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Benjamin Griffis

Prof. Calhoun

ENG 1201

15 March 2020

How are concussions changing us and the way we play sports today? It seems to

have become a worldwide problem, dealing with the severe amounts of head injuries

caused by sports each year. Many professionals in sports are trying to better equip

players to sustain from obtaining these types of injuries. For example football, a very

physical sport leads the way with a total amount of head injuries, and professionals are

trying to create the most protective helmet to protect the players. An even bigger

change in the way a sport is played can be seen in soccer, it’s not a simple fix for

soccer as there is no headgear already in place. Rules have been created to prevent

younger kids from not being able to head the ball,l if they do they are punished as play

is stopped and the other team is rewarded the ball. Some may think that parts of the

game may be getting taken away from the players, but there is a reason behind the

madness and that’s to protect children from the severe effects a head injury could cause

to them.

An overlying main idea between all the sources is the symptoms and ways that

cause concussions. In an interview with expert Kevin Guskiewicz, he explains some of

the common signs that can be related to concussions, which are headache, dizziness,

blurred vision, and feeling as though you're in a fog or having concentration problems.

The other main point throughout the sources which was the causes of concussions was

explained very well in a health blog by Jane Gleeson, she explains that not only direct
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hits to the head can cause a concussion. Indirect hits to another part of the body can

cause the brain to rapidly shake which can trigger these symptoms and cause u to have

a concussion. These two ideas are just the main points that can be discovered between

these sources.

Not many disagreements can be found between articles other than the

management of trying to prevent or slow down these concussions. Some of the experts

believe rules should be changed to prevent them from occurring while others believe in

more advanced equipment. Katherine Ellen Foley in her article “Football will keep killing

players until we change the way it’s played“ talked about the various tests and

requirements that a helmet for football has to pass in order to be accepted into the NFL.

While George Chiampas in another article talked about the rule change in soccer and

how that will develop in the coming years. Personally I believe in a little bit of both, you

can’t change rules to make the sport not be played the same, but you can’t force people

to buy expensive high tech equipment.

A common misconception when it comes to concussions is, a concussion is

caused by a direct blow to the head. Now, this may be surprising to some but that is not

true, a concussion can come from a hit somewhere else that causes the brain to move

rapidly back and forth. Another misconception is people always lose consciousness

when obtaining a concussion and that’s only true 10% of the time. Expanding on that

thought it is also known that if someone loses consciousness as a result of head trauma

it doesn’t mean they have a concussion. These are all proven wrong in an article by

Jane Topolovec-Vranic called “Recognizing the Symptoms of Mental Illness following

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Concussions in the Sports Community: A Need for Improvement” in here she lists facts

and expert knowledge that supports the opposing side to these misconceptions.

In conclusion, you may find concussions are slowly changing the way we play

sports. I’m unsure if there is an answer to when these injuries are going to stop, but with

how sports and rules are laid out today a change has definitely occurred. With the

growth in technology and science, I will be interested in finding if there is a way being

created that will prevent these types of injuries or severely reduce them. I’m also going

to research and try to find every rule change that has been created. I am aware of

some, but sure there are plenty that I don’t know of as a result of concussions.

Work Cited
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"New Findings Reported from University of Glasgow Describe Advances in Brain

Injuries (Long-term health outcomes after exposure to repeated concussion in

elite level: rugby union players)." Mental Health Weekly Digest, 16 Jan. 2017, p.

167. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints, https://link-gale-

com.sinclair.ohionet.org/apps/doc/A477576748/OVIC?

u=dayt30401&sid=OVIC&xid=a62248e6. Accessed 1 Mar. 2020.

Topolovec-Vranic, Jane, et al. "Recognizing the Symptoms of Mental Illness

following Concussions in the Sports Community: A Need for Improvement." PLoS

ONE, vol. 10, no. 11, 2015. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints, https://link-

gale-com.sinclair.ohionet.org/apps/doc/A433632176/OVIC?

u=dayt30401&sid=OVIC&xid=70cd5f33. Accessed 1 Mar. 2020.

Huppert, David. “A-Head of the Curve: Interview with Concussion Expert Kevin

Guskiewicz.” A-Head of the Curve: Interview with Concussion Expert Kevin

Guskiewicz, 15 Dec. 2011, www.kqed.org/quest/28532/a-head-of-the-curve-

interview-with-concussion-expert-kevin-guskiewicz. Accessed 1 Mar. 2020.

Foley, Katherine Ellen. “Football Will Keep Killing Players until We Change the

Way It's Played.” Quartz, Quartz, 28 Jan. 2019, qz.com/1195065/football-will-

keep-killing-players-until-we-change-the-way-its-played/.
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Murray, Iain R. “Sports Concussion.” Wolters Kluwer, 2015,

journals.lww.com/cjsportsmed/FullText/2015/03000/Sports_Concussion__Time_f

or_a_Culture_Change.1.aspx.

Gleeson, Jane Racey. “8 Common Misconceptions About Concussions.” Concussion

Facts: 8 Concussion Myths & Misconceptions Busted | Michigan Medicine, 17

May 2018, healthblog.uofmhealth.org/brain-health/8-common-misconceptions-

about-concussions.