By Yumi Nakago ‘22
When I initially got my concussion, the left side of my face, shoulder and chest area started to swell. I immediately noticed that my spatial awareness was greatly affected and that my balance was extremely off. I also experienced a great deal of memory loss, and concussion symptoms, which then led to me being taken to the ER. I later discovered that I suffered a severe concussion and have nerve damage to the left side of my body. I went to the doctors weekly, and every appointment led to the same news– a very slow recovery and cognitive rest. That meant no school. I was not able to go to school for over a month, and when I did return, I could barely handle two hours of mental stimulation. Everything in my daily life became a thousand times more difficult, reading, writing, typing, and even speaking. I couldn’t do things how I normally would. Everything took way longer to complete and comprehend.
I still do experience sensitivity to light and noises, nausea, anxiety, dizziness, headaches, and difficulty with focusing, comprehending text, reading, writing, typing and speaking. Even when I read or write for a short amount of time, I almost immediately get a headache and have trouble with focusing and processing the information. The symptoms do not automatically go away within an hour; they tend to stay until I can sleep that night. It is very hard for me to be in crowded areas with lots of movement and noises such as the hallway, so I need to walk to class after they are cleared. Constantly having a headache due to the stimulation at school is very tiring. The headaches are even worse when teachers have me do school work during class. I do notice that my symptoms take a longer time to go away since my brain is being constantly stimulated for six hours at a time. If I do not take a break in an almost completely isolated space, the symptoms tend to linger and grow worse over time.
My symptoms greatly affect how I can perform as I am a very efficient and hard-working student. Doing schoolwork is very difficult especially because it requires focusing and using my brain. I do not think that teachers realize how much of toll being at school and also doing the work takes on my mental state. I have a very short attention span, and without realizing it, I tend to lose focus within minutes of doing an assignment. The longer I do the assignment, the harder it is to focus and remember what I am working on. No matter how hard I try and push myself, my brain can only handle so much stimulation, and I end up becoming very sick for the rest of the day.
My concussion also prohibits me from turning in assignments on time and correctly completed. Most of the assignments that I turn in do not make sense or have proper grammar or sentence structure.
I also am completely not able to enjoy assemblies and school activities because I become sick. I cannot go around campus and eat lunch in the ASC because I also feel sick.
Being the President of the freshman class, I am incapable of assisting with planning and helping at school functions because I cannot focus. While being very incapable of doing all of my normal activities to my full capability, I feel that I am letting down many of my fellow teachers and classmates.
I think that the hardest aspect of a concussion that teachers often struggle with is the appearance of the injured person. Just because the student looks fine on the outside, teachers think that the student is normal. Although the student appears fine on the outside, it does not mean it’s okay on the inside.
People with concussions do not have a cast or a brace on their heads to display the injury, often leading teachers to take this matter lightly. Concussions are more serious than fractures or sprains because they deal with your brain which can affect a person’s mental state forever. I believe that teachers need to better understand the difficulties the student will have with processing information. For me, it is very difficult to have a long conversation with teachers and process what they’re saying. In the future, it would make it a lot easier on the student if teachers not only told but wrote down what they want to convey to the student in the simplest way possible.
Reading is also a large issue for me as well, so I find the shorter, simpler but the more explanatory the information is, the better. Teachers can also allow students to record conversations of lectures in the classroom so that they can replay it to better understand the information.
I believe that schools should better educate the teachers on how to handle the situation. When a student is sick, a teacher knows exactly what to do. But, when it comes to concussions, the teachers have limited knowledge on how to deal with it. I think that teachers should be more informed on how bad a concussion can get and how severe the student’s symptoms are. In order to accommodate the severity of each student’s symptoms, teachers should sit down with the student to address how they are feeling daily.
Counselors, principals, and teachers should not ask the parent or guardian regarding how the student is feeling. The student should always be asked first because oftentimes, what the parent or guardian could say will miscommunicate how the student truly feels, good or bad.
Teachers can help the student to continue to thrive by not giving them assignments that they do not have to do. Only give the student what absolutely needs to get done; otherwise, the unnecessary work adds too much pressure and leads to extreme anxiety. Another thing that can help the student is extended due dates. Very simple but explanatory assignments are also beneficial for not overwhelming the student. Adjusting the classroom environment by turning off lights also helps the student’s symptoms, which helps the student to perform better in class.
A concussion is considered a type of a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Maybe we should use the term TBI instead of concussion to remind us that the injury is in the brain and that any damage to the brain has serious effects.
Every concussion is different, and each student has a different experience. This is my experience. It is my hope that I can help make everyone more knowledgeable and understanding of students who have concussions or experiences similar to mine.
Please read the following information on the left so that you might better understand the fuzzy world of concussions.
POSSIBLE CONCUSSION – WHAT TO DO?
By Cruz Pangelina, ATC
• Report symptoms to coach, parent, athletic trainer (ATC).
• Get checked out by physician or ATC.
• Get plenty of rest physically & mentally.
• Give time to recover: Another concussion sustained while the brain is still healing can result in long-term problems or even death in rare cases.
• Take it slow at first: After physician clearance, report to ATC for return to play protocol (7-step RTP)
• Address concerns: Don’t hesitate to ask any questions/concerns with physician/ATC.
• Signs of concussion: Observable by coach, parent, teacher, teammates, etc.
• Emotional, restless, lack of concentration, slurred speech, confused, slow, etc.
• Symptoms of concussion: Felt by athlete
• Headache, dizziness, nausea, sensitive to light or sound, impaired vision
• 7-Step Return to Play protocol: Physician clearance needed to begin step 3.
Step 1: Complete cognitive rest, may include, but not be limited to school.
Step 2: Return to school full-time
Step 3: Light exercise (10-15 min.)
Step 4: Running (20 min.)
Step 5: Non-contact sport specific drills
Step 6: Full contact practice
Step 7: Full activity without restrictions
NOTE: Each step must be separated by at least 24 hours.
This information is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended to serve as medical advice. Anyone seeking specific neurosurgical advice or assistance should consult his or her personal care physician.
