Title
Major
Animal Science and Technology
Advisor
Kathleen McIntyre
Advisor Department
Honors Program
Date
5-2022
Keywords
concussion, traumatic brain injury, symptoms
Abstract
Concussions are one of the most common injuries seen in sports, and often occur during other activities, such as automobile accidents or falls. Yet unlike most other injuries they are invisible to the naked eye. Bumping your head into something normally does not cause any outwardly physical damage, and even if a scrape or bruise does form it is still impossible to tell if there is a traumatic brain injury underneath. However, concussions are a serious and dangerous injury that if left untreated could ultimately be fatal. Someone suffering from a concussion often suffers in silence and what can feel like isolation. Concussion patients experience a broad range of symptoms, some at the onset of the injury, while other symptoms might not occur until days or even weeks later. The brain controls everything we do from eating, sleeping, to being able to formulate a basic written sentence. As a result, the list of symptoms is exhaustive and varies from person to person. The most common are headaches, nausea, and fatigue. However, sleep, the senses, psyche, and learning ability can also be affected. Additionally, while some patients recover within two to four weeks, others take months, and some have taken up to five years to fully recover. As a college student with now my fourth concussion I can attest to the fact that concussion patients often suffer in silence. In this reflective essay, I share my personal experiences by detailing what it is like to suffer from a concussion. My goal is to bring more awareness about what concussions are and the dangers they can lead to if untreated.