Af
I was really frustrated that I ended up getting one.
I was out for two and a half weeks.
No technology or screen time at all.
No lights.
Like...
The doctor said that I could do activities
that didn't involve thinking a lot.
So I could colour,
I could play board games, I could read,
but if I started to get a headache,
I had to stop immediately.
Yeah I couldn't play,
and one time when I did try to play right after it,
I couldn't skate.
I kept on falling around.
♪ ♪
I'm Isabelle MacNeil with CBC Kids News.
Today I'm at the IWK Health Centre in Halifax Nova Scotia,
a children's hospital.
Today I'll be meeting with Dr. Gordon,
and we'll be talking about something
that affects kids and adults: concussions.
Let's learn what concussions are
and what us kids need to know about them.
So I'm Kevin Gordon.
I'm a paediatric neurologist.
What is a concussion?
Concussion is a brain injury.
It occurs when your brain gets hit.
♪ ♪
Yes I have.
Yes.
Yeah.
I've only had one.
I've had three actually.
I've only had one.
I had a lot, but I had three in the past eleven months.
What are some ways people can get concussions?
Oh there are many ways you can get concussions.
Okay. So for most youth the biggest issue
is through sports exposure.
I was playing a game and I was in grade 3 with some friends,
and I actually tripped over their arms and fell on my head.
They're all from hockey, and I've had one recently
just a month and two weeks ago.
And it was from a big hit to the head.
So I just kind of banged my head on the sink.
Playing hockey.
How would I be able to tell if I have a concussion?
So most often I would say most of my kids complain
either of a headache, or a pressure in the head.
Now that's not enough.
You've got to have a few more symptoms than that.
And the more symptoms you have,
the more likely that you've had a concussion.
So we're really looking for dizziness,
we're looking for problems with vision,
and most people will know that they've had a problem
because they just don't feel right.
I was exhausted and had tons of headaches all the time.
I got tripped and I was like, "Oh".
And as soon as I tried to get up, my head started to hurt
and I was about to throw up.
Well I had a headache.
I was also very dizzy and I was tired easily.
I also couldn't concentrate very well.
I was dizzy and I had really bad headaches.
Have you seen kids before that you probably think
they've had a concussion,
but they really just don't want to admit it?
Generally when any kid comes into my office they are scared
because the first thing they think is Dr. Gordon
is going to take me out of my sport.
Is it true that some kids don't tell their parents or coaches
that they're having symptoms?
Absolutely.
People always think that maybe it's because
they're trying to hide.
But sometimes I think it's just because
they don't know any better.
There have been some excellent examples across the country
of kids who just didn't know they had concussions.
Some, like, coaches might think,
"Oh, they've had a concussion before.
They may not be good for the team.
They might have brain injuries."
So I understand why they wouldn't be comfortable
talking to people about it.
So when I first got hit,
I didn't want to like, admit it that, like,
it was, like, pretty bad.
And I wanted to keep on going because I knew that it
was like such a bad thing to recover from.
I played the rest of the game after I got it.
No one really saw me go down and hit my head.
So like my coach didn't know I had a headache.
When I got home, I started talking
to my mom and dad about it.
Eventually everybody's going to find out.
And so the longer you hide it,
the worse it's going to get because it's not being treated.
And the more and, like, you're doing your sporting activities
it just makes it worse and worse until it causes problems later.
I'm gonna be tough and tough it out,
and no, that's-- it's crazy now.
Really, one shouldn't tough one out.
One should get better.
It would be crazy talk to say if I had an ankle injury
I should go play soccer because you go,
"You can't play soccer. You can't run on it".
So if you've had a brain injury,
you should get your brain injury better
before you go back and play sports.
♪ ♪
All the time.
I'm always concerned.
Actually, I think having a concussion before
made me think if that isn't that bad.
How worse can worse concussions be?
After that I've completely changed my game
from not going into the corner against a huge guy
who hit me in the head to play a little bit more passive.
Yeah, I'm definitely more cautious.
And I-- yeah, like even when I'm playing soccer
I hate, like, I don't head the ball or anything.
It helps me know not to be, like, as aggressive
to people who are double my size.
So we would prefer that if you have a concussion,
we get it diagnosed,
We get you out of your sport for a short while,
and then we get you right back to your sport.