, to me, the most breathtakingly beautiful thing of all.