Anger Issues associated with Hydrocephalus?

[Lee Cook]

Hi guys! I have a question for you. Do you or your children have anger issues that your doctors have associated with Hydrocephalus or similar brain abnormalities? Do you have a tendency to be "short fused" or get upset more easily than others without Hydrocephalus? I know this sounds a little hokey, but a Therapist friend of mine has inquired about this, and I thought I would turn to you guys for feedback.

I personally think that my self-control issues are a lot less controllable since my series of surgeries in 2002 and 2003 as well as the brain collapse/stroke and TIA's (or seizures - doctors never determined "what" the episodes where my brain and body decided to 'take a break' were). Do you observe your Hydro children to be less tolerant than those withouth Hydro?

I have ALWAYS been "high strung", but it seems this has been more prevalent in the past few years. Of course, you know the doctors' most famous response when asked about the possible correlation of the two is "I DON'T KNOW"........ ugh!!!!

Well, any feedback is GREATLY appreciated.

Thank you,
Lee

[ninaem]

Lee, I don't know if mine is hydro related or not, but I do have a short fuse.

I have a pineal gland cyst and in the articles I have read that the pineal gland is your major hormone producer. I suggested to my doc to have them checked because a woman and messed up hormones are not a good combo. She said an endocrinologist would tell me I was crazy.

It leaves me to set myself up for the world day after day. I don't go anywhere crowded on purpose and if I wind up somewhere like that I'm not there very long.

It's very hard considering I own a business that is 100% dealing with all sorts of people but for some reason when I'm there I'm O.K. I've only had a couple of incidents and it took a lot to get me there and they were well deserved and involved only one customer.

Good luck!

[monicad1974]

My ped. doctor as a child described me as an emotional child. After having a brain tumor removed in 83. I had damage to the cerribellium and radiation that has always thought to have damaged my nervious system plus messed with my balance and cordination. But I also had a shunt put in 9 days after that tumor for excessive swelling. This damaged my eyes and I had issues with incontience before the shunt. Don't really know what all damage was done.

I do have a bad temper. But I would say I have bad nerves all around. When I was working I could usually deal with the worst customers. But some days I could have one that would just mess up my whole day. I would not get upset for a few minutes. I would have to go home because I would have flash backs all day and stay upset crying. It is like I took it personal that this person was yelling at me cause they were not getting what they wanted. I should have made a manager deal with it but I just kept trying and the more I got stressed the more it seamed to build up.

[Austinsmom]

I don't believe Austin has more anger from all his operations and brain conditions, but I do believe both his anxiety and stress levels are lower than the average person. he can stress very easy and is effected both physically and mentally from stress, even multi-tasking is to stressful at times, I am sure many of us,I know I do, get anger with stress, so it is an interesting question, Austin does get angry but not any more than anyone else, I think when the CNS is damaged, or scard it can cause many different reactions.
What helps Austin is relaxation exercises, an easy one is, take a deep breath in through your nose let it out slow through your mouth, do that 3 times slowly that helps, then there is meditation and visualization it has helped Austin for years now. I do know it is stress that brings troubles to Austin
hope this helped a little
Deborah

[Braindrain]

Yes, I've got a short fuse, too. But, it could be any number of things:

stress

medication (Dilantin & Keppra)

hormones ('nuff said!);)

heredity: I'm Italian/German/Austrian on my father's side-patience is
a virtue I haven't got!:D

All that aside, what helps me is just being by myself for a while and
maybe listening to music or those relaxation CDs-the ones with the
sounds of nature on them.

[davidmic61]

I don't think I have any unusual anger issues. I tend to be pretty passive in most instances. My wife tells people "he don't give a s***, nothing bothers him". I just don't think most things are worth getting too worked up about. All of us here are affected by hydro, and personnally, I don't need a stroke to go with it. I do get defensive when I feel threatenned or feel like my judgement or wisdom is being challenged.

[kathleenandjoe]

Quite the opposite, actually - especially weighing in the daily frustration of hemiplegia and seizures she deals with. . . and how others react to that too.

Now keppra and other seizure meds. . . THAT we have blamed a temper on and seen a proven link.

Kathleen

[GTF]

Oh yea. Big time short fuse.
I know when it's time not drive a car.

George

[Lemontree]

Hi,
I haven't been told much that I have a short fuse, however, I have been told all throughout my life, "YOU'RE TOO SENSITIVE".

Whether this has to do with my some what chaotic upbringings/effect on my ability to control what was going on, personality and temperment, or on the hydrocephalus issues and slight damages to certain areas of my brain, I can not be certain.

My guess is that all these things combined have something to do with it.

Lemontree
age 39
hydro diagnosed @ 8 months of age
Shunted ever since

[MegNJaxMom]

Compared to my son, Megan is a very aggressive girl. But I don't know if it is Hydro, her personality, or that she is 2. But she has always been more aggressive and outgoing. She came out screaming... Jack came out not breathing. She came home during a tornado warning, Jack came home in the middle of January in Nebraska and it was sunny and 75... go figure.

[mysticwoman]

Hi George, welcome to the ol' board. (You do "know" me. I'm the woman with the shunt pump near my belly button. BTW. Initals A.K. !)

[Penny W.]

Hi Lee and everyone else.

