I’ll tell the story of the assault fairly briefly because I’ve told it a thousand times already and its not that interesting (to me at least). It started with a night out in 2009 with friends. I was at a local night club i’d visited plenty of times before and had been drinking but not heavily. Whilst in the toilet taking a pee i heard a slight commotion behind me. I was moving to wash my hands when two guys who i’d overheard being aggressive towards another lone guy became more aggressive towards him. The poor guy was being picked on because of his accent. Within seconds the lone guy was on the floor against a door being kicked and punched by the two men. The door only opened towards us so the guy on the floor could not get up or escape, furthermore noone could come in through the door. Security wouldn’t be notified because noone could get in and see.
Thinking that this guy was going to get seriously hurt i stepped in between him and the two attackers with my back to the attackers. It all happened so quickly. My only thought was that i can’t stand by and watch an innocent young man get very badly hurt. I must have thought that the two attackers wouldn’t attack me. They immediately attacked me and i first got a punch in the back of the head and then perhaps 4 or 5 more blows to the head before i lose my memory.
I have a glimpse of a memory being supported up some stairs by a bouncer. I then remember suddenly being in a chair in an office where a lady was checking me over. Perhaps 30 seconds had passed and i was in the managers office being looked over. I don’t think i was knocked to the floor, i was in ok shape, just sore and i had a couple of chipped bits of teeth i spat out. The initial victim was ok apart from suspected broken arm, the two attackers had run out of the club and i was in shock at what had just happened.
I went home and managed to get to sleep despite a buzzing headache. I woke up Sunday very sore, my neck and jaw particularly. I had a constant headache but amazingly no black eye! From feeling over my head for sore spots i think i must have been struck seven or eight times.
Returning to Work
I returned to work on Monday in an office still with a constant headache. Using a computer made this worse and i was finding it difficult and uncomfortable to use the screen and generally be at work. I was sent to hospital that morning and after the standard head injury checks i was told i had concussion and to rest for a few weeks, taking the next week off work.
I rested and spent a week at home very bored. Screens, TV, reading all seemed to aggravate me. Walking also made my head feel worse and more agitated.
Over the months that followed i returned to work, i found that i was still uncomfortable and then i had another week or two off. This continued and i was increasingly confused about what was wrong with me and frustrated at the lack of clear treatment and the boredom. I was utterly bored at home on my own all day for weeks on end with little to do. The doctor just told me to rest.
I thought i was improving and after about 3 months i handed in my notice at work and interviewed for a job working in customer service in a French ski resort – i’d work a winter season abroad and put this strange past few months behind me.
In brief, my condition did not continue to improve. Perhaps i did not continue to rest enough as i thought i was improving. Maybe i didn’t rest because i was utterly bored and alone at home trying not to walk or be too active with little stimulation. Maybe it was nothing to do with rest, after all i thought i had been told to try to keep doing things. How much rest and how much activity?
I ended up unable to take my new job and having left my previous job. This might sound like a silly position to put myself in, but i had no idea that i would still be suffering after several months. I could scarcely believe the position i had found myself in particularly as the assault wasn’t a really bad one. My worsening condition…
How It Began – My Worsening Condition – Fragile Recovery – Life After PCS – My Advice