Concussions are a common soccer accident. They can end an athlete’s career. Taylor Twellman was a five-time Major League Soccer All-Star who was the league MVP in 2005. In eight years he scored 101 goals. In 2008 he was punched in the head during a game. He told his trainer he had a concussion and was seeing double. Shockingly, the trainer told him to go back in the game because he knew his own name, the score of the game and was able to count backward from 100.
Taylor went to a variety of neurologists and other doctors seeking answers. As an injured soccer player it took him 19 months to finally find a doctor who recognized his debilitating symptoms as a brain injury caused by concussions. In 2009 he barely played soccer because of the unrelenting pain. For his final game on June 7, 2009, he prepared by taking four Vicodin, three Excedrin and “shotgunning a Budweiser”. He said “My head was as soft as a sponge. I knew deep down I was done.”
Soccer players repeatedly hit the ball with their head. Brain studies from boxers who had repeated hits to their head show serious damage to the brain. You don’t have to be knocked out to have a concussion. Symptoms include headaches, confusion, memory trouble, nausea, poor balance, vision problems and trouble concentrating. The danger of playing after a concussion is that the vulnerable brain could experience severe swelling, which could require emergency surgery to relieve.
At a recent conference on brain trauma, Taylor said he spent nine months in a dark room, unable to watch TV or walk his dog and was nauseated every day for two years after his concussion. “I was completely helpless, and I say ‘completely helpless,’ I mean you can’t look at your cellphone without seeing three of them.” Taylor is fortunate that his health has improved since his injury. He is now a soccer commentator on ESPN.
One way to see how a concussion affects the brain is via an EEG (Electroencephalograph) brainwave analysis. Below is a graph of person who has not had a head injury.
Compare that to the graph below of a person who did have a head injury. You can see the big burst of activity in the waveform that is associated with head injury.
The good news is that the brain can rewire itself and create new brain pathways around the injury to regain function and clarity.
An injured soccer player can have an underlying brain injury that can be identified by the EEG. The machine also has the ability to do strategic training exercises called neurofeedback which can help the brain to rewire itself.
I hit my head on the windshield when I was 6-years-old. I didn’t know until I was 40 that my dyslexia, balance problems and short term memory problems were caused by that head trauma. I started neurofeedback training and I was amazed at how all three improved. My balance and memory are much better. I only have occasional episodes of dyslexia. I have seen people with serious head injuries go from being in a wheelchair to walking thanks to neurofeeback trainings. Please watch the documentary below to learn more about how neurofeedback dramatically helped people with traumatic brain injuries.
If you are concerned that a head trauma could be contributing to your cognitive or balance issues an EEG brainwave analysis could confirm it. To learn more about how concussions can be seen in the brain or how neurofeedback can help rehab a brain injury please feel free to give me a call at 408-526-9423.
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