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Jillian Pagels
Julie McDiarmid
ENGL 104
8 December 2015
Concussions in High School Athletes
Today, one of America’s favorite pastimes and entertainment is sports. Many people
either play sports or follow them religiously. It involves almost everybody, from males to
females and the young to the old. Sports often begin in the early stages of an athlete’s life, from
peewee sports, and often they continue up to high school and sometimes even further. When
people hear the word “sports”, they often think of contact sports such as football, basketball,
soccer and so on. The “contact” part of the sport can be very serious.
It is seen a lot in high
school athletics; the players play very competitively as they often only have four years to play
their sport and they want to make them count. When the players get highly competitive, it often
leads to injury, the most serious of them being concussions. More often than not, high school
athletes do not view concussions as serious as they really are and therefore they often ignore any
symptoms they occur. The fact of the matter is that concussions are very serious, and therefore
information about concussions is necessary including the symptoms, the risks of continuing to
play with one, and the overall long term effects a concussion can potentially have on the brain.
Many times when high school athletes are asked what a concussion is, they know the
basics, such that it is an injury to the brain/head. Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician and
Certified Athletic Trainer, Doctor Kelley J. Roush stated, “There are various types of injuries to
the head, with the most common being a concussion or traumatic brain injury (TBI).
A traumatic
brain injury is defined as a blow or jolt to the head or related structure that disrupts normal
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function of the brain” (1). Based on the extent of the injury to the brain the symptoms can range
from mild, moderate to severe. The most common physical signs of a concussion include:
headache, dizziness, light sensitivity, balance problems, vomiting, confusion, slurred speech,
noise sensitivity, and fatigue. There are also cognitive signs of concussions that include but are
not limited to: “difficulty concentrating, repetitiveness, answering questions slowly, feeling
mentally in a fog, difficulty remembering, being forgetful, and appearing confused about events”
(2). Those with concussions may act out in irritability, sadness, and nervousness. For example, a
football player from Berrien Springs High School received a concussion and was very confused
and then started to laugh hysterically, most likely out of nervousness. These acts are usually
following right after the concussion. The most mild symptoms that can be hard to detect, is often
when athletes ignore them and continue to play, making it far more dangerous for the athlete.
