Post-Concussion Rehab

Headache, brain fog, dizziness? You don’t just have to “wait it out.”

A concussion can turn simple things into big chores:

Headaches with screens or reading
Brain fog and mental fatigue
Dizziness with quick turns or busy environments
Feeling “off” with balance or eye movements
Trouble tolerating school, work, or workouts

Most concussions improve within a couple of weeks, but 10–30% of people have symptoms that hang around much longer—especially dizziness, balance issues, and fatigue.

At Timpanogos Physical Therapy, we combine:

Daily (or near-daily) red & near-infrared light sessions after concussion when appropriate
Vestibular rehab and VOR (gaze-stabilization) exercises
Targeted neck, visual, and balance work

To help your brain settle, your system re-sync, and your life get back on track.

Who this page is for

This page is for you if, after a concussion, you’re dealing with things like:

Headaches, especially with screens or reading
Dizziness, motion sensitivity, or feeling “sea-sick” on land
Brain fog, slowed thinking, or fatigue after mental tasks
Light or noise sensitivity
Trouble focusing your eyes, blurry vision, or words “swimming” on a page
Feeling unsteady, especially in stores, crowds, or the dark
Mood changes, irritability, or sleep disruption

Whether your concussion was from sports, a fall, an auto accident, work, or “just a bump”, if symptoms are lingering, it’s worth treating.

If you’ve had red-flag symptoms (worsening severe headache, repeated vomiting, confusion, slurred speech, weakness, seizures, or significant behavior changes), those always need emergency medical attention first. Once you’re cleared, that’s where we come in.

Why concussion symptoms linger

A concussion is more than “a bump to the head.” It can temporarily disrupt:

How your brain processes movement and balance (vestibular system)
How your eyes and brain work together (vision and VOR)
How your neck, muscles, and joints send information
Blood flow, inflammation, and energy use in brain cells

When those systems don’t recalibrate on their own, you can end up with persistent:

Dizziness and motion sensitivity
Headaches and eye strain
Balance issues and fatigue
Difficulty with focus, memory, and multitasking

Our job: figure out which systems are off, and then systematically rehab them.

How we evaluate post-concussion symptoms

At your evaluation, we’ll:

Review how and when the concussion happened
Go through your current symptoms in detail
Screen cervical spine (neck) for joint/muscle issues that often drive headaches and dizziness
Test vestibular function (inner ear balance system)
Look at eye movements and VOR (keeping your eyes steady while your head moves)
Assess balance, gait, and coordination

If anything suggests you need an additional medical workup or imaging, we’ll let you know and help you loop in the right provider.

Daily red-light sessions: supporting the brain’s own repair work

One of the things that makes our clinic different is our use of frequent red & near-infrared light treatments (photobiomodulation) in the early post-concussion phase and for lingering symptoms, when appropriate.

What red & near-infrared light does (in plain English)

Photobiomodulation uses specific wavelengths of red and near-infrared (NIR) light to gently stimulate cells, especially the mitochondria—the “energy factories” inside your cells. Research suggests that, when applied over the head:

It can boost cellular energy (ATP) production,
Improve cerebral blood flow, and
Help modulate inflammation and support repair in injured brain tissue.

Human studies in people with chronic mild TBI/post-concussion symptoms have shown:

Improved cognitive function, sleep, and mood after a series of transcranial red/NIR LED treatments.
Case series and small trials in veterans and athletes with persistent post-concussion symptoms showing better neuropsychological scores and blood-flow changes after multi-week red/NIR protocols.
A randomized clinical trial in moderate TBI showed that near-infrared low-level light therapy was feasible, safe, and associated with brain imaging changes, with no device-related adverse events reported.

Systematic reviews of photobiomodulation in traumatic brain injury conclude that:

Pre-clinical (animal) data are strong,
Early human studies are promising, especially for chronic symptoms,
But larger, high-quality trials are still needed, so this remains an emerging but reasonable adjunct, not a stand-alone cure.

What this looks like in our clinic

In practice, for appropriate patients, we often:

Use regular (often daily or near-daily) red/NIR sessions in the early stage or during symptom flares, and
Pair them with vestibular, visual, and neck rehab in the same plan.

