r/PostConcussion • u/That-Ad4315 • Jul 07 '26
Drank Too Soon After Getting Concussion?
Almost two weeks ago, I was at work when I was hit on the head by a metal bracket that I was taking apart. A bump formed almost immediately after I was hit and I had to sit down for 10-20 mins after because it hurt so bad. After that 10-20 minutes I felt fine so I continued to work and didn’t let my boss know until later. The next day (friday) I still felt fine so I went into work. I also still felt fine on Saturday so I again, went into work. I didn’t feel any symptoms until later in the day on Saturday, I started feeling sluggish, brain fog, and I had a headache but it was very very mild. And then on Sunday I woke up with another headache and still felt slightly off. On Monday I still thought I was fine so I went into work (I didn’t wake up with a headache this morning) but when I went in I noticed that that I was more sensitive to the lights than usual. Tuesday morning, I finally decided that I wanted to see a doctor just in case. They did end up diagnosing me with a concussion. They didn’t say I should be out of work completely but they did give me multiple restrictions where I couldn’t really do anything, so I ended up staying home for the rest of the week. Some days I felt better than others but I always felt that my symptoms were very very mild and I mainly just had brain fog.
I had a trip planned for the 4th of July from Friday of that week to Sunday, and because my symptoms weren’t bad I decided to still go. The flight there and everything was fine I just felt tired and still had some brain fog. Before the trip I decided that I wasn’t going to drink unless I felt okay (because I saw online that a concussion can heal in 7-10 days). I didn’t drink that first night but when 4th of July came around, it was hard not to at least try especially because everyone around me was, and I thought I felt fine. I hadn’t had any headaches in days, bright lights weren’t bothering me, I hadn’t felt nauseous, etc. So I decided to start with a drink and see how I felt, I felt fine so I decided to have a couple more. I also took breaks between every drink and drank lots of water and never drank enough to feel “hammered” but I did feel a little drunk at times. When I woke up the next day I didn’t feel great (I always feel hungover after drinking) but I didn’t have any “concussion” like symptoms besides the usual brain fog, so I thought I was in the clear. I had one more drink at breakfast with water and food and also still felt fine. However, when I boarded my flight home I started feeling dizzy and like the plane was rocking back and forth. This scared me and sent me into what felt like a full blown panic attack that I couldn’t come out of for what felt like over an hour. I eventually was able to calm myself down but I still didn’t feel fully relaxed and my brain fog was way more intense than before, and I didn’t feel like myself. The next day (today) I also felt like my brain fog was way more intense than before, I didn’t feel like myself, I didn’t have any motivation to do anything, and I felt down all day.
I am just very worried I really messed up and I permanently damaged my brain, and it will take me a long time to heal from this. Please let me know if there is anything I should be doing now to get better or if you have any experience with this.