
Four Months After a Concussion, Your Brain Still Looks Different Than Before - aronvox
http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/science/2013/11/four-months-after-a-concussion-your-brain-still-looks-different-than-before/
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ASpring
I've sustained between 2 and 4 concussion in the past 6 years. 2 were
clinically diagnosed and I self-diagnosed 2 more after smaller accidents that
had similar week-long symptoms. All occurred during soccer practices and
games.

The prospect that I've done cumulative lasting damage to my brain absolutely
terrifies me. Similar to the way a model would be terrified if they sustained
burns on their face. My brain is what makes me money, my brain is what makes
me proud, my brain provides pleasure through reading, writing and programming.
It's horrifying to think that I've somehow caused my brain to be performing at
a lower level than it would be otherwise.

I don't know why I'm writing this. It's just scary. I still play sports (no
longer soccer) and bicycle everywhere but I'm far more careful and reserved
than I would be otherwise.

Be careful out there, wear a helmet, and take care of your brain.

~~~
rooshdi
It is concerning. I've been concussed by a baseball to the head as a teenager
and these emerging long-term effects to the brain kind of freak me out.
Probably shouldn't have took a few more headshots after that, but tis life I
guess. Funny how our strongest asset is also the most fragile.

~~~
ASpring
Well said.

Finding the balance is a struggle for me. Is increased risk of dementia and
other disorders when I'm older worth it for me to continue mountain biking
while I'm still young? I don't know. What risks are worth taking?

~~~
darkmighty
Here's something I don't get about some high-risk sports: is the feeling you
get doing that really irreplaceable? Aren't there a ton of other things which
given some time would be just as fun?

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mitchty
About 5 years ago I suffered a concussion from a motorcycle accident (I had a
helmet, only thing that saved me).

All my friends said it took me almost 2 years before I was back to "my old
self". It was weird experiencing it firsthand as well. My last memories of the
accident was planting my left hand on the pavement trying to save the fall.
Thankfully my nice Held gloves have tacks on the palm so it wasn't a big deal
but the next memory I had was waking up with a cat on my chest staring right
at me in my buddies girlfriends house.

I think the cat wanted to eat me, those eyes /shudder. Anyway, PSA is always
wear a helmet, that and hip armor, wear lots of that, I walked like an old man
for a month. But for a few years after that accident I basically felt a fog in
my brain.

I really don't like the idea of sports like football after that where people
pile on concussions. I just don't see how it could be a thing that couldn't be
detrimental.

~~~
anigbrowl
_I really don 't like the idea of sports like football after that where people
pile on concussions. I just don't see how it could be a thing that couldn't be
detrimental._

There's a high school that I pass on the way to the dog park, and on Mondays
the team is always outside for football practice. Watching them damage
themselves right in front of the school breaks my heart. I am convinced that
American Football is going go suffer the same drop in popularity as boxing
within the next decade.

~~~
cglace
For a more barbaric sport like MMA?

~~~
tomsthumb
According to the (nat geo?) video below mma and boxing hits should be about
the same with all else being equal. Combing this with mma's grappling and one
almost wonders if, despite the increased blood, it might be less concussion
inducing.

No doubt their bodies are being hammered and worn down though.

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRmOOWPTRBs](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRmOOWPTRBs)

~~~
sanoli
Among the MMA community it used to be common knowledge that MMA was safer,
concussion-wise. There were no good studies to back that up, however. Now
they're starting to come by, and it seems they might be just about the same.
Here's one: [http://www.cagepotato.com/myth-busting-is-mma-really-
safer-t...](http://www.cagepotato.com/myth-busting-is-mma-really-safer-than-
boxing/)

------
Balgair
I've had quite a few in high school and early college. The best part is the
manic and depressive episodes. After a really bad one during wrestling in high
school, I had some pretty amazing highs and really bad lows. Best time of my
life was sitting on the back porch and giggling at the sun for 2 hours. I was
totally ecstatic about the sun. The worst was all the suicidal thoughts. Think
a heart monitor. The highs were soooo good, but most of the time it was bad
depression. I agree with the other posters here, it took me about 2 years
after each bad hit to get over it and return to normal. I'd say it's a
logarithmic curve to a new percentile. IE you never really get all the way to
the new normal. I also have lasting short term memory loss, problems
discerning things apart at close distances, and hearing issues in loud and
chaotic environments like bars and family gatherings. My mind is just not
there and will likely never be. Oh well, I guess I'm just stuck in Hard Mode.
I don't play rubgy anymore, but damn I want to. I know I can't but I miss the
pitch everyday I am here. I loved it all, and I still do. Again, hard mode.

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Pxtl
A bit offtopic for HN, but it really does drive the point home: Football?
Boxing? Hockey?

These are blood-sport.

There may be a technological solution, there may be a rules-revision solution
(hockey in particular does not _need_ to be brutally violent to be a good
game) but the current approach isn't right.

~~~
Balgair
i agree with you that they are bloody sports and there are inherent major
risks in them. I posted above about my experiences with wrestling and rugby,
arguably very violent sports. I want to say that I know they are 'blood
sports' and I love them even through what happened to me. Though I cannot play
rugby these days, there is not one that goes by that I do not wish to be out
on the pitch.

I am having trouble explaining this, I think. But even though these sports are
bloody, and probably because they are, I want to play them. The thrill, the
camaraderie, the team and the struggle, the pitting of man against man in an
arena, it all is what I want. I can prove myself on a rugby pitch or a
wrestling mat in a way I cannot elsewhere in life. Again, words are failing me
here. But I want you to know that I know the risks, I knew them before my
concussions, I have lived with the results of the decisions, and I still miss
it and yearn for it. I love playing these 'blood' sports.

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jph
I've helped friends with this. The most important item is for patients to get
copies of their MRIs and related records.

These are crucial for long term follow up.

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moe
And if you're very, very lucky, the new look is an improvement:
[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/22/lachlan-connors-
mus...](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/22/lachlan-connors-
music_n_4324245.html)

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dreamdu5t
Is your brain supposed to look the same after four months without a
concussion?