I have been told that raised intracranial pressure can cause anger. I don't know if it means it gets better if the pressure has been relieved or not though.

I was also told by my mother that the part in my brain controlling anger is too underactive...I don't know whether I have been tested or not.
Then sometimes I would get called "wicked" at home so I was confused further and thought that that person was right, I was wicked.

I get into sudden violent rages at times. I haven't had any for a while though. Actually I have had none since moving into the villa. I had constant ones at my parent's home, particularly as I could not understand how to help them in their own illnesses.

I have found certain medications, ie Valium and the P*ll and similar, increased my rages. I cannot take the P*ll any more because of a procedure 12 years ago which made taking that medication pointless (and that surgeon - the only doctor to agree with me - said I should never have been put on it) , and I have been through a certain other stage. Since going off Valium very suddenly in 1973, I have only taken it on two other occasions...one just before an angiogram due to eye trouble (probably unrelated to hydrocephalus), and one as a premed, before the last shunt revision in 1983.

I also was very hard to handle after a lot of drama before and after my first V-P shunt was put in. I think that was reactive, ie due to a very long stay in hospital under another doctor, who transferred me to a hydrocephalus expert and did not tell me.

Lately I have wanted to get chromosomes tested because I am wondering if the anger is related to a bad chromosome. My old counsellor didn't think I had a bad chromosome and neither does my psychiatrist. Then again I haven't been tested (yet).

My anger has made me miss out on a lot of adult responsibilities, being a parent for example. This week I am feeling very sad about the lack of things I can do so I won't go into it here, as I am getting help. I am only grateful I realised it (with a lot of help from my mother "reasoning" with me about it) before I went ahead and did things I shouldn't have.

I am getting confused lately and more prone to anger. I hope I can get something done about the confusion at least, even if it is only to get another neuropsychology assessment. I am due but my neurosurgeon seems to have gone off the idea, but the person (I hope) I will be seeing, seems to want me back sometime and was surprised when I mentioned a five-year gap between assessments. I only hope I am interested enough to consent to the assessment, as I don't want to do anything much lately.

Regards,
Penny.

[hydromom]

Hi

My 8 year old is always smiling. But look out if his shunt is on the blink. Before each of his four revisions last year he kept beating me up. I had to run away from him. Throughout this past 14 months he has only rarely displayed this behaviour. Maybe once or twice. His shunt is a lemon but I am grateful it has not brought around that behaviour again.
He is stubborn aand sensative.

Good Luck
Marilou

Ps
I do worry about a shunt malfunction when he is older and bigger. Could this behaviour be his indicator. It is a scary thought.

[canadianlistener]

I will have to say in my case I believe hydrocephalus has caused me to be short-fused, short-tempered, or whatever way to you want to call it.

Growing up my parents said I was an easy going kid (this was before I had a shunt put in). I was always happy and easy to get along with. But when I was 19 I became very moody and and got very angry at the simplest things. It was also around this time they found a syrinx in my spine. Doctors now believe the syrnix caused a build up of fluid which backed up into my brain causing the recurrance of hydrocephalus.

Whenever the shunt takes a break and the fluid builds up I become very moody and just like the Hulk. I turn green and everything :o).

Seriously though...If hydrocephalus doesn't cause a short fuse in a person, it sure doesn't help the situation. For all those with people dealing with hydrocephalus during one of these times, if the person goes off by themselves and wants to be left alone quiet, wave the red flag and monitor the situation (from a distance).

Rob

[ian]

hi all
this is what i think anyway , if the pressure of the CSF is left and not treated it would probably affect the brain including the frontal lobe (forehead?) , this is where the emotions,personality and behaviour is in the brain

[MandaPearce]

My husband (and pretty much anyone who knows me well) uses my moods as an indicator of my health. Normally I have a lot of patience, I rarely snap and almost never shout. When my shunt starts failing or I start getting low pressure, my moods slowly gets worse - I snap at people more, get really sarcastic and lack patience completely.
As my husband puts it, when I start acting like a spoilt b*tch, he starts the countdown to my first complaint of headaches and surgery.

But mainly I'm happy, patient and bouncy :)

[Jess]

I was just discussing this with my mom. I had really bad tantrums when i was around 2, but she states this is a normal age to have tantrums. The only difference was a couldn't calm down easily. They would have to rock me and talk to me for a long time to get me to calm down. Depending on the age of the person (if it is a small child) it would seem that being in a lot of pain would cause that kind of behavior too. Before a certain point, not understanding constant pain would make someone have anger/temper issues. Now, personally, as an adult, I am stressed and a bit traumatized from what i have been through. I do not have anger issues though. I tend to internalize how i feel and it comes out later, usually in hospitals as they are poking me with needles in sudden crying. That is what my experience has been.

[Nat Hyland]

I am actually a fairly relaxed and easy-going person - which is a miracle, considering my mother can "lose it" over nothing :rolleyes: ! I tend to only lose my temper if someone harps and harps at me over something, particularly if it is something that has already been talked about. I tend to get angry if other people are angry, not really over any particular thing, although some of the things my work colleagues do (or don't do) make me MAD :mad: ! Mainly because it shows their lack of concern or respect for other people who work there.

Other than that, no, I don't think I lose my temper any more than anyone else.

Nat.