The
Stow Independent... Online
March 28, 2012
Use Your Head to Prevent Brain Injuries
By Ellen Oliver
The Stow Parent Teacher Organization hosted its first information
session featuring a discussion on brain injuries with the goal of
increasing prevention by raising awareness of the repercussions.
Emceed by PCSG Co-Chair Paul Trunfio, the March 22 discussion at Hale
featured an update on new concussion legislation and a presentation by
Patty Carlson of the Brain Injury Association supported by testimonials
from people who have suffered a traumatic brain injury.
Representative Kate Hogan started the evening with a brief on
Massachusetts’ new concussion laws designed to protect student
athletes. “The new legislation says pay attention. This is important,”
explained Hogan. “The notion of toughing it out is giving way to common
sense.” Hogan introduced her aide, Scott Kjellberg, whom she credited
with bringing the issue to her attention.
Kjellberg, a former high school and college football player, suffered
head injuries while playing and related how hard it is for a player to
come out of the game. “There’s a difference between an injury and what
hurts. It’s tough to tell a coach my head hurts I don’t think I should
play,” he said.
Grateful that the new law will remove
the pressure on kids to make the decision about playing, he said
parents have a role in protecting their children. “It’s most important
that parents keep an eye on your kids. As a kid, I tried to hide it
from them. My parents watched me and caught it. It’s scary now, looking
back on it, to have headaches a lot. I’m happy there’s more awareness.”
Carlson, a Certified Brain Injury Specialist from the Brain Injury
Association (BIA) of Massachusetts in Westborough, presented statistics
underscoring the breadth of the issue: every 23 seconds someone suffers
a brain injury; 50,000 thousand die each year from brain injuries; and
1.1 million people are treated and released annually. “Brain injuries
are often called a silent epidemic,” she said. “It’s not seen. There’s
no bandage.”
“Once a brain cell is dead, it’s dead
forever,” said Carlson. “The only cure is prevention.” Carlson offered
her organization as a resource (www.biama.org) and reviewed the BIA’s
programs such as Think A-Head for school children and Keep Every Youth
Safe (KEYS) geared toward new drivers.
Giving
face to the severity of brain injuries were the real life stories
related by two local students. Sean Rowell, a sophomore at St. John’s,
was snowboarding at Loon Mountain as an eighth grader. Rowell was
wearing a helmet and enjoying the terrain park when something went
wrong and he had to be airlifted to the hospital. “I found out later
the ski patrol didn’t think I’d live,” he shared.
Rowell was diagnosed with a severe brain injury. “If I hadn’t worn a
helmet I would have died,” he said. “One thing I want people to know:
It’s important to wear a helmet, but they don’t make you invincible; it
only lessens the severity of an injury.”
With
months of physical therapy at Spaulding Rehabilitation Center, Sean was
able to recover his physical abilities, but other difficulties
lingered. “Mental tasks left me completely exhausted,” he said. “I had
to relearn how to do so many simple activities. I was a good student;
things are harder for me now.”
Rowell also had to
make tough choices about his sports future as well. “I’ve chosen to
give up football. I loved the sport, but it’s not a good idea for me to
play contact sports,” he said. “I used up my reserve and I need to
choose my activities wisely for the rest of my life.”
Kelley Linn, a freshman at Nashoba, is the first to admit that
volleyball isn’t a contact sport, but her injury from a concussion was
just as devastating as two football players crashing helmets. Linn
received her first concussion after a teammate drilled the ball from
behind directly into the back of Linn’s head. “No one thought I should
be pulled out because it was volleyball,” she said.
Three weeks later, Linn was cleared for all activities, but she still
had difficulties with balance, doing math, and her body would sometimes
make jerky movements. Battling daily headaches, Linn began to spend
time in her room with the lights off, cut off from activities and
friends.
Linn began to bounce back after working
with a neurologist at Children’s Hospital and by the start of the
school year she was ready to play varsity volleyball for Nashoba. In a
game against Ayer, a ball took an awkward bounce off and headed
straight toward Linn. “The ball hit me square in the eyes,” she said.
“I kept thinking, ‘No, not another concussion.’” But an MRI confirmed
the diagnosis: Linn had her second concussion in the span of a year.
Linn continued working with her doctors to regulate medication for her
head pain, but had trouble returning to school. “When we changed the
medications one side effect was extreme exhaustion,” she explained.
“School was loud and I felt nauseous.”
“I felt
completely isolated,” she added. “Being on the computer and watching TV
hurt. Things weren’t getting better at all.” Linn echoed Carlson saying
people didn’t understand what she was experiencing because it couldn’t
be seen. “People were rushing me. It was frustrating to have my friends
say “it’s just a concussion.’”
The care of a good
doctor and time have helped Linn and as of February, she started
returning to school, coming in for one, then two classes a week. She is
still battling headaches and, upon her doctor’s recommendation, has
just started acupuncture to obtain some relief. “I had my first
headache free day for seven months. That was worth celebrating,” she
related.
Linn had advice for her fellow
athletes: “Wear a helmet, follow the safety rules for any sport and get
out of the game if you need to.” She also advised that teammates take
care of each other. “Watch out for fellow athletes. You often have a
better vantage point than the coach,” she advised.
The speakers illustrated the long-term repercussions of brain injuries,
which vary by individual, and the pressure many athletes feel to keep
playing. Taking to heart Carlson’s words that prevention is the only
cure, Linn said, “Concussions can happen to anyone, anytime. It’s
better to be out for one game than for a season or for life.”