So they think that a flexible football helmet that absorbs hits like a car bumper, could put an end to concussions. The problem with this is that they’re still thinking inside-the-box. The truth of the matter is that not everyone who plays football gets a concussion or a set of concussions. They can calculate and estimate all they want about the number of hits from childhood to pro career, but it’s not the number of hits. A flexible football helmet won’t solve the problem.
You have to look at the real cause of the brain injury. What’s important is what’s going on inside your head. What you’re thinking. What you’re feeling. It’s your psychological state that matters. It’s the mental and emotional state of the person before the concussion occurred that matters more than anything.
Do you think a concussion can be mistaken for the flu?
Several years ago Rene Bourque of the Calgary Flames was traded to the Montreal Canadiens. Nothing unusual about that. Pro athletes get traded, released, retired all the time. They go where they’re sent if they want to continue playing the game they love. So off Bourque went to report to his new team.
His trade came as a shock though. To everyone, the sports news, the fans and mostly, to himself. I just happened to checking up on him when I was surprised to find out that he was on a injury list indefinitely for a concussion. Ok. That’s not a surprise either.
But the story didn’t end there.
Apparently Rene Bourque went to his team doctors complaining about the flu. They gave him stuff and sent him home. After awhile he went back, telling them that he wasn’t getting better. They decided to take a closer look. To their surprise they concluded that he had a concussion!
BUT no one remembered how it happened! So what else is going on?
At the beginning of this years hockey season, Marc Methot of the Ottawa Senators also complained about the flu. He also came back a few days later not feeling better. Upon further investigation his doctors also concluded that he had a concussion. Again, there was no hit, not memory of anything like that that could be responsible for his concussion.
What else is going on?
Your concussion is the physical manifestation of a prolonged negative and hurtful emotional state. A flexible football helmet won’t solve the problem. Nothing external will solve the problem.
We have to look at the research in neuroplasticity. It shows what happens to the brain when a person is experiencing stressful bouts. The brain is damaged from the inside out. When someone experiences prolonged bouts of anger, fear, frustration, sadness, grief – and they’re repeated over and over – all these stress hormones (adrenaline and cortisol) are set loose and flood the brain and the body.
Repeated stress like this results in changes in the brain including shrinkage – and weakness. Shrinkage is due to brain cells getting excited over and over which eventually kills them. Eventually the birth and growth of new brain cells are also inhibited. So no new brain cells and existing ones die off.
A blow to the head is a physical trigger for a concussion, but the damage to the brain already begun long before that. We have to look at the emotional state for the clues. We have to look at behaviours. Brain injury and that’s what is already happening – is NOT invisible. We have to ask the right questions. No head protection, whether it be a flexible football helmet or a hard one, will stop every concussion from happening.
Skeptical about the do-nothing approach for your concussion? Disillusioned and abandoned by your doctors because you’ve got Post-Concussion Syndrome? Tired of old chronic injuries? Got a new one that’s taking a long time to heal? Or want to avoid surgery and narcotic pain killers?
Apply here for Dr. Joanny’s help. We’ll review your information and send you your next steps.
Dr. Joanny Liu, TCMD, RAc, P.Eng, Dr Joanny Liu,”Best Selling Author and founder of Extraordinary Sports Medicine, where we help athletes reverse injury, get back in the game they love and improve their quality of life.” Remember, we’ve got three books about healing concussions in Amazon: Knock OUT Concussions, Heal Your Concussion: 21 Days to Brain Health, Best selling book at: Heal Your Concussion: How to Quickly and Effectively Get Back in the Game
