Head Injuries

Over the last several years Prescott Brain Integration has been seeing people with certain head injuries who have issues similar to the ADD/ADHD clients I routinely see, and I am convinced that this is a population for which Brain Integration Technique can have a major impact. This is particularly true for people who have had concussions and now have Post-Concussion Syndrome.

Client Stories…

Anika – Post-Concussion Syndrome

Anika struggled with post-concussion syndrome for years before coming for BIT. Here are the details of what happened next.

Lynn’s work changed my life — I really cannot overstate that. Three years ago, I suffered two concussions in six months, and though they weren’t individually serious, I was left with post-concussion syndrome for years. Though time helped some, I was left feeling like I was never functioning at more than 70% of my brain capacity — and often it felt more like 50%.

As a college student and a person who loves learning, not being able to remember anything, concentrate, or really be present at all was severely affecting my quality of life. I also couldn’t run or do anything that jostled my noggin. I could no longer participate in conversations actively or cleverly.

By random chance, I came across Lynn’s page, and was very skeptical that any treatment could promise such results; however, the reviews were so ubiquitously good that I gave her a call. My philosophy is that if you have a problem affecting your life that much, you throw everything you can at it. I knew it was a gamble, but it felt like a good fit.

Brain Integration is a form of energy work that’s hard to describe, but it’s easy, gentle, and interesting to observe. Lynn is a deeply gifted healer and is sharp as a tack, and you can feel the serene energy in her the moment you walk into the room. I am profoundly grateful to have found this treatment.

After the first day, frankly I did not think it had done anything and I was coming to accept that I’d gambled my money and lost, but the next day absolutely shocked me. I awoke on day two, and actually thought I was angry for a while, and couldn’t figure out why! Everything seemed so sharp and intense. After years of the fog of post-concussion syndrome, my mind felt quick as a whip and just as concentrated. When I went into Lynn’s office that day, we did the exact same memorization and recall tests as we had the day before, but I did significantly better and they felt so much easier.

In the months since treatment, it’s like my life is back. My mind feels how I remember it feeling, and now only eating a ton of carbs and bread (ha!) will bring me back to that foggy state. I can exercise however I want. I can recall the things I want to say. I used to consider myself an intelligent person, and now I finally feel that way again. I am present in the moment for the first time in a long time.

Brain Integration and Lynn Leu changed my life. It is easily the best money I’ve ever spent, investing in my own health and future, and really…my happiness. I feel so much joy in being free of the burden of post-concussion syndrome. Especially given how in western medicine, the only treatment is to wait and hope it gets better; for some, it never will. It’s amazing that a gentle energy treatment with no possible side effects can effectively cure post-concussion syndrome.

Thank you Lynn, truly, for giving me my mind back!”

Eileen Mitchell – Brain Injury

Eileen is a great example of someone who had struggled with the symptoms of post-concussion syndrome for decades without realizing the cause of these symptoms. Her changes after BIT were immediate.

It’s good to be back!

Growing up, I would read for pleasure. Getting good grades in school came easy for me. If I read something once, I would remember the information, and did not need to study/review for tests; as long as I read the material or paid attention in class.

When I was in college, this was not the case. The material was much more difficult, so I figured that this was the reason. I would read the same information over and over with little retention. I resorted to study groups; remembering who said what for when I was taking a test, or I would hand write out facts on flash cards to review and remember the information.

Now in my late 40’s, I accepted that if I walked into a store and asked for directions on how to find something, if there were more than 2 steps, I would lose the information. I would complete the first 2 steps and look for another associate or randomly search for the item in question…

I heard about Brain integration from a colleague, who had fantastic results after having a concussion. I thought about my experience with recall, and having been in a car accident when I was 17, when I shattered the window with my head, walking away with a concussion and finding out later, TMJ. I also had more than one concussion from horseback riding (jumping) within the next few years following the car accident. I had not correlated my change in retention to my accidents before this… I talked to Lynn and we both thought that I would be a good candidate, so I got on her calendar and eagerly awaited our time together.

When I arrived, I couldn’t remember number sequences above 5 numbers and I could only retain a couple of facts from reading, which was “normal” for me. After going through the Brain Integration process with Lynn; the very next day, I could remember long number sequences and recite dozens of facts that I read. I got so excited about this, I looked at Lynn and exclaimed “I’m Back”! It feels so good to be able to do this again!

On the way home, I noticed my vision is much more detailed. I spent the drive in awe; I see so much more texture when looking at things both near and far away. I hear music in 3D now; meaning instead of just hearing the melody, I hear each instrument, I am more aware of song lyrics and the meaning of songs, which hadn’t necessarily occurred to me prior… My reclaimed acuteness and clarity is hard to describe.

