Introduction
You’re watching the ball carrier run at you with full speed as you stand there waiting to tackle him. As he approaches, you leap forward at him, lower your head, and make full contact with each other in the helmet. He gets up from the blow, but you lay on the ground, still and wondering where you are. Your brain has just suffered what one in every five high school athletes suffer in a season, a concussion (“Head Case-Complete Concussion Managements”). If you play a sport, any type of sport, could you be the next in line to suffer this head injury?
History
Society is used to turning on their television and seeing their favorite player get helped off the playing field due to a concussion, and it has been that way for years. Some of the first reported concussions in the game of football alone were in 1883 (Harrison). William Harvey, a collegiate football player for Penn in 1883, recalls his first known concussion and his experiences with the injury (Harrison). Harvey was interviewed years later about his injury and said this in 1894, “The only serious injury I received was in the game with Harvard in 1883, when in a scrimmage behind the goal I was knocked insensible, but recovered in about fifteen minutes.” (Harrison). The game had gotten to rough, and concussions were soaring through the roof, so President Theodore Roosevelt decided to call a rules meeting of all the collegiate football teams in 1905 (“A Brief History of the game”). Many new rules were put into place to better the game and to make it more safe. This was also the date when the NCAA was established (“A Brief History of the game”). In 1939 the NCAA made the rule that every player on the field had to be wearing a helmet (Statistics). The world of football was finally realizing how dangerous the game was and what harm it was causing players physically. They did the best they could to implant rules that would halt major injuries, mainly concussions, all together. Though, 39% of all football players still get injured with concussions every year (statistics).
Social Effects
Many players who suffered a concussion, or multiple, go on later in their lives suffering from depression-like-symptoms. Of the clinically studied players, 87 percent of those players suffered from clinical depression (Concussions Can Lead to Suicide). This means a head related injury, such as a concussion, can be directly linked with depression down the road. In certain cases, players who have had such trauma and emotional pain, find that the only cure possible is suicide. Some notable players to do so were superstars such as Terry Long, Andre Waters, and Junior Seau (nspennato). Along with many others, these players all suffered concussions while playing, and depression after their careers (nspennato). Now, all that football has given to these players is a bad headache, bad brain, and a hurting family. People can’t be content with watching their favorite players go down paths similar to those players. We need to take a stand as fans.
I’m not saying you shouldn’t play a physical contact sport like football, but I am saying it is a whole lot more dangerous than a sport such as baseball. If you look at the number of concussions per year by sport, you’ll find that football leads by an alarming rate. In high school sports across America, football had 76.8 % of players consuming a concussion, while baseball had only 5 % (Head case- Complete Concussion Management). If you look at these injuries by the numbers, especially at such a young age, you’ll start to realize that maybe it’s time people start finding a less harmful sport to play other than football. This truly is an epidemic among the young and the old. Let’s start thinking with our heads, not injuring them.
Examples
I have a very close friend who at the age of 18, has already been diagnosed with 3 concussions from football. With the first one coming at the age of 12, second at age 15, and most recently at age 17 (I interviewed him). He said to me, “After my first concussion I felt fine, but after my second and third I can tell a difference in myself. It’s hard to explain, I just know something is off” (1). It is scary knowing that a close friend is already feeling the effects of head trauma and he continues to play. Hopefully it doesn’t take him another concussion to realize the danger he is in.
Adrian Arrington wrote an article on his experiences dealing with his concussions and the daily struggles he goes through. He goes on to say, “I love football, but we are not prepared enough to handle the risks that come with playing the game” (Football changed my life). Adrian suffered multiple concussions and even blacked out a few times playing collegiate football (1). Now, Adrian deals with daily seizures, and has been told by doctors he may one day die from one. Is this the life you want to choose for your loved ones?
Solutions
With the epidemic of sports related concussions very high, one can only ask, what are we doing to stop it? Numerous rules, regulations, and new and improved equipment are helping lead the way for safer play. Sports committees and advisors are working smarter and harder to tackle this monster we know as concussion.
