The Symptoms of a Concussion

Recently my son was assaulted and ended up with a head injury. It wasn't till a week later that he started to show the symptoms of a concussion. Never having had a concussion myself, I was prompted to share what I recently learned about the symptoms of a concussion to perhaps help someone else who has suffered a head injury.

Although more frequent among athletes due to head injuries, concussions can also occur from any blow to the head, violent shaking or other head trauma.

In my sons case, one week after the assault he started having blurry vision, slurred speech and a massive headache, Every time he laid down and got up he would get very dizzy, and upon examination his blood pressure would drop upon lying down. A cat scan ruled out any bleeding in the brain, and the doctor said that he was showing classic symptoms of a concussion.

If you have taken a hard fall or hit your head, you will definitely want to look out for any of the following signs of a possible concussion:

• Headache
• Nausea
• Dizziness or balance problems
• Double or fuzzy vision
• Sensitivity to light or noise
• Feeling slowed down
• Feeling "foggy" or "not sharp"
• Change in sleep pattern
• Concentration or memory problems
• Irritability
• Sadness
• Feeling more emotional

If you have any doubt about the severity of a head injury do not hesitate to get yourself to the nearest emergency room. They can do a full exam and a cat scan to make sure you have no bleeding in your brain. It is much better to err on the side of an examination rather than lay down and perhaps not wake up.

Several years ago my father fell off a ladder and within days had a very bad headache. My mother took him twice to the emergency room and they sent him home without X-rays, and said he was just suffering from one of his "normal" headaches. On the third trip there my mother insisted that they do an X-ray. Thank God she did because when the X-ray came back it showed that my dad had a subdural hematoma (bleeding in the brain) which required 2 brain surgeries,

Had my father went home after that third trip chances are he would have died and never got back to the hospital in time.

Head injuries are nothing to play around with- if there is any indication that you may have injured your brain get to an ER right away, and insist on X-rays, and a full exam. Better safe than sorry.

If you are an athlete or with someone who has hit their head while playing sports - here are some of the symptoms of a concussion from an athletic injury :

• Player appears dazed
• Player has vacant facial expression
• Confusion about assignment
• Athlete forgets plays
• Disorientation to game or score
• Inappropriate emotional reaction
• Player displays clumsiness
• Player is slow to answer questions
• Loss of consciousness
• Any change in typical behavior

Our brain is a vital organ for our body, and if injured, can cause repercussions for life. Although the symptoms of a concussion due to head injury do not necessarily mean life disability, they can lead to more serious problems. If you are diagnosed with the symptoms of a concussion, make sure you receive proper treatment and do proper follow up with your physician.The good news is that our brain and our body have some amazing ways of healing itself. Sometimes all that is required is time - but as in all head injuries, close monitoring is critical, preferably by someone close to the patient- to watch for any abnormal changes or behaviors

If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with the symptoms of a concussion, you will want to keep a close eye on that person for several weeks, to make sure there is no worsening of symptoms.

If this article has been helpful please rate it (thumbs up). I wish you the best of luck in dealing with the symptoms of a head injury.

(Dorsi Diaz is a freelance writer on the internet and at HubPages)