Prior to the brain integration, I could describe a place and not remember the name of it, now I can easily recall things like this. If I am on the Wordscapes app doing a crossword, and one comes up that I had done before, I would know I had already solved it; and now not only do I recognize this, I know all of the words immediately. I recall facts, and can easily plan and execute a presentation, recalling all of my key points without cue cards or prompts.”

Anonymous – Brain Injury, ADHD, PTSD

This college student prefers to remain anonymous. She had many different issues when she arrived for Brain Integration, and here reports some of the changes she observed.

After experiencing brain integration with Dr. Leu, I experienced multiple shifts in my life. I had been diagnosed with dyslexia, a couple concussions, and suspected ADHD. I came to Dr. Leu in hopes for help with all of those things, but mostly for my situational depression that I had been experiencing after a traumatic experience. Brain integration made me feel at peace with my reality and with what had happened. I no longer hold the event in the present. Dr. Leu helped my brain to understand that it is in the past. I also saw a huge improvement in my ability to remember what I read, and to memorize what I need to, and to recall numbers and how to spell words. I have always struggled to do things like keep my room clean. After brain integration I have been able to do this much more successfully!”

Matthew – Adult Traumatic Brain Injury & PTSD

Matthew spent eight years in the U.S. Army. He came home from Iraq a wounded warrior, with a disability due to Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and pain from physical injuries. Three years later, after trying many different powerful medications with difficult side effects, he came to Prescott Brain Integration.

One of Matthew’s biggest concerns was his extreme lack of short-term memory. He couldn’t remember what people said even minutes after they said it. He reported that his wife (also his caretaker) had to tape notes everywhere and repeat herself constantly. He tried to take a course at local college but couldn’t remember anything once he left the classroom.

Matthew gave up reading because he couldn’t see the point anymore. He immediately forgot whatever he read. He also reported issues with focus, concentration, impulsivity, impatience, leaving projects incomplete, poor balance, and clumsiness. PTSD issues haunted him.

During our initial assessment, Matthew’s difficulty with short-term memory was apparent in his great difficulty in remembering numbers forwards or backwards – he performed at about a first grade level. His reading out loud was hesitant, choppy, and he stumbled frequently over common words. Worse, he could remember very little if anything of what he read.

By the afternoon of the second and last day, things had changed dramatically. This is what Matthew told me:

I could hardly believe it when I did the numbers backward thing again today and now I can do six. I could only do two yesterday. Having a “mind’s eye” is an amazing thing. I could see the numbers in my mind and read them backwards. After the coding exercise, I could remember all nine symbols I had used, even though no one asked me to memorize them. My brain just did it for me. And hours later I could still remember all of them. Truly amazing!

My voice was strong and confident when I read, and I could read quickly with no stumbling at all. I remembered almost everything. I can’t wait to go back to school next month with my new brain. I know I’m going to have a very different experience.

I had lunch with my wife in the middle of the day today. I told her this was just amazing. My head is clearer than it’s ever been. My brain seems more organized. My wife referred to something at lunch that she had told me in 5AM this morning, and I immediately remembered the whole conversation, something I definitely couldn’t do before.

I’ve tried a lot of things since I came back from Iraq, and I’ve done everything I was supposed to do, but I never saw a change. The change from Brain Integration is very tangible, and very clear.

I’m not feeling chaotic inside. The flow is great. This morning I did everything in a relaxed and happy way without a break. I knew I could do what needed doing, and I got all three kids and myself up, fed and ready to go in 30 minutes. I had time to play with them before we left. The day before, the same routine had taken me 90 minutes, and I was stressed and a little anxious the whole time.

Last night I went to a meeting with some other combat vets, and I helped to put the folding chairs away in their rack. I didn’t have my usual clumsiness with this task. I put the chairs on the rack smoothly and easily without losing my balance or bumping into anything.

 

Two weeks later:

I’m doing really well, definitely better! Everything I told you before is still true. My memory works! I’m excited about going back to school, now that I see that I can learn and retain new information.

With PTSD, what I notice most is that while I am is still on “high alert”, now I have time to analyze what’s actually going on before I react, which is definitely new for me. Before I would react first, and then assess what was happening. I’m pretty calm, not chaotic.

What I want to say to other veterans is that Lynn is a down-to-earth person, not judgmental, and she creates a safe environment that is comfortable and casual and supportive. I’m recommending this to other combat veterans I know with these kinds of issues.

 

Kathleen Gillis, MBA – Adult Post-Concussion Syndrome

In June of 2009 Kathleen suffered a concussion with severe and lasting after effects that have been well documented by both a neurologist and a psychologist. In November of 2012 she came for Brain Integration Technique (BIT), with particular concern about her continuing inability to focus, her lack of short term memory, her anxiety, her difficulty in finding words, and her fear of falling or leaving her home.

