Phil's Concussion Rehab trip to Provo, UT

Moments after the photo above was taken I disappeared to the bathroom and remained there for hours. My migraine that night was so bad it left me writhing in pain, nauseated to the point of vomiting, and missing out on the rest of our family photoshoot. Unfortunately, missing out has been all too common a theme for the last five years now.

Six years ago I suffered my seventh (known) concussion. When I came home that day I passed out in front of my wife as soon as I entered the door. 

Ever since, I've missed out! 

Missed time from work. 

Missed helping friends. 

Missed playing games. 

Missed working out regularly. 

I constantly was missing out on life. 

In December 2017 my post-concussion symptoms became so bad that I had trouble reading Kaylee her books to her at night. I couldn't form the words right, couldn't annunciate them correctly. I often sobbed as I struggled to read Dr. Seuss and the like. I was losing my mind. I even, quietly, thought I was dying. That's when I noticed a negative change in my mental/emotional health as well. And that’s when I knew I had to take action.

In the last two years I have had CAT scans, an MRI, seen a neurologist, received speech therapy, gone to two different counselors, regularly saw a chiropractor, took on a local out of network concussion therapy, tried acupuncture, worked with a nutritionist, had a balky tooth removed, used essential oils, began cranial-sacral therapy and have done my best to read and research things I can do to manage. I've seen some improvement but still, daily, suffer. 

Common symptoms are severe migraines, a woozy disconnected feeling (I'm not "all there"), disorientation from my own arms and legs, mental fog, fatigue, sudden irritability, memory recall issues, heightened anxiety, and memory recall issues (yes, that's a joke, you can laugh). 

I've seen incremental improvement over these past two years but something this past November changed and I reverted pretty severely. Most of the control over my symptoms was suddenly gone. I had no clue what my triggers were all of a sudden. And I went from having more days a week without a headache to more days with. 

To long-story-short the rest, my wife took on the work of online research and found what we think is the best concussion rehab center in the country - Cognitive FX  - located in Provo, Utah. They "spoke my language" on all my symptoms, and even symptoms that I didn't realize were concussion-related (I thought the sudden irritability was just the Italian side kicking in!). They held a one-hour video consultation with us that left Lindsay and I in tears with hope. I've deemed them "All the king's horses and all the king's men" because they combine leading-edge technology with therapies of every kind to train the brain to heal. In one week of therapy the most common response their patients gave was a 75% improvement in one week (!) as well as continued improvement after that. 

This presents a huge sacrifice on my part, and my family's part, but in comparison to getting my life back and no longer missing out, it feels like a small price to pay.


But I'm requesting your help. 


My goal of raising $9,000 will mostly go towards the cost of treatment but will also help cover other expenses as well. If I go over my goal I will donate the money to Cognitive FX's scholarship fund so that others who struggle with post-concussion symptoms may have opportunities to seek healing as well. 

Will you please financially support me not only in my trip to Provo, Utah, and back but in my trip back to health as well? I leave February 25, 2020 and will get back on March 7th. My goal is to have this raised by February 14th.

To keep you in the know I will develop online communities through Facebook and email so that you don't miss out on my road back to no longer missing out. Thanks for your consideration and your generosity!

~phil