There sure is a lot of talk about concussions these days. Did you know 85% of concussions resolve in the first 6 months since the accident? The first 6 months are crucial for the brain’s recovery. With everything going on in the NFL and media, one could presume that only sports can cause concussions. However the top 3 causes of concussions are much more common than football injuries. Falls, object to head contact, and car accidents were the top 3 causes of concussion. So what actually happens in a concussion?

The brain is suspended within skull and with high velocity movement, it can collide with the inside of your skull. Injuries through concussion can be from impact–head hitting object/object hitting head or non-contact– whiplash. Neither has been shown to be more dire or injurious than the other, however these mild-traumatic brain injuries can affