Officially discharged

tj with is screen mom waiting for hair and make-up last weekend.

Friday TJ had his follow up appt with the Neurologist. A few months ago TJ was throwing up in the morning...just in the morning and then he was fine. The doc put him back on his migraine medicine for a couple weeks. TJ had Cyclic Migraines which causes you to throw up in the morning and then be fine. Its somehow associated with regular migraines. TJ took the meds a couple times then stopped. That medication really knocks you out. Thankfully he was fine and the vomiting stopped.

So, we went for our follow up. I was taken back when the doctor said  "Well, I am officially discharging you" that simple statement just took me by surprise. We have been going to the Neurologist for 2 years. I had tears of happiness in my eyes. We have come so far and I guess I never expected it end. Of course if anything changes we go right back.

After 25 months TJ is living a pretty normal life again. He still struggles with headaches every time it rains or is threatening to rain . The extreme heat and humidity bothers him too.He still has light sensitivity.

TJ is back hanging with friends on the weekends, has a 4.12 GPA (that's with no honors classes, but he does have AP Computer Science with a perfect score) TJ has a smile on his face and a spark back in his eyes. Once again my TJ is sweet, happy and witty. Tj also works every weekend

Another thing, TJ reads non-stop now. He downloads book after book onto his phone and is constantly reading. I love it!

This cracks me up, of course TJ and his dang food issues has craft services always buying him specialty food. Chicken, muffins and goldfish are pretty much a staple on the set for him.  The rest of the cast and crew eat hot catered meals. I honestly think the boy will starve when he goes to college

It sure is nice to put this ordeal behind us as much as we can

10 months - TBI update

TJ mentioned the other day that it has been 10 months since his brain injury.

 WHOA!

I waited so long to get to this point, the point of where TJ is 100% or as close as he will be to it.

Our lives are forever different post TBI, but not necessarily for the worst. TJ still suffers from crippling headaches. Tubing on the boat, great America and Dupage County fair all brought them on. Fatigue brings them on too. The Fair was the worst because it was 100 degrees and everything (noises and movement) kinda blended into a fog like state. This may continue forever,  no one knows. Memory seems good, when he does forget something we don't know if it is because of the injury or just because he is a teenager or a teenager in love

Academically, he is good. I met with his counselor last week and we went over his Act practice test scores. He scored a little lower this year than Freshman year but still very high. He was put into the "exclusive college" range. The only college he couldn't theoretically get into is the IVY league schools....Um.... OKAY BY ME! 

 TJ has always been an incredible test taker, but very lazy when it comes to school work . This is the important year so the no sports maybe a blessing for his school work with the entire faculty's eyes on him

TJ is a junior and has made up all credits, he will take a full load in the upcoming school year. All regular classes- no honors. We still don't know what a full day of work will do to his brain. He is still on the 504 plan (kids with disabilities) just in case his brain can't handle the work load . He will be eligible for extra help if that is the case. I don't anticipate problems, but he does get frustrated more easily...who wouldn't after their entire life has been turned upside down

TJ can't play football which he misses terribly (i do too) so I enrolled him and Callahan into a trampoline class at our local gymnastic center. Karrick started gymnastics there too. Their classes are at the same time which is great! I put Cal and TJ in to build muscle tone. TJ was as hard a rock pre injury...8 pack abs and muscular back muscles. He has put on almost 25 much needed pounds but lost a lot of muscle as anyone would sitting around for 10 months.

His agent wants him in shape asap because he is tall enough and filled out enough to model young men's clothes. He just isn't buff enough anymore,,,,always freakin something. Nothing like getting an out of the blue phone call requesting current pictures just wearing gym shorts.
His gent suggested a personal trainer...arrgh!

karrick's classmate is in TJ and Cal's trampoline class

With no travel sports this summer we were as a family able to do all kinds of activities we weren't able to do for the last 8 years. We have gone on numerous vacations, family movies, dinners and just home time. TJ and Callahan have rekindled the bond they shared as little guys. They even double date together as they both have girlfriends

TJ was able to just hang with all his cousins this summer in Long Grove, swimming, talking and riding every vehicle there was. I have had so much time off this summer from work that I can't remember the last time I was this relaxed

TJ is going to try out for the high school volleyball team in the spring as his heart isn't into baseball anymore

While sitting with the counselor going over TJ's new schedule she would say "we went over this in the Spring". I had to be refreshed with everything as the last 7 out of 10 months are a complete blur....my body's way of getting me through the injury of my child

Life is good, really good.

 I am still a little over-protective with TJ and terrified of him getting hit again, but life is more stress free post injury than pre-injury.

Check out my Callahan all dirty from 4 wheeling, he is now 5 '10 at age 13

I think he may turn out to be the tallest McGinty boy by the time he is done growing. Of course now he needs an entire new wardrobe for school as you can see he is wearing TJ's shirt

Life is good...really good!

Concussions and memory loss

I learned something new about concussions and memory loss from a site I read called momsteam. Below I just copied and pasted parts of the article. click on the momsteam link in the previous sentence for full article.

TJ had Anterograde amnesia . That would explain the much longer recovery period and seemingly a more severe injury.

In a previous blog I wrote about the boy that suffered 2 back to back blows just like TJ, only a few days after TJ's. He had Retrograde Amnesia. This boy also suffered seizures . It was always in the back of my mind that he was released from the rehab hospital before TJ. Just from my view, he seemed a little worse than TJ.

This sentence answered so many questions and calmed some of my fears

"Anterograde amnesia is considered an important indicator of more serious injury and may be associated with slower recovery."

TJ was given the 3 tests below and failed them all...that's when they pulled him out of life and stuck him in a dark room for 3 months

Testing for PTA (post traumatic amnesia)

When conducting a more thorough examination for anterograde amnesia deficits, the Zurich consensus statement recommends that the team physician or ATC conduct three cognitive assessment tests:

 three cognitive assessment tests:

1. An orientation test: What month is it? What is the date today? What is the day of the week? What year is it? What time is it right now?
2. An immediate memory test: using random, unrelated words, reading each word at a rate of one word per second, and asking the athlete to recall the words both immediately and after a delay (not informing the athlete of the delayed testing until after tests 2 and 3 below, and choosing a different set of words each time the test is performed at follow-up exams);
3. A concentration test in which the athlete is asked to recite backwards two sets of increasingly long strings of digits, and then recite the months of the year in reverse order starting with the last month.

Just parts of the article

Concussions: Post-Traumatic Amnesia May Indicate More Severe Injury, Longer Recovery

By LINDSAY BARTON

• anterograde amnesia
 
• Concussion Recognition & Evaluation
 
• Health & Safety
 
• Maddocks questions
 
• post-traumatic amnesia
 
• PTA
 
• retrograde amnesia. post-traumatic amnesia
 
• Sports Concussion Safety

Two types of amnesia

An athlete can experience two types of post-traumatic amnesia (PTA) after a concussion: anterograde (reduced ability to form new memories) and/or retrograde (partial or total loss of the ability to recall events before injury). Anterograde amnesia is considered an important indicator of more serious injury and may be associated with slower recovery.

Anterograde amnesia is characterized by a reduced ability to form new memories after a brain injury, which may lead to decreased attention and inaccurate perception. Anterograde memory is frequently the last function to return after the recovery from a loss of consciousness (LOC). Following the recovery of consciousness patients may be unable to recall little or anything that occurred for days, weeks, or even months after their injury.

Retrograde amnesia (RGA) is characterized by the partial or total loss of the ability to recall events that occurred during the period prior to brain injury. RGA may extend backwards for seconds, minutes, hours, days, months or even years depending on the severity of the injury. The symptoms of retrograde amnesia may improve over time.¹

Anterograde amnesia: may predict slower recovery

Until the early 2000's, the most widely followed concussion management guidelines relied heavily on loss of consciousness (LOC) and PTA to determine the severity, or grade, of a concussion and return to play. Many considered the duration of PTA the best indicator of traumatic brain injury severity and the most dependable factor in predicting outcome, even in mild cases.

Beginning in 2001 with the Vienna international consensus statement on concussion in sport, and continuing with the Second Consensus Statement on Concussion In Sport of the 2nd International Conference on Concussion in Sport in Prague in 2004, the trend was away from using PTA in predicting a slower recovery:

• Studies suggested that the nature, severity, and duration of clinical post-concussion symptoms such as headache, dizziness, confusion (mental fogginess), disorientation, and blurred vision are more common than amnesia, and may be more important than the presence or duration of amnesia alone:
  • A 2000 study of 1003 concussions sustained by high school and college football players reported that amnesia was present in only 27% of all cases.
  • 2011 study³ of concussions sustained by high school football players reported that RGA was present in 25% of all cases.
• Studies have also shown that, because RGA varies with the time of measurement after injury, and because athlete often hears peers, family, and coaches discuss events surrounding the injury - making it more likely that they will subsequently falsely report remembering more about the injury - it is a poor measure of injury severity.⁴

By the time the Zurich consensus statement on concussion statement³ was issued in May 2008, however, there was  "renewed interest" in the role of anterograde amnesia as a surrogate measure of injury severity.  The Zurich statement therefore includes anterograde amnesia as a "'modifying' factor" that may predict the potential for prolonged or persistent concussion symptoms and influence concussion investigation and management.  Noting that retrograde amnesia "varies with the time of measurement post-injury," the statement continues the expert  trend in the 2000s viewing it as "poorly reflective" of concussion severity.

The American Academy of Pediatrics' 2010 clinical report on concussions,⁵ concurs, stating that, "[a]long with LOC, [anterograde] amnesia may be an important indicator of more serious injury." 

A 2011 study³ by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh found  that PTA and retrograde amnesia were not predictive of protracted recovery (21 days or more to return to play), which the authors said may be because they are part of the normal acute response to a concussion and resolve relatively quickly with little lasting effects. Their findings "should be interpreted cautiously", they said, "as previous research had supported retrograde amnesia and PTA as predictors of poor concussion outcomes(although not protracted recovery times per se). 

For the most comprehensive, up-to-date concussion information on the Internet, click here.

Read more: http://www.momsteam.com/health-safety/post-traumatic-amnesia-retrograde-anterograde-factor-concussion-recovery-severity#ixzz1wV9BlCmY

2 steps forward, 1 step back...follow up of a TBI

He looks perfectly fine, right?

 That's one of the problems for people that have suffered a traumatic brain injury. People don't get it...if you look perfectly fine, people think you're fine and they expect you to function  at a normal level. Thank God the high school gets it. They have been incredible...everyone. Every single person says what a wonderful kid TJ is and how he is handling this at such a mature level

After missing almost 20 weeks of school TJ went back 1/2 days for 3 weeks or so.  He seemed to then turn a corner...the switch was flipped as the brain specialist said would happen. I saw my old happy, funny, quick kid again. TJ wanted to go back full time because attending morning classes 1 day and pm the next was impossible to keep up with.

The 1st 2 full days went great...no headaches...nothing

Day 3 and 4 ,TJ had developed a headache mid-day that required him to seek Advil from the school nurse. He also had to seek refuge in "the dark room" a room in the nurses office that houses 8 cots and no lights. Each time TJ recovered in less than an hour.

Yesterday morning at 6:50 am Tj and I had a meeting with the counselor, nurse, psychologist and all of TJ's teachers. It was to see if TJ qualified for the 504 plan.

About 45 min into it TJ's eyes started to get bloodshot and I could see him struggling to stay focused. Of course my tears started flowing...it's just been endless and completely unfair to the kid. After the meeting I gave TJ Advil and he went to classes with a giant headache. He came home after school dying, just in incredible pain. I gave him a Fioricet  which is reserved for only the worst headaches 7 or higher on the 1-10 pain chart. Over use will cause repeat headaches in the future. TJ than slept for a good 2-3 hrs. He woke with a headache and went to bed with a headache a few hrs later.

 This morning I woke TJ for school and he was a bear, just miserable. It is a horrible sign if you wake up with headaches because your brain was in the ideal rest state for 8 hrs.

 He was sent to school with Advil (in his system not pocket) at 7am. At 8:30 TJ called from the nurses office....dying. I didn't want to bring him home because this crap my go on for months and he may have to learn to stick it out. I went to the school armed with fioricet, an ice pack and a diet coke, the coke was for me, but a few sips for TJ as the caffeine helps with headaches. I gave him all his stuff and told him to lay down for 20 min. I waited in the nurses office with the nurse.

she commented to me that TJ was a little confused this morning about his new school schedule that was put in place as a result of our meeting the day before. 

She suggested I take TJ home, that it is had been a long overwhelming week.

I brought him home and he went to bed, I woke him up when I got home from work...still with a headache  Aarrgh! He took another nap around 5 and now he feels better.

TJ had to drop his investing class because he already full filled that credit requirement last year. It would be better suited as another study hall to make up last semesters credits.

TJ was taken out of ICA (college Algebra) and dropped down to intermediate Algebra that works at a slower pace.. He has 3 classes in the morning then, study hall, lunch and PE  which is used as a study hall with credit...the kid played football and baseball on the HS team he deserves a free damn PE credit!

That 3 period,  almost 3 hr chunk of time also serves well to nap in the dark room if necessary. He does 2 afternoon classes than the final period is another study hall to make up 1st semester work. The school has resource centers that have teachers available to help him with 1 on 1 tutoring . Most of the teachers scaled back last semester work...forget the homework assignments just pass the tests...except the English teacher...she would not budge in that meeting. She had an entire page of missing assignments, 3 novel to read etc. The kid just started reading again (words and paragraphs would move...TJ had convergence issues with his eyes) I am not implying that anyone should pass my kid without a proper education, but 3 fucking novels? plus this semester English work...she could have at very least knocked off 1 book... will that really stop him from being successful in life? She was asked by more than 1 administrative personal to scale it back and she didn't budge

It is going to be a challenge even with all the help the school is providing for TJ to make up last semester...he can do only what he can do

So I struggle on how much to push him, when to pull back...it's hard to find the middle ground. Sometimes I get wrapped up in "making up all the work so he can graduate on time) Then I have to check myself...THE KID HAS A TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY...HIS BRAIN!!!!

Does it really matter if he goes an extra semester...in the big picture of life who the HELL cares if he graduates at 17 or 18? He'll only be more mature, he only have a little extra time before hegoes to college and then is thrusted into the work force...if he starts his career at 24 instead of 23 will he be destined to live under a bridge?

At the meeting we all sat at an oval table and had to go around and introduce our selves. when it was TJ's turn he goes 

"I'm TJ and I got hit in the head"

It was really cute and everyone laughed

the boy is back...part-time

After almost 17 weeks, TJ is back at school...part time. He goes half days alternating between morning and afternoon classes. He had to drop H Chem, German 2 and drivers Ed. He lost all his German which is  not uncommon with a TBI (traumatic brain injury), so next year he decided to go with Spanish 1. In place of Drivers Ed we put him in a PE class with the Athletic trainer that has been a Godsend throughout this ordeal. Mr M has been in constant contact with me so knows all of TJ abilities and disabilities. I'd rather TJ get this credit instead of a class where he would have to concentrate and get homework. If TJ didn't take PE that would disqualify him from playing baseball or volleyball in the Spring...if he recovers 100% that is. TJ has an investing class instead of Chem, which as fate would have it, is taught by his football coach. Now Coach L can see the devestation TJ has suffered from being left in practice after not 1, but 2 blows to the brain. I will go on record as saying "my boy better get an A in that class". Lastly we gave TJ a study hall for last period.

Lunch and PE are back to back, smack dab in the middle of the day...long break when full days start

TJ has done well so far...gets headaches, but a 15-20 trip to the nurses office to lay down usually cures that. Just this morning (1/2 day # 5) TJ said "I feel like i'm waking up a little" music to my ears. He is also getting some of his humor back. Last week TJ and I had a 1hour meeting with his counselor and school nurse to put this plan in place. When I picked TJ up the after the 1st day on class I asked how it went and did the teachers get all the instructions

TJ: "yeah, they got em, the nurse sent out a group email"

"Great what did it say?"

TJ: "basically it said, 'TJ is pretty much retarded, so if he starts acting retarded please send him to the nurse"  here's a copy"

I had to laugh...

TJ has been a trooper throughout this whole thing, much thanks goes to his girlfriend Alexis that has been here for him (all non-school and non-sleeping hrs). She has understood and dealt with his memory issues, mood swings and just TJ not being TJ.

