<p>My D is just returning to her university after taking a leave during the fall semester to handle some anxiety/depression. Now, one week into the new semester, she has had a bad car accident that has left her with a pretty severe concussion and other physical minor injuries. She's at school, but feeling the effects. How do we help her handle the demands of this semester with a brain injury? Of course all of this happened just after the add/drop period ended. She wants to stay in school, and had hopes of doing really well grade wise. Now, I want her to take it easy on herself and just get through it. The accident wasn't her fault at all, but she is frustrated and angry on top of sore and dizzy, etc. I don't know how to help her from two hours away. Were we wrong to bring her back to school so soon? I am afraid if she goes asking for another medical leave now, her school won't ever want her back! Advice, please!</p>
<p>I’m so sorry to hear of your situation.</p>
<p>As difficult as it is, I think I would have my child take a medical leave. Yes, the school may not want her back. But there are other schools. And concussions are very serious. Her studies will almost certainly be affected if she tries to complete the semester. And poor grades will affect her confidence. </p>
<p>Not to mention, she may have some anxiety/PTSD from the accident, which could also reactivate her more recent anxiety issues. </p>
<p>Far better, IMO, to pull her out again and take care of her until she can handle the academic load at this college or another. </p>
<p>I am really sorry. Thank goodness she is ok. How could you have known this was going to happen? I would focus on making sure she is ok physically first. Does she have good medical care at school? I would want to bring her home to have best doctors to check her out first to make sure she is going to recover completely and able to handle her course load. Otherwise, she may fall behind her schoolwork and become even more frustrated and possibly set off more anxiety/depression. I would take the doctor’s advise about whether she is able to go back to school after a severe concussion. Her health should come first. I would try to assure her that it is not her fault and you will help her figure out what to do. This is hard for a young person to handle by herself.</p>
<p>Can she get Incomplete? </p>
<p>So sorry, teachandmom! I agree that her MD’s recommendations should carry a lot of weight. Has she seen a neurologist, and were you able to talk to him/her about your daughter’s condition and prognosis? Concussions are more serious than most people previously realized, and fortunately there’s been a lot of press coverage of the issue. I would hope no school administrator would expect a student with a brain injury to jeopardize her academics. </p>
<p>Also, did she have a go-to person when she arranged her last medical leave? Dean of Students or someone similar? Could she go to that person for help? At the very least, I’d think a dean could extend add/drop for someone with a compelling medical reason. Maybe she could drop to part-time, if that wouldn’t complicate the finaid situation. Wishing you and her the best of luck.</p>
<p>This would not even be a question in my mind. Your absolute first concern has to be the health of your daughter. Concussions and there symptoms can linger for a long time. Heck they can even cause personality shifts. If she was struggling with anxiety and depression the concussion can seriously set her back. File for the medical leave ASAP and the school can either build a bridge and get over it or she can find a more understanding, nurturing and encouraging environment. And just food for thought, if she was not at fault in this accident and she has to medically withdraw, I would go after the insurance company of the other driver to refund your tuition and housing costs. (we did just this 8 years ago when our son was hit while riding his motorcycle. He was day 25 into the semester at a very expensive private and the other driver’s insurance reimbursed us his tuition and housing…it was not 100% easy, we had to have an attorney apply the pressure but it took them two days to cave)</p>
<p>I agree with collegeshopping. If the college won’t cooperate, find a new college. It’s not worth it. File for the medical leave.</p>
<p>Thank you for all the replies. The docs said she could return to school, but would need to take it easy for a bit. A driver on the highway passed her and then cut over in her lane right in front of her, causing her to swerve and crash down the embankment. The car didn’t stop. There were no witnesses who stopped. Someone reported it, so state police arrived very quickly but she didn’t get a plate number or good look at the car, it all happened so fast. She spent most of the fall at home;without friends, or job, etc. She is so happy to be back around people her own age again, and now this. She wants to keep attending classes, and the health services up there and a counselor are now aware of this recent event. I think right now, I am just feeling like I want to be able to take care of her, and I can’t! </p>
<p>Concussions are terrible and have long-term effects that aren’t visible. I had one as a tween, and thinking quite literally hurt for almost two months.</p>
<p>I would have her take a medical leave. If it is allowed then I would just have her withdraw. Concussions are bad news, truly. This from a mom who had/has kids playing sports. Take the leave and cut her losses.</p>
<p>It sounds like she doesn’t want to come home. I am not sure I would make her come home if she was given medical clearance and she wants to stay enrolled. Is it possible for you to go up there for awhile to make sure things are okay? Maybe if she really doesn’t want to come home you can convince her to take a very light load this semester, it might be after the add/drop period, but the accident should be compelling enough for withdrawals from some classes. Maybe she can just take one or two classes. Maybe you can have her check in with you more often and regular medical follow ups I would try those things first and of course if things did not look like they were going to work out then seek the medical leave. </p>
<p>So sorry to hear that your D was in a serious car accident. </p>
<p>Personally, I would strongly encourage her to come home and take a medical leave. Right now, who knows how her judgement is. </p>
<p>Does she have a BF at school or someone that’s she’s interested in? Could that be influencing her decision?</p>
<p>I would encourage a medical leave. My son had a bad concussion just before the beginning of his junior year in high school. He said it was April (more than 6 months) before he felt academically capable. </p>
<p>Your uninsured motorist protection should kick in here – I think you should consult an attorney about how this works. If it’s past the add-drop date and you are on the hook for tuition, your own auto insurance may cover. </p>
<p>Considering this recent research, taking a medical leave may help her recover.
