Advances in Concussion Treatment
It’s hard to explain the impact that my concussion glasses have had on my life, and I hope that, if you’re reading this article and have had concussions, you will look into these glasses. In fact, my own story involved quite a bit of luck. When I attended the Southern Festival of Books, I just happened to walk into a tent and purchase a copy of The Ghost in My Brain by Clark Elliott. The read was so interesting to me that I finished it in three days, and my copy is entirely covered in notations.
What I found so interesting is the degree to which concussions impacted my life in ways that I never fully understood. They were a primary factor in my seizures, my inability to stay up to the moment in conversations, and my desire to isolate myself from the world (something I got very good at doing for the better part of a decade and a half).
When reading the book, I discovered Dr. Deborah Zelinsky. She helped to treat Clark Elliott for his concussion damage with specialized glasses. I subsequently flew to Chicago where Dr. Zelinsky is located and am now wearing her glasses myself.
It’s important to understand just how revolutionary this treatment is. The foundation of Dr. Zelinsky’s practice is the understanding that the human retina is actually made of brain tissue. Therefore, when you have concussion damage, the neurofibers that aren’t working optimally can actually be traced to specific points on the retina. With the specialized glasses, Dr. Zelinsky actually affects how light enters the eye. You see, these are no prescription glasses. Instead, they are angled lenses with custom designed tape used to block certain amounts of light from particular points in the eye. By not allowing light to reach certain parts of the eye, the damaged neurofibers can actually be avoided. In essence, the damage that the concussion caused can be circumnavigated like a car driving around a construction zone on the highway.
I admit, the concept is a bit hard to fathom, but the results speak for themselves. Since I started using Dr. Zelinsky’s glasses, I have noticed improvement in my conversational ability, my attention span, my sense of directions, the frequency of my seizures, my light sensitivity, the frequency of my suicidal ideations, and the speed at which I fatigue. How much more progress I will continue to make remains to be seen, but I hope this brief overview can start the dialogue on concussions and modern treatment. It’s time the rest of the world knew that concussion damage can indeed be dealt with in a healthy manner.
If you or somebody you know has had a concussion, please comment below or reach out to me personally at kimballartistry@gmail.com. I would love to hear from you and discuss further. Additionally, you can buy Clark Elliott’s book here and visit Dr. Zelinsky’s page here.