In 1976, the NCAA came together and implanted a rule prohibiting the use of the head while tackling, and since then, head injuries have declined by nearly 50% in college football (Concussions In Sports). Also implanting new rules is the NFL. In 2015, they introduced a rule stating a defensive player cannot hit a defenseless player in the head or neck area (Reyes). The introduction of this rule has helped concussions in the NFL decline by 35% over the past three years (Reyes). Every year it seems as if one or another committee is meeting in order to better the game safety wise. It seems to be working, but until there are no more concussions, more rules will be implanted, bettering the game.
Safety equipment evolves every year and helps limit the number of concussions athletes endure. Helmets are the main protective gear that limits concussions, and every year they are newer and better. One of the newest models of helmets is the Zero1, and is the number one safest helmet on the market according to the NFL helmet laboratory results (Glines). 25 of 32 NFL teams and at least 20 college teams have already purchased this new helmet (Glines). This new technology is set up to help keep what’s inside your skull safe, not just the outside. With the world we live in being so tech savvy, you can’t help but think sooner or later there will be a piece of equipment that ends concussions. Maybe the Zero1 will be the helmet to do so.
Camus and Absurdity
Albert Camus talked of life’s meaning, and therefore lack of (Camus and Absurdity). He believed that life had no meaning, and we are all chasing something that doesn’t exist (1). Though, here I am writing about a very real subject in concussions. The absurdity he believed in, and the true pain which is caused by this injury, are two totally different subjects. Sports are very real, and every single athlete believes that they are their calling in life. The only thing relating Camus with sports concussions is the fact that he indeed played soccer (Goalkeeping as Philosophy). Camus was a goalkeeper for university football team Racing Universitaire Algerios until he was forced to quit due to tuberculosis (2). Maybe Camus had such an opinion on life due to the fact he had something he loved taken from him. Though if that is fact, why doesn’t everyone who has lost something believe in his philosophy. Camus would have found this epidemic interesting due to the fact it deals with sports related injuries. It’s something he can relate to very closely.
Conclusion
With the right people, research, technology, and rules we will end this concussion epidemic soon. Already, over the years the percentage has been declining drastically. This is a great sight to see regarding athlete’s safety. It might even effect someone you know.
Works Cited
“A Brief History of the Game.” History of Football, www.hornetfootball.org/documents/football-history.htm.
“Camus and Absurdity.” Philosophy Talk, www.philosophytalk.org/blog/camus-and-absurdity.
Concussions Can Lead to Suicide - Suicide.org!, www.suicide.org/concussions-can-lead-to-suicide.html.
“Concussions in Sports.” Concussions in Sports Article :: Nationwide Children's Hospital, www.nationwidechildrens.org/concussions-in-sports.
“Football Changed My Life.” Concussion Legacy Foundation, 16 Feb. 2018, concussionfoundation.org/story/football-changed-my-life.
Glines, Carole, and Fox News. “Revolutionary New ZERO1 Football Helmet May Help NFL Players Reduce Concussions.” Fox News, FOX News Network, 8 Aug. 2017, www.foxnews.com/tech/2017/08/08/revolutionary-new-zero1-football-helmet-may-help-nfl-players-reduce-concussions.html.
“Goalkeeping as Philosophy – Albert Camus.” Fox Sport Stories, 31 Jan. 2018, foxsportsstories.com/2018/01/31/goalkeeping-philosophy-albert-camus/.
Harrison, Emily A. American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, May 2014, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3987576/.
“Head Case - Complete Concussion Managements.” Stats on Concussions & Sports - Head Case - Complete Concussion Managements,
nspennato, March 11 2018 /, et al. “NFL Athletes with CTE Who Committed Suicide.” Stony Brook Independent, 5 Apr. 2016, sbindependent.org/nfl-athletes-with-cte-who-committed-suicide/.
Reyes, Lorenzo. “NFL Reports Reduction in Concussions, New Measures to Protect Players.”USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 6 Aug. 2015, www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/2015/08/05/concussions-reduced-rule-changes-defenseless-injured-players/31189031/.
“Statistics.” Prevacus, prevacus.com/concussions-101/statistics/.
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