<a href=“http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/01/06/us-brain-rest-concussion-idUSBREA050SW20140106”>http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/01/06/us-brain-rest-concussion-idUSBREA050SW20140106</a></p>
<p>If this is in her best interest, I can’t imagine why the school would not admit her back. </p>
<p>It sounds like it was a concussion but not too major, since the doctor cleared her to return to school. Often the symptoms clear up after a week or two. Given that she wants to be at school and the doctor cleared her, I would let her try it. I would probably go and visit and make sure she is doing OK and ensure that the anxiety issues are not coming back. It would be a shame to make her take another leave if she is OK after the concussion. This is not a situation where she is going back to a sport where she is likely to get hit in the head. </p>
<p>The good thing about college is she can do to a class and then come home and rest. I would encourage her to “rest” her brain as much as possible when not in class or doing school work. I would also make sure to check on her in a couple of weeks and see if all of the symptoms have resolved - no headaches, dizzy spells etc. If she is not symptom-free withby then, I would have her consider her next move and whether she needs to take time off or drop classes. The rule for most athletes is that they can return to their sport within a week or so of the symptoms resolving and to school when they can handle it. </p>
<p>It is hard to have them injured or sick and far away. But for her sake you have to assume she is competent and able to know her own limits until she proves otherwise. I hope she is feeling better and is able to be successful at school. It is such a shame that this happened just when she was able to go back to school.</p>
<p>She needs to discuss this all with the dean of students and her advisor. They will be able to help her navigate the leave of absence situation if that is necessary, and may also be able to help her with her current courses and their status. If she is able to handle this, it needs to be done ASAP.</p>
<p>While the drop/add time may have come and gone, it is always possible to withdraw from a course. Yes, this will show on her transcript as a W, but so what? It’s better to drop a course (or two) and be able to successfully complete the remaining courses than to have an overload under these circumstances.</p>
<p>I agree with others, her overall health is paramount. </p>
<p>If she really wants to stay at school, she should also register with disability services. Then, in a couple weeks, if things haven’t gotten better, she can still do a medical withdrawal. She should stay in close touch with her student health services also. </p>
<p>I think you can take your cue from your daughter. If she left in the fall due to depression, pulling her out if she’s happy to be back could be a double-edged sword. I like Barnard moms suggestion of registering with disability services and asking her to keep you updated as to her classroom achievement. Absolutely she needs to keep any follow up physician appointments.</p>
<p>D’11 suffered a concussion as a result of participation in her college sport. She was benched and it was several weeks before she was cleared to return, and there were some academic struggles as a result, the weeks of headaches being the worst. The kid never would have considered a leave. </p>
<p>Since the doctor cleared her, and she wants to stay, I don’t think I’d insist she return home. She’s close enough that you can drive up on a Saturday to check on her. Some suggestions for you. If she lives in the residence halls, she probably needs to remain a full time student. See if she can cut back to the minimum number of hours to remain full-time (often 12). The add/drop period may be over, but if withdrawing from a course now just means a W. If she has a job, cutting back hours for the next month or so is a good idea. I disagree with the advice of asking for incompletes this early in the semester. Those can be killers for students with anxiety because being behind creates excess pressure. In courses that build on prior knowledge (as opposed to those that move topic to topic), getting behind early creates a whole semester of playing catch-up, also not good for a student with an anxiety disorder. </p>
<p>If I was only 2 hours away, I’d be there next weekend. I’d male sure she saw a neurologist, not just a family doctor. Since she really wants to stay on campus, then I’d make dropping a course (to 12 credits) a condition. Last thing I would want is to increase her stress level. Has she given you permission to speak to her M.D.?</p>