A concussion is a kind of brain injury that happens when you get hit in the head or fall, causing your brain to move from its place. This creates a change in the chemicals in your brain and can also damage brain cells in some cases.
A concussion can occur even with a back-and-forth movement of the head caused by force making your brain bounce back and forth in the skull, which means headgear or a helmet cannot necessarily protect you from getting a concussion because they do not support your head to stay still. If you have been bumped in the head and feel faint or confused, visit Falls Church concussion to get checked today.
Warning signs of a concussion
Most doctors often label concussions as mild, but they should be taken seriously, especially in children, because concussions can have serious aftereffects. These are some signs you should watch out for if you or anyone you know has been hit in the head and does not feel okay.
- Persistent headache that keeps getting worse
- Feeling of confusion
- Vomiting repeatedly or experiencing seizures
- Blurry vision
- Inability to sleep or trouble waking up from sleep
- Experiencing mood swings and behavioral changes
- Feeling slower than usual, sluggish
- Inability to focus or coordinate
- Losing consciousness, even if for a short period
- Noticing nose and ear bleeding
- Slurred speech, unable to talk precisely
- One of the eyes’ pupils looks bigger than the other
If you notice no serious signs in yourself or anybody you know who has experienced a jolt to their head and maintains normal behavior while being alert with no difficulty in responding to people, then the injury is most likely mild and typically does not require testing. But if any of the above-mentioned signs are present, especially after a day or two, it is imperative that you visit a doctor immediately.
Potential after-effects of a concussion
In some cases, there could be lingering symptoms after experiencing a concussion. The symptoms could last anywhere from a few weeks to a few months, but sometimes, they can also last for a year or more.
- Persistent headaches lasting for weeks or months
- Feeling a ringing sound in the ears
- Experiencing anxiety
- Losing the ability to concentrate and experiencing memory loss
- Feeling sensitive to light and noise
- Feeling of dizziness
There is also a symptom called Second Impact Syndrome, where if the person experiences another concussion before fully healing from the symptoms of the first one, it can lead to inflammation of the brain, often very quickly, and can become fatal.
