Posted: November 23, 2015

Concussions are by far the most frustrating and scariest injury I have witnessed as a parent. As a healthcare professional I am passionate about educating athletes and their families concerning minimizing risk and maximizing recovery. While there are many parts to the concussion recovery process, for us the return to school with protracted recovery was often the most stressful and energy intensive.

I was very fortunate in the return to school arena of concussion management as my children had an advocate in the high school who listened to my concerns, was willing to ask questions and provided support. This doesn’t mean it was easy. At the time, the knowledge and protocols on return to school and concussion recovery were not as available as they are now. Most of the teachers were very cooperative and wanted to help but were not sure how to approach the problems we faced. To them my student looked healthy; they were laughing at their locker with their friends and chatting in the halls. Why could they not get their homework done or take a quiz? Why did they put their head down in class?

I learned that after some rest time at home, my teenagers had to be back in school even though they were not ready to focus and learn. There were advantages to being in that environment without the academic demands. They needed the social interaction, exposure to the material, the normalization of their life.

I encourage parents to have a constantly evolving return to learn plan. Follow the recommendations of your healthcare provider and keep the school nurse in the loop. They can be a vital member of the recovery team. Every child and every concussion is different. Some students never miss a beat with their academics but many others struggle, so you need to be ready for a challenge. Gradual reintroduction worked best in most cases for my children. Ask that they be allowed to take frequent breaks with permission to leave the classroom and to attend classes without having to take tests. When they can take tests, they might need extra time because of the challenge of focusing. When necessary, work with the healthcare provider and school to get accommodations.

For a student who is struggling it can be a balancing act. Increasing homework time may decrease their tolerance for being in school. Have them attend partial days without tests. Choose classes intentionally. Does your child do better in the mornings but have headaches in the afternoons? Do they need to attend math every day, as that is a subject that builds on its content? Can they skip the current book the English class is reading now and make it up later when they feel better? Maybe they can handle the English and history, but math is too much and needs to be put aside to be tackled with a tutor and extra time later in the recovery process.

My recommendations: work with your healthcare provider and the school staff. Be on the same team. Prioritize. Ask questions. Be creative with solutions. Most importantly, observe and listen to your child. Watch for signs of frustration, fatigue, and headaches. Listen to them for clues on what triggers physical symptoms as well as looking for signs of social isolation and depression.

To see my normally active, happy children struggle with the challenges of concussion and extended recovery processes was a tormenting challenge. Creating a plan and building a team helped tremendously. We survived by celebrating the little successes, dealing with the setbacks, and counting our blessings.

Posted: June 9, 2015

Read more about Safer Soccer.

Below is a full transcription of Cindy’s interview:

Who is Cindy Parlow Cone:
I’m Cindy Parlow Cone. I grew up playing soccer and played a lot of different sports went on to play on the US Women’s National Team, winning gold medals in World Championships.

On coaching youth soccer and whether kids should head the ball:
For about the past decade I’ve been coaching youth all the way up to professional. Now that I’ve dedicated my coaching career to coaching youth, I have made the decision after listening to all the research and what’s coming out and how dangerous it is for kids to head at early ages, I’ve taken it out of the curriculum. I don’t teach my kids how to head. Instead I teach them how to bring the ball down out of the air with other parts of their body. It wasn’t until I was 18, 19 years old when I finally learned the technique of heading, and I went on to become one of the best headers in the world, scoring a lot of goals for the US Women’s National Team with my head. So, I’m a true believer that the correct technique and all of that can be learned later in life.

On Safer Soccer:
I support the Safer Soccer campaign for no heading under the age of 14. Taking heading out of the game obviously isn’t going to take away all the concussions in soccer. You’re still going to get concussions in other ways, but if we can take away that huge percentage and make the game safer for kids today. I think we, as adults, we have a responsibility to do that.

Posted: November 16, 2015

A naturally verbose and upbeat man, Chuck inevitably began to speak with his neighbors. These lucky fans were in for a treat. They were sitting next to a legend, someone who had spent the last ­­182 days on the road and seen 223 baseball games at every major ballpark across the country. It was the second to last day of an epic trip that spanned the entire 2015 regular season. And the fans next to Chuck were probably debating whether or not to stay for the whole doubleheader.

Chuck’s baseball knowledge dwarfs even the most avid fans’, yet he doesn’t flaunt his acumen. He loves the game, and talks baseball for the sake of his passion. We’ve all spent a bus or plane ride trapped next to a chatty know-it-all, but that is never the experience with Chuck Booth. He is a pleasure to talk to and gives off a general aura of wellbeing and good intentions. But that hasn’t always been the case.

 

Chuck devoted his teenage years to the baseball diamond and football field. He threw himself into sports with the same passion that has carried him across the nation over the past year. However, his early athletic potential was jeopardized by a series of concussions both on and off the field that ultimately left him unable to play. All in all, Chuck recounts nine total concussions, one of which happened during an automobile accident in September of 2010.

Some of the symptoms from Chuck’s head traumas persist, although many have subsided or improved. He still battles dizzy spells, blurred vision, migraines, and sensitivity to light. However, these nuisances are a far cry from the man who once had to shut himself off from the world, a man that other people considered avoidant.

Chuck embarked on his journey across the country in part to recover from his most recent head trauma. With a dictate to take 6 months off from work, Chuck approached the problem proactively. He didn’t surrender into a concussed oblivion and let the symptoms rule him. Instead, he used the insurance settlement from his accident to tour the United States and do what he loves best: eat, breathe, and sleep baseball.

With a budget of just 100 dollars per game, Chuck made it work. His meager allowance proved sufficient for transportation, lodging, tickets, and food. Chuck attributes the daily grind of planning and putting one foot in front of the other as an essential factor in his progress. It has allowed him to reclaim his seat as the jovial fan that is a pleasure to be next to.

While on his admirable (and envy-inspiring) journey, Chuck helped promote awareness for his condition on behalf of the Concussion Legacy Foundation, which he selected as his charity designation. Chuck spoke candidly about his experience and why concussion awareness is so important in dozens of interviews that have appeared in newspapers, television, and online.

Chuck’s bitter history with brain injuries is one that many ex-athletes can identify with. But his tale of therapeutic recovery-via-baseball – like that rare MLB tripleheader – is rather unique.

Posted: July 1, 2015

U.S. Soccer icon Brandi Chastain discusses the legacy that she wants to leave: making the game of soccer safer for kids by eliminating headers until age 14.

Posted: June 1, 2015