I don't know how many girls at this age would have done that. This shows her maturity and all around great character.  There were many times that they just had to sit in a dark room because that was all TJ's brain could handle.

TJ's modifications are

1. half days
2. elevator pass
3. leave class 5 min early (avoid movement and chaos in hallway)
4. can leave class at any time to go to nurse to lay down
5. laminated (usually paper) SRC (student resource center) pass to get help in Math, science, or English during any of his 3 study periods ie PE , lunch and study hall
6. reduced homework
7. longer time for tests
8. all instructions need to be written down by teachers (still has short term memory loss)
9. notes from missed classes need to be given to TJ (every other day he misses am or pm classes)
10. teachers need to remind TJ daily to show them assignment notebook at end of each class

if  TJ shows any signs/symptoms of brain fatigue they need to document it and send him to nurse ASAP (a lists of signs/symptoms were given to each teacher)

that's all I can remember at this point

TJ did say that "I LOVE BEING BACK AT SCHOOL!"

He still has a long road ahead of him and is behind almost a full semester (has 9 wks to make up Incomplete's and SRC is helping him)

Brain injury update

Pardon the grainy cell phone picture...cell phone pictures make my skin crawl

Even though TJ is showing improvement, it's been a hard week for both of us. TJ was told to aggravate his brain....which he did and it recovered as expected.

We went to the health club a few times where tj was able to do some strength training, a little racket ball followed by swimming. At the end he did have a horrible headache...brutal, so much as he had to medicate himself. 

Monday we had PT and Ann just did a neck massage because she found little knots in his neck and shoulders (muscle spams) which could account for some of the bad headaches. He is going to have trigger point injections to relieve the spasms. The kabasch was put on racket ball....too much hand eye coordination for his brain (I wasn't surprised)

From the moment I dropped TJ at PT  I had tears streaming out of my eyes....I just felt so bad for him. Here I thought he was getting so much better, (sitting in his quiet room) just to realize the outside world still isn't his friend. Tomorrow he takes the repeat IMPACT test... I'm not real confident he will pass... an hour, 20 min is a lot for his brain to focus on memory and speed type questions. (I'm guessing here on types of questions)

I spoke with his counselor yesterday and we hope to have him start half days next week alternating morning and afternoon classes. He had to drop honors Chem, German 2 and now drivers Ed for 2nd semester. He'll have to take a private drivers ed course when he's ready. The free periods were filled in with bullshit classes, so he can get credits....such as "Independent living" I busted out crying when I heard that. He couldn't even take an acting class because attendance is mandatory WTF...! How life can quickly change

TJ is holding up well, taking most of it in stride, which has always been his personality. He is super bored and really wants to get back to school.

Tomorrow will tell what the immediate future will bring

TJ and SIS..14 weeks in

FYI Update

2-10-202 TJ has "Post concussive syndrome" not SIS, Im not changing the post

Yesterday marked 14 weeks since TJ suffered 2 helmet to helmet hits in football. He has been suffering from SIS or Second Impact Syndrome

Often SIS is fatal, 50% mortality rate...I've since found out. I guess we should consider TJ extremely lucky. I am also so thankful for all the top notch medical professionals that treated and continue to treat TJ.  Marionjoy Rehab Hospital  has been a Godsend , they see and treat the worst of the worst.

Monday at physical therapy TJ took the gaze stabilization test and scored above average..YAY! The PT has tried to give this test to TJ a few times in the last 2 months, each time he couldn't even see anything on the screen and the test had to be stopped. The PT said TJ did so well (avg is 70, TJ scored 120) that he saw things flashing by that she couldn't even see.  Ann (PT) had TJ run the hallways to purposely aggravate his brain...which it did. His headache went from a 2 on the 1-10 scale to a 7 which is horrible...the positive is that TJ didn't get dizzy! Another good sign was that Ann immediately put TJ in a dark quiet room and his headache went straight to a 4.