In our clinical experience, many patients report:

Faster reduction in headaches
Less “brain fog”
Better tolerance for school, work, or screens

Results vary, and we’ll be honest with you about what we’re seeing as we go.

Vestibular rehab & VOR exercises: retraining your balance and motion system

For many people, post-concussion dizziness and “off” feelings come from the vestibular system (inner ear and brain pathways) not recalibrating after the injury.

Vestibular rehabilitation therapy (VRT) uses specific exercises to help your brain re-learn how to handle motion and head turns. Systematic reviews of VRT after concussion show that it can substantially reduce dizziness and improve balance and gait compared with usual care.

VOR (gaze-stabilization) exercises

A core part of this is the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR)—your brain’s ability to keep your eyes locked on a target while your head moves. When VOR is off, you get:

Blurriness or “bouncing” vision with head turns
Trouble in grocery store aisles or busy environments
Dizziness just from moving your head or riding in the car

We use simple but powerful drills like:

Focusing on a letter or dot while gently turning your head side to side
Progressing to different speeds, directions, backgrounds, and positions

These are carefully graded to your tolerance, so they challenge your system without overwhelming it.

Neck, eyes, and balance: connecting all the dots

A successful post-concussion plan usually has several pieces working together:

Cervical (neck) treatment

Gentle manual therapy for stiff joints and guarded muscles
Postural and movement work to reduce neck-driven headaches and dizziness

Oculomotor (eye) and visual work

Exercises for eye tracking, focusing, and coordination
Strategies for screen time, reading, and visual triggers

Balance & gait training

Safe challenges to your balance and coordination
Practice in situations that actually bother you—stairs, turning, uneven ground, crowded spaces

All of these layers on top of your red-light sessions, so your brain has both the environment to heal and the input to re-train.

What the research says (and what we’ve seen)

On red & near-infrared light (photobiomodulation):

Pilot and case studies in chronic mTBI/post-concussion populations have shown improvements in cognition, sleep, mood, headaches, and quality of life after a series of transcranial red/NIR treatments.
A 2020 randomized trial in moderate TBI found transcranial near-infrared therapy to be safe and feasible, with measurable changes on brain imaging, though clinical outcome data are still evolving.
Recent systematic reviews and meta-analyses highlight strong pre-clinical support and early positive human data, but emphasize the need for larger, well-controlled trials before we can call it a standard of care.

On vestibular rehab after concussion:

Multiple randomized trials and systematic reviews show vestibular rehab can decrease dizziness and improve balance and function in people with post-concussion symptoms, including athletes and children.

So the short version:

Red-light therapy is a promising, low-risk adjunct with growing evidence supporting its use.
Vestibular rehab is a well-supported, evidence-based mainstay for post-concussion dizziness and imbalance.

We combine both—with neck, visual, and functional rehab—for a comprehensive approach.

FAQs

Is red-light therapy FDA-approved specifically for concussion?
Most photobiomodulation devices are cleared for general pain or tissue-healing indications, not specifically for concussion. Using them for concussion/post-concussion symptoms is considered an emerging, off-label application, guided by the growing but still developing research literature. We’ll always discuss this openly with you.

How soon after a concussion should I start?
Once serious red-flag issues have been ruled out and you’re medically stable, earlier is often better—especially for vestibular and visual symptoms. We’ll tailor intensity to your stage of healing.

Will I just be lying under a light, or is there more to it?
There’s definitely more. Red-light sessions are one piece of your plan. You’ll also work through customized exercises for vestibular function, neck mobility, vision, balance, and gradual return to activity.

How long does recovery take?
It varies. Some people turn a corner in a few weeks; others with more complex or repeated injuries take longer. Our goal is steady, trackable progress—not rushing you or leaving you stuck.

Ready for a concussion plan that actually has a plan?

If you’re tired of being told to “just rest” while your symptoms linger, there are more options.

Schedule a post-concussion evaluation at Timpanogos Physical Therapy, and we’ll:

Map out what’s driving your symptoms—brain, neck, vestibular, visual, or all of the above
Use frequent red-light treatments, vestibular/VOR rehab, and targeted PT to support recovery
Build a step-by-step path back to school, work, sports, and everyday life

So you’re not just waiting for your brain to feel better—you’re actively helping it get there.