Feeling Lonely

This website is proof that I am not alone I understand there are thousands of people in this situation.

I’m 18 and have just started a new course at college. I have found it easy to make friends and my tutor is really nice. Yet besides all this I still feel alone. Like no-one understands. I applied for learning support in college and that begins Wednesday next week. I’m hopeful that’ll make me feel better. Wish me luck :slight_smile:

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Hi, Dale, I'm sorry I was away for a few days and didn't see your post sooner. You are not alone,, and our members are here to support you. Best of luck with your college course -- keep us posted, and let us know how you fare.

Dale,

What are you feeling alone about? College, and the first time away is always an issue for all of us. Meeting new folks is not an issue, but can be unique.New folks may not be friends but acquaintances. And, this may be the issue that you are experiencing. Friends are not the same.

Well good luck....Please don't rush things, it may take longer especially if the people at the collage arnt up to speed on your condition?

I give you lots of credit, for me taking things one day at a time is all I can handle.....Best of luck and remember yes you are not alone! :)

Good luck!o) BTW, you're not alone.

Hi! I'm so glad that you found a tutor that you like. I know all about tutors because my daughter has Von Willebrands disease and misses a ton of school. Her tutor is a lifesaver and she is able to maintain good grades because of it. Even though she is only a freshman in high school her father and I have already started thinking about college. I am glad to know that there are support systems out there for you and for everyone else who may need it and qualify for it.

All the best of luck. Hang in there and stay positive! (even though I know it's tough) : )

Dale, congratulations on going forward with college, I attended Junior College, FSU, got my Bachelor's degree, and then went on to earn a Master's Degree in Library Science, with the help of vocational rehabilitation. When I was in college, I didn't feel right either. you are not alone. Guess what? Most people probably feel similar. It was probably a while later that I met my wife at the florida aquarium with a calling card inviting her to give me a call. She did, and I'm a happily married guy. Life gets better.

Thanks for all the positive comments :). I thought I’d just say I’ve been to college twice before doing different subjects but this is the first I’ve had to try with my TBI. I had my first day of learning support today and it went great I really felt like I was learning and had all the help I needed :slight_smile:

Hi Dale,

I joined this group a couple of years ago because my post concussion symptoms were very bad and I did not know how to deal with them. I have improved trememdously but still have my moments and my mind goes blank on me and I forget what I am thinking or planning on (next intended action).

You say you feel alone. I am interested to know what specific aspect makes you feel so alone. Maybe if you could reflect on that and share that with us we could identify with you and we could share our experiences with you. For me, it has been difficult to explain to people I can have a list in my hand of things to buy at the store but when I get what is on my mind, proceed to the check out counter, purchase, then remember I brought a list and I forgot two items. How does anyone understand that? People tell me they do those type of things all the time but I know my brain was far better organized than this. I know there are gaps. I lose track of conversations all the time and sometimes I have to pretend I heard everything.

I just feel that I am an outsider when I talk to (I loathe to use the word) “normal” people. I have a bad memory. I can be mid sentence and forget what I was talking about. After 3 weeks of being in college walking down the same corridor I forgot where I was and nearly had a pain attack. How do I ask my classmate where to go when I’ve been leading him? I have random loss of balance too. Not enough to fall over but enough to make me stagger. How do I apologise to someone for falling into them while standing still? The main area I struggle in is concentration. I used to be able to read an write stories pages and pages long. Now as soon as I sit down to write my mind wonders and I can’t sit still. This is the problem my learning support is trying to help me with in the classroom. But I feel lonely because I have all of these problems and no one I know has these. I’m going through it alone really. My family don’t even know about my accident I didn’t know how to tell them. I went to hospital with a friend 1 and half years after the accident to try and make sense of everything.

You are an outsider, but so is everyone. Comparing yourself and your success to other "normal" successful people might also be problematic.

Dale watch out for many 'New Friends' who will gladly help you give away everything you own

and then when you are 'destitute', they will not be around

Yikes, John, did that happen to you? I hope not.

Hi Dale,

I don't know if this will be any comfort to you but I understand what it feels like to be talking about something and then right in the middle lose track of what i am saying. I feel better ( I am not telling you to do the same) when I explain to people this memory problem began with a post concussion. But no one seems to care and I am not sure it even bothers them. They don't seem too phased. I wonder if maybe it bothers me more than them because I know my memory has changed.

You are not alone when it comes to reading and loing track. I love reading but it is bothersome I have to read a paragraph over and over. It has been 4 years since the injury and finally I am seeing a little improvement in my memory. I can retrace my thoughts a little better but it still takes time and effort to do something that seemed so easy.

My I ask how long ago was your accident?

I thought last year I noticed a little improvement when I started taking some of the vitamins my doctor gave me a list of. I am very sorry I lost the list. It was long. I have been taking Coq10, magnesium, argenine and my protein mix that contains BCAAs (Whey protein at walmart).

I can’t remember how long ago it was. I roughly calculated it was around 3 years ago. All I remember is it was a summer and shortly after my birthday but before my second year at college

Dale,

It has been four years for me and I can say I have seen some improvement. I hope that will give you a little hope.

I put 4 years as a mark of recovering to the end of my recovery. It's been a little over 5 now and it seems I am accurate with the 4 year mark on this.

Bob, I don't think progress stops at any arbitrary mark. It may seem like it has slowed significantly, but I think that progress most likely will not stop. Each Brain is different. Each Brain Injury is different. Each process of recovery from Brain injury is different.

I agree. I was just talking about what I noticed with me. My intent was have it seen that it takes time. Time heals in the brain injury spectrum.

I agree with you Marty. My recovery has been in spurts. Some months go by and I do not notice a change then one month I notice a change. It maybe slight but I have a good memory of how bad it was. It had to be improving but because the improvement took a while to exhibit itself I did not know it was happening. I can retain a little more of what I read. Sometimes I still have to go back, but it seems better. I do not expect overnight success.