Life, as we all know, can change in a flash. For many people, it has become a pain to live with mental illnesses for the rest of their lives from injuries like concussions. My life luckily hasn’t been affected by this change, but still concussions can cause major trauma for a kid my age. All I could see was a stick in my cage and everything went dark, no memory of the situation that had occurred, all I could remember was seeing the roof when I awoke from my outing. Hands in the air as I lay on the floor, with no sign of movement. Head pulsing with a pain, light so bright it burns the back of my eyes, I was hit in the head by a blindside stick to the head. Diagnosed with a concussion I was scared out of my mind, my way of life had now changed forever, no more of the sport I love until the doctor gave me the green light. Concussions have become a nasty injury that can change a person’s life forever, in some cases, this becomes a way of life rather than just a timeline for an injury.  

Sports are becoming safer for players today, but injuries are still a huge possibility in today’s games. One of the worst injuries that can occur in high-level sports is head injuries, specifically concussions. The injury is caused by multiple or a high impact hit to the head of the player, which can cause long-term damage to a person after only one hit. These injuries can affect the player in the long term after they retire from the sport, since concussions cause different symptoms, like head trauma and personality change. Currently, in the world, there have been many recent medical studies that have tested positive for these types of injuries, and scientists are looking for better ways to protect and prevent concussions further on.

Concussions are head injuries that affect the brain during a collision of the head to another object. After sustaining this injury athletes may have side effects like imbalance, headache, confusion, memory loss, loss of consciousness, vision change, hearing change, mood change, fatigue, and malaise according to CNN News. This injury has lead to many mental illnesses, that can harm the rest of a person’s life, like chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, ALS (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), psychosis (Only following traumatic brain injury), personality change, sleep disturbances, cognitive changes, and post-concussion symptoms. 

Ultimately concussions can lead to death in severe cases. The most recent event that hit the sports community was finding out that Aaron Hernandez (former NFL player for the New England Patriots) was diagnosed with CTE. Aaron was found with this illness while in jail for murder. Concussions have been found in many other sports, but what have they done to account for this type of injury in players of the respective sport.

“If they continue to deny my work man continues to die.”

-Dr. Bennet Omalu in the movie Concussion

There are many leagues throughout the world are trying to work to make the sports industry a much safer place for players. Here are just a few examples from other sports leagues that are making their respective sports safer. In the National Hockey League (NHL) they have now recently implemented spotters inside the arena that track for concussion-like symptoms or a hit big enough that could cause a concussion. They have also implemented if a helmet is taken off before a fight the player will be given a major penalty, this also includes if a jersey is not buttoned down properly. The rule has now been put in place to protect a player’s head while on the ice so they don’t fall and hit their head on the ice. The Major Baseball League also took a step forward in concussion protocols by extending disabled lists for the injury from two to three days now to seven-day list. This allows the player to get the right amount of time off prescribed by the doctor according to Cash Kruth at MLB.com.

From Jessica Glenza (reporter for The Guardian) says that researchers are trying to find a link between blood tests and brain trauma. If this were to become a real test it would show early signs of brain trauma and give the patient a timetable to when this would occur in their lives. It will help people early in life to detect early signs of symptoms of mental illnesses for further life purposes.

 

Concussions have become more recent in sports and it’s a good thing that people in the sports community are now recognizing this injury, and are trying to prevent it. With new types of technologies being created to help players minimize the risk of gaining a concussion. We as an athletic community will be able to reduce the effects of mental illness on people in the future of sports and in everyday life. In the end, we should have a lower rate of concussions within the sports we all love to play, watch, or spectate. This will eventually reduce the number of mental disorders in the rest of a person’s life.

 

Lastly, if I were to have permanent brain damage caused by a concussion I wouldn’t have the lifestyle I currently live. No more friends, athletics proper schooling, and most of all no more doing what I love. Concussions have now need to be prevented for the greater good of athletes and their families. If we don’t find ways to help or cure this problem lifestyles will be destroyed.

 

Here are some websites that explain more on that a concussion is and what effects it has on the brain:

• https://www.webmd.com/brain/tc/traumatic-brain-injury-concussion-overview#1
• https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/concussion/symptoms-causes/syc-20355594

• https://www.cdc.gov/traumaticbraininjury/symptoms.html\

 

Bibliography

• “NFL Concussions Fast Facts.” CNN, Cable News Network, 22 Sept. 2017, www.cnn.com/2013/08/30/us/nfl-concussions-fast-facts/index.html.
• Smith, Derryck H. “Mild Traumatic Brain Injury and Psychiatric Illness.” Mild Traumatic Brain Injury and Psychiatric Illness, BC Medical Journal, Dec. 2006, www.bcmj.org/article/mild-traumatic-brain-injury-and-psychiatric-illness.
• Kruth, Cash. “MLB, Players Association Adopt New Protocols Regarding Concussions.” Major League Baseball, 29 Mar. 2011, http://m.mlb.com/news/article/17183370//
• Glenza, Jessica. “NFL Concussion: Researchers Hope Blood Tests Can Better Detect Head Trauma.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 30 Oct. 2017, www.theguardian.com/sport/2017/oct/30/nfl-concussion-head-trauma-researchers-blood-tests.

Nix, Caityn. “Sports Concussions and CTE.” Advanced Reporting, 12 May 2016, www.ttujournalism.net/classes/j4370/?p.