Yesterday (wed) TJ woke up on his own at 7am (he'll sleep til noon, 1 or 2 pm if left alone)

He was different Wednesday, he seemed better than he has been. Dr Walsh the Brain Injury Coordinator at Marionjoy said  "one day he'll wake up and it will be like someone flipped a switch"

This is where we are:

 TJ is to aggravate his brain daily and then let it recover in a dark room otherwise he will not tolerate school at all. He has therapy Mon and Wed, then hopefully he will be discharged.  On Wed. Dr Walsh will administer the repeat

IMPACT Test. Original test was given to all football players at the beginning of the season to establish a baseline of brain function. The HS sent over the code so when TJ takes the repeat on Wed at Marionjoy it will compare to the one taken at the high school...online test. If TJ passes he will be cleared to "TRY" school on January 16, if he fails the test, more involved brain testing will be given.  If TJ finds he can't tolerate school he will be evaluated at Marionjoy and have the other brain tests...I have no idea what they are.

Yesterday I took the 3 boys to our health club Glass Courts which is an amazing family friendly club. We all ran the indoor track..I did a slow jog as not to aggravate my neck that has been feeling pretty good. TJ felt great, so we put Karrick in the nursery and then hit the weight room (machines, not free weights)  again TJ felt great. TJ and Cal went to play racketball and Karrick and I went swimming. TJ lasted 20 min on the loud, bright and echoing court. POW a mean mean headache hit, so bad that TJ got pretty angry. It did calm down some once we left. In the past 3 months when that level of headache hit, TJ would be crippled with pain for 3 days and almost seemed drugged.

All in all, it would appear that TJ is finally in the recovery stage.

No one can tell us how long some of the symptoms will last. I image that the headaches will linger for a long time. 

TJ still seems to get confused and can be a little slow to comprehend things. He sometimes forgets things, but not like the short term memory loss the 1st 2 months where entire conversations were lost

Maybe once he's back at school his brain will liven up some, he's had virtuously no brain stimulation in 14 weeks so maybe it's hibernating a little.

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve is always spent at the McGinty Farm...wasn't the same without grandpa, but he was there in spirit. Christmas eve was  the 51 year anniversary of Dad McGinty asking Ma McGinty to marry him at midnight mass. Karrick has a way of lightening everyone's mood. Above he gave grandma a photo of himself  "I'm giving this picture of me to you because your grandpa (meaning husband) died and this way you'll never forget me"

 Callahan is growing up so fast I can't even believe it

This is what my TJ looks like when his brain shuts down...I color corrected the face, but you still get the idea by his eyes. After this shot he fell asleep on the floor. This entire holiday week his headache has increased which doesn't fill me with hope that he will be cleared to go back to school in January 

Skyped with the Colorado cousins 

After almost a year of dating it was time to step up the gift giving. Very tricky with 15/16 year olds. A fine line between what is appropriate and too much. I took TJ to Macy's at Oak Brook mall and he chose this beautiful Austrian Crystal heart pendant 

the football player and the Pom

  TJ and I attended Glenbard East's pom competition in Blue Island to watch his girlfriend Alexis perform. They took 1st in their division in kick. 
Yay Glenbard East! Alexis was just adorable as always

I still have to chaperone  TJ to any function as he has a 30min window before the eyes glaze over and the blue circles set in. We had to leave for an hour between her performance and the awards ceremony to rest his brain

A mother nightmare part 2

A sad mom is getting angry...a sad mom with a loud voice that will be heard!

TJ "getting his bell rung 2010"

FYI Update

2-10-202 TJ has "Post concussive syndrome" not SIS, Im not changing the post

I've learned a new term "Second Impact Syndrome" or SIS

SIS occurs when an athlete suffers a mild head injury, returns to play too soon, and suffers what may be a relatively minor second hit before the brain has fully healed. If the second injury occurs while the individual still has symptoms from the first impact, the result can be a rapid, catastrophic increase in pressure within the brain. Effects of SIS include physical paralysis, mental disabilities, and epilepsy. Death can occur approximately 50% of the time.

"SIS can affect anyone exposed to a mild or moderate concussion; there's no age discrimination" notes Kelly. "But it seems to affect teenagers more often because they are the least likely to report their injuries or take the time to recover from a concussion when they do get hurt. They head back into the game too soon, not fully aware of the risks they are taking.

