What is a concussion?

A concussion is a traumatic brain injury that occurs when the brain jolts or shakes inside the skull due to a blow to the head or the body. 

What are the symptoms?

There are several symptoms but they usually range from mild to severe and they can linger for hours, days, weeks, or sometimes even months. Symptoms of a concussion fit into four main categories: Cognitive, Physical, Emotional and Sleep.
The most common symptoms are:

• Headaches/Sensitve to light
• Dizziness
• Nausea
• Memory loss/poor concentration
• Slow reaction time, mood swings 
• Not being able to sleep well

What are the treatments? 
Seek medical attention right away, be evaluated for a concussion through a series of tests, visit a doctor or neurologist, get adequate rest, take Tylenol and refrain from physical activity until you have been cleared through the proper protocol.

Post-Concussion Syndrome: A diagnosis when certain symptoms linger on after several other symptoms have resolved. 


Second-Impact Syndrome: A diagnosis of a second concussion relatively close to the first concussion, often occurring because an athlete returns back to early or never even reported the first concussion and kept playing. 


How does this relate to Female Soccer Players?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEjF18-jMv4

Soccer players is general face the risk of concussion because of how physical the game of soccer is and they head the ball repetitively. Soccer players can be kicked in the head, head a ball, get punched in the head by the goalkeeper and even fall and jerk their neck causing their head to hit the ground.

Although both male and females play this sport:

• Female high school soccer athletes suffer almost 40% more concussions than males.
• Females are more likely to report concussions. 
• Females neck muscles are not fully developed until age 14.

Take it from someone who played Professional and was known for scoring with her head:

“It’s so important to make people mindful that 'You know what, man-- I just took a major head impact and I need to go off the field and check myself out,' no matter what game or environment you’re in, because I’ve been there, I’ve done that and I’ve thought 'I can muscle through this' and that's something that needs to become part of our conversation that we end.”

-Abby Wambach, Former U.S. Women's Soccer Player

My Personal Experience:

As a female soccer player myself, I have received roughly 6 concussions within the past 4 years. My first concussion, which I think was my worst, came in my Sophomore year of high school. I was playing in my soccer game when I slid across the grass to reach the ball when my opponent missed and fell on top of me causing her cleat hit me on the side of my head. I was out for a couple seconds and woke up to a group of people standing around me. I was assessed and slowly guided off the field where I remained until the end of the game with a severe headache. After the game, I became really sick so my mom took me to the emergency room where I got a CT scan done which thankfully came back negative for any severe trauma or swelling of the brain. As I was out of physical activity for some time I spent two doctor visits with a neurologist. Once I was cleared from my concussion, symptoms lingered on and my primary care doctor diagnosed me with PCS (Post-Concussion Syndrome). Even to this day and since all of my other concussions, I still have symptoms lingering on and my memory isn't as good as it was before.

Do you really know how serious a concussion truly is?