Concussions are funny things. They cause your brain to hurt just by thinking. It doesn’t make much sense until you understand the brain is bruised and requires time to heal.
Symptoms can appear right away or not for hours. The most common symptoms include a headache, dizziness, and spotty vision. For parents, signs to watch for are confusion, vomiting, and stumbling or falling.
My son, who played lacrosse, took a shot on goal to his helmet. He shook his head and remained motionless while the game went on around him for a few seconds. He had two black eyes from the incident, but no symptoms or complaints. Thinking back now, I know he must have had a concussion.
Fast forward two years. My daughter, who is a catcher, took a foul tipped ball to the helmet right between her eyes. She stood, shook her head, and chased after the ball. Everything seemed normal, even the slight headache before bed (we are migrainers, and the weather was changing). The next morning on our way to the high school she began complaining of a worsening headache and the street lights bothering her so much she lowered the sun visor. By the time we reached the school parking lot, she was nauseated and seeing spots.
I was perplexed by the sudden change and apparent symptoms of a concussion. She didn’t even have black eyes like her older brother did years before. Could she have a concussion? Not willing to take the chance, we turned around and headed for the E.R.
She did, in fact, have a mild concussion. The doctor wrote her off school for a day and advised her not to watch T.V. or use her phone and to get plenty of rest. She’d have to pass her Base-Line Concussion test to return to the game. If her symptoms worsened or new ones appeared we were to return to the E.R. or doctor’s office if available.
Several days went by, and she seemed okay. But when she returned to school, looking at a smartboard and trying to concentrate, her symptoms all came back, and the dizziness worsened to the point of having to leave school. The doctor wrote her off school for a full week and gave her specific instructions on what she could and could not do. These included: sleeping as much as possible, only watching TV an hour a day (no big action shows with lots of colors and/or explosions, etc.), only fifteen minutes on a computer, tablet or cell phone per day, and only walking five minutes at a time until symptoms lessened and went away. The return to play protocol begins with no activity and moves to light aerobic exercise, sport-specific exercises, no contact training drills, full contact practice, and finally return to play.
Take the safe route, be checked by a professional. A few games are not worth the rest of your life. In my new young adult release, Rae and the Ruby Scepter, Rae takes a hit to the head when she collides with the runner she’s tagging out. Hours later, Rae fears she has a concussion, which would be better than the alternative. Lily M Knight - www.DareToDreamPress.com
Symptoms can appear right away or not for hours. The most common symptoms include a headache, dizziness, and spotty vision. For parents, signs to watch for are confusion, vomiting, and stumbling or falling.
My son, who played lacrosse, took a shot on goal to his helmet. He shook his head and remained motionless while the game went on around him for a few seconds. He had two black eyes from the incident, but no symptoms or complaints. Thinking back now, I know he must have had a concussion.
Fast forward two years. My daughter, who is a catcher, took a foul tipped ball to the helmet right between her eyes. She stood, shook her head, and chased after the ball. Everything seemed normal, even the slight headache before bed (we are migrainers, and the weather was changing). The next morning on our way to the high school she began complaining of a worsening headache and the street lights bothering her so much she lowered the sun visor. By the time we reached the school parking lot, she was nauseated and seeing spots.
I was perplexed by the sudden change and apparent symptoms of a concussion. She didn’t even have black eyes like her older brother did years before. Could she have a concussion? Not willing to take the chance, we turned around and headed for the E.R.
She did, in fact, have a mild concussion. The doctor wrote her off school for a day and advised her not to watch T.V. or use her phone and to get plenty of rest. She’d have to pass her Base-Line Concussion test to return to the game. If her symptoms worsened or new ones appeared we were to return to the E.R. or doctor’s office if available.
Several days went by, and she seemed okay. But when she returned to school, looking at a smartboard and trying to concentrate, her symptoms all came back, and the dizziness worsened to the point of having to leave school. The doctor wrote her off school for a full week and gave her specific instructions on what she could and could not do. These included: sleeping as much as possible, only watching TV an hour a day (no big action shows with lots of colors and/or explosions, etc.), only fifteen minutes on a computer, tablet or cell phone per day, and only walking five minutes at a time until symptoms lessened and went away. The return to play protocol begins with no activity and moves to light aerobic exercise, sport-specific exercises, no contact training drills, full contact practice, and finally return to play.
Take the safe route, be checked by a professional. A few games are not worth the rest of your life. In my new young adult release, Rae and the Ruby Scepter, Rae takes a hit to the head when she collides with the runner she’s tagging out. Hours later, Rae fears she has a concussion, which would be better than the alternative. Lily M Knight - www.DareToDreamPress.com
