A concussion, which is a traumatic brain injury, can be caused by a jolt, blow, or bump to your head. It can also be caused by a hit to your body that results in your brain moving back and forth rapidly.

And when your brain bounces against your skull, it can create chemical changes and sometimes damage brain cells. Concussions can be mild or severe. Most people get mild concussions that clear up within a couple of weeks.

Danger Signs

While you can do several things to treat a concussion at home, as we’ll see, it’s important to note that some concussions can be dangerous. For instance, although rare, concussions can cause dangerous blood clots.

So, if you get a concussion and have any of the following danger signs, make sure you seek immediate emergency medical care:

• A headache that worsens and doesn’t go away.
• Repeated vomiting.
• Slurred speech.
• Unusual behavior.
• Weakness or numbness.
• Decreased coordination.
• Convulsions or seizures.
• Confusion.
• Having one pupil that is larger than the other.
• A loss of consciousness.

Seeing a Doctor

Even if you don’t have any danger signs, you should always be examined by a doctor after a concussion. You can either visit a doctor’s office, an emergency department, or a concussion clinic.

It’s important you do that because some mild concussion symptoms may not appear straight away. Getting first aid for a concussion at a specialist concussion clinic could be the best option because the professionals know how to perform accurate concussion assessments and how to use different types of therapy to speed up recovery times and improve the outcomes of long-term concussion recovery.

Treating a Concussion at Home

After you have seen a medical professional, you need to ensure you follow his or her advice regarding what you should do to aid recovery. But there are things you can do to treat concussions at home.

While resting is certainly one thing you should do, it’s not the only thing you should be doing. To recover well, you should also exercise and do things to create cognitive stimulation.

Both physical exertion and cognitive exercises, in small doses, can decrease the amount of time it takes to heal and enable you to heal properly.

So, to treat a concussion at home, you should:

• Do cardio exercises each day, ideally for around thirty minutes. But make sure you don’t do any exercises that could result in jostling your head. By doing regular cardio exercises, you can also build more muscle.
• Engage in cognitively demanding activities immediately after exercising because physical activity increases neurochemicals in your brain that are known to increase cognitive flexibility. Therefore, cognitive exercises after physical exercise, such as reading a book or completing a sudoku, are more effective than doing such things without exercising first.
• Take a rest from screens and engage in activities like conversations with friends and light work instead. You don’t have to completely cut yourself off from electronic devices but more exposure to non-screen activities will help you to recover. 
• Take over-the-counter aspirin-free medications to manage pain. Alternatively, your doctor may prescribe you medication if you’re still in pain after the concussion. 
• Don’t return to your normal activities if you still have concussion symptoms. Make sure you get clearance from a healthcare professional before you return fully to everyday activities. Also, your return to everyday activities should be gradual.
• Relax in a way that suits you. Many people meditate, listen to soothing music, and do yoga. Also, yoga can help you sleep better. And there are many other benefits of yoga that are supported by science.