According to James P Kelly, director of the brain injury program at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago

By Jeffrey H Tyler, Michael E Nelson, USA Today

What I originally thought was a routine hazard of football is turning into a nightmare affecting parents and kids across the country. A nightmare that could of been prevented in our case. Had TJ been pulled out of his practice after his 1st crushing blow to the back of his head, he most likely would have been back to normal within a few days. Instead he was left out on the field, impaired...a 15 year old boy. My 15 year old boy suffered a catastrophic 2nd blow to an already compromised brain...a mere 10 minutes after the 1 st one. The coach didn't pull him after the second blow either. TJ dazed and confused hid in the background and stood there. Asking if someone is okay doesn't cut it in my book....99% of  football players would say they were fine (in my opinion) when in fact they were impaired. 

 6 1/2 weeks later this second blow has him out of school indefinitely. A blow that has left him with crippling headaches, short term memory loss, confusion, vision impairment, inability to concentrate and irritability. Not to mention TJ is basically a prisoner in his shade drawn room. He doesn't go out much because light and movement over-stimulate his brain. TJ has had to drop honors chemistry and German 2. Too much time has gone by that it is impossible to catch up. He is weeks behind in all his other classes, but can't do anything about it.  Even if he could read (words and lines jump around) he couldn't remember anything he reads .
In the back of my mind is "will he graduate on time, will he be cleared to play Sophomore baseball? Will he one day be my outgoing , funny, quick teenager again?


At the football meeting there was talk of all the new guidelines for concussion safety. Never once did I hear anything about SIS...I did leave for 3 minutes to use the washroom. Even if it was mentioned this happened at practice with no parents present. Where were all these safety measures? I never even received a phone call saying "hey, your son got his bell rung" 
 NOTHING!  no heads up at all

Let me tell you about another 15 year old boy I'll cal "Ed". Ed is a freshman football player at a Catholic high school in the western Suburbs. 2 days after TJ's injury Ed, a fullback was playing in his Friday night game and took a mean blow to the side of the head . A clang of helmets so hard that "the loudest helmet hit I've ever heard" was repeated in the stands. Ed hit the ground, a few seconds later he jumped up and joined the huddle. "my head hurts" Ed told his team mates. Another player told him he didn't look right and to go sit down. Too late, the play was starting. That very next play Ed took another helmet hit front to front...this time he didn't get up and was taken by ambulance to the hospital. 
Ed's CT and MRI were normal just like TJ's
Ed was told he'd be fine in a few days just like TJ.
Ed went back to school 1/2 days just like TJ
Ed suffered a seizure on the 3rd day of school


Damage doesn't always set right in, TJ went back to school the next day and I pulled him out...I knew something was wrong. Parents need to take control of the situation


ED and TJ are at Marionjoy together...two 15 year old boys that otherwise never would have met had they not fallen through the cracks. Who let these boy down? Both boys are on the same 3 prescription drugs just to get through the day. These 15 year old boys are identical in every sign and symptom except that Ed has long term memory loss and TJ has short term memory loss. Maybe the difference between getting hit in the side of the head vs the back...I don't know. What I do know is that both these boys were not removed from the game/practice after the 1st hit. Both of these boys lives are on hold because they "were not removed after the 1st hit"


Ed doesn't remember playing basketball...he was a phenomenal player according to his dad. At the HS on scholarship...he won't be joining his teammates out on the court. His dad says he doesn't know store names, what a clock is, even what a NIKE swoosh is


We sit together and share our memory loss stories and sometime laugh, but not that "haha funny laugh" more like the "if we don't laugh we will cry laugh" We try to decide which is worse..long or short term memory loss


To talk to ED or TJ one wouldn't suspect anything wrong...they look normal ,they speak normally...maybe a little slower than usual because the thought have to be processed. 
If TJ or ED were in a wheelchair or drooling people may take more notice and start demanding change. Maybe holding coaches to a higher standard of care with our kids.
As this drags on week after week I find myself getting really angry. This didn't have to happen, had someone....anyone pulled TJ out after the first hit, he most likely would have been "A" okay by now.
 Kids are afraid to speak up for fear of being labeled a "sissy" Football players are suppose to be tough and they are...the only high school sport that allows 200lb + , conditioned boys/men to intentionally slam each other to the ground. The harder the hit or fall...the better. The more stunned...the better

more info about this topic


Injury prevention...traumatic Brain Injuty


SIS, Second Impact Syndrome