Two months later Kathleen reported in on what had changed for her after Brain Integration, and she encouraged me to share her report so that other people with lasting problems after a concussion could benefit from her experience. I sent my summary of her verbal report to her for review, and Kathleen replied:

Lynn, I find your summary a very accurate representation of our follow up meeting and most importantly the significant and in some cases dramatic improvement in my post concussion symptoms. I am very grateful to you for your work and for taking me on as your patient for BIT. I would not hesitate to recommend you to anyone living with long-standing post concussion symptoms. You and BIT have given me an opportunity to lead a more normal life and return to the higher functioning person who existed before my injury. Bless you!

 

Here is the summary of her report:

Kathleen started out by saying that since Brain Integration in November she is definitely able to focus, and to follow though and complete tasks. She sees this difference both at work and at home. An example at home: she had a very busy day ahead and company coming for dinner, and was able to decide the night before to get up early to give herself two hours to clean, and then stay on task to complete these tasks and still get to work on time, all without becoming anxious or overwhelmed. An example at work: she recently attended a seminar and was able to concentrate and remain engaged all day, experiencing no issue with short attention span.

Kathleen is rarely dropping or searching for words, and is now feeling confident that she can participate in a conversation in a normal way, even in banter with her quick talking family. She can remember phone numbers again and is not reversing numbers. She recalled a friend’s phone number three days after having written it down.

Kathleen has not had any issues with stumbling, falling or being “off balance” since she was here, although she said before we started BIT that this was a major issue for her. When I spoke with her in January she was startled to realize that she had forgotten that this used to be a significant problem for her!

She is happier and less anxious, since she sees that she can perform well at work (even with all of the recent conflicts and chaos in her work environment), and because her two main fears (leaving her house, and falling), which we worked with while she was here, are not haunting her now. She easily left her house to travel to Denver recently (“I just did what I had to do without finding reasons not to leave or being afraid that I had forgotten something important”), and she spent many hours each day walking in snow and ice without worrying about falling.

Her ability to remember what she reads when reading silently more than doubled after BIT. And when reading out loud, she went from slow, stumbling, effortful reading to easy flow with no stumbling. She reports now that her ability to remember what she reads continues to be “way up.”

Kathleen reports that her impulsivity is remarkably better, especially around spending money, as is her connection of cause and effect. She is more able to plan what she is doing, for example not going out for drinks with her daughter when invited (as she would have done previously), because she knows she would not feel well the next day. Nor is she overwhelmed by the condition of her house anymore, since she has been able to “do things systematically and get things organized.”

Pam Wagner – Adult Post-Concussion Syndrome

Pam’s story is self-explanatory:

While climbing down a ladder after a simple home repair, I fell backward off the third rung and hit my head on the tile kitchen floor. The emergency room doctor called my immobilizing headache and severe vertigo “post concussive syndrome.”

After several days I could finally get out of bed, but whenever I tried to walk, the world spun around me and the ground undulated under my feet. I couldn’t navigate familiar surroundings without help or take a shower without clinging to the grab bar. My vision was way off. My eyes wouldn’t focus and stationary objects jumped around when I moved. Driving was out of the question; as a passenger, the scenery rushed up to meet me at a supernatural speed and I had to close my eyes. I couldn’t even walk my dog.

I felt detached and outside of my world, as if I was in a bubble looking out at a movie. I sometimes had trouble processing what people meant when they spoke to me. I was unable to perform my job as a social worker, which requires driving, and had to take an indefinite leave of absence.

What was perhaps worst of all is that the two neurologists and another physician with whom I consulted said there was nothing that could be done to speed up the process of healing, and that it might take four to six months or more. I knew there were cases in which it took years. I had lost my independence and the ability to live my life.

After six weeks of frustration and misery, a friend suggested I try Brain Integration Technique. I made an appointment for two consecutive days at Prescott Brain Integration, hoping this technique would reduce some of the symptoms. By the end of the second day, my symptoms vanished!

Today, the floor and the rest of the world stay in place when I walk and ride in a car. In fact, to my husband’s amazement, I drove home from my second appointment with ease and confidence. My eyes focus normally. I can take a shower without thinking about my balance. My dog appreciates those long walks to which he was accustomed before I fell. I have no difficulties understanding what people are saying. And, unexpectedly, I feel a familiar wonder for nature again that I didn’t realize I had lost after the fall.

I am in my world again! Without a doubt, brain integration successfully addresses the physical and emotional symptoms of post concussive syndrome. Equally as important, it restores autonomy and hope. Everyone with post concussive syndrome should know about this! – Pam Wagner

 

Several Months Later:
After checking in with Pam, I want to emphasize that physically recovering fully from brain injury takes time, usually more than expected. Although Pam was driving and was back at work, and the primary issues we worked on when she was here remained resolved, she was still experiencing fatigue and headaches and some vertigo when overtired. This is the part that takes time and rest!

Read these Google+ Reviews from clients with head injuries: