If you’ve had any issues with mental health before your concussion, these could be slowing your recovery (a huge study in June 2025 found that pre-existing anxiety, depression and/or sleep problems were some of the main factors predisposing people to slow concussion recoveries).
Even if you haven’t, dealing with a concussion itself can be extremely challenging, mentally and emotionally. If you are feeling stressed or depressed or generally mentally unwell – whenever it began – this can take a toll on your ability to naturally heal and recover. Dealing with such issues is therefore of utmost importance.
Personally, I hadn’t had mental health problems following the concussion, despite being quite anxiety-prone beforehand (I sometimes wonder if the concussion knocked that out of me!). However, in the fifth year after my injury, I started having a difficult time with several close relationships all at once. I found that my brain couldn’t cope with the emotional strain, and also realised that the brain injury had been affecting my social perceptions and interactions more than I’d realised. I couldn’t handle this and felt quite desperate and I emailed the Headway helpline to ask for help:
helpline@headway.org.uk / 0808 800 2244
They emailed back within hours with a lot of very useful information, including the following resources for psychological support:
Many brain injury survivors find it helpful to work with a neuropsychologist. Neuropsychologists specialise in brain injury and would be able to diagnose and support with any cognitive changes (such as memory problems or concentration difficulties) and psychological problems (such as depression, anger, frustration, anxiety) as well as fatigue. If you do decide to make an appointment with the GP about this then the following factsheet: ‘GP’s guide to management of acquired brain injury’ may be a good reference document. You will see on page 7 that a referral to see a neuropsychologist is an identified option.
Unfortunately, the NHS waiting list for neuropsychology appointments is considerable in most areas, so you may wish to consider a private appointment. Here is the link to the British Psychological Society’s online register of Clinical Neuropsychologists. You can search for a neuropsychologist with experience of brain injury in your area.Counselling may be another useful option, and waiting lists are usually shorter for counselling. You can request this from your GP.
You can also use this link to find a private counsellor: British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy.
The Concussion Legacy Foundation have a helpline and may know of other concussion clinics. You can find out more about them and complete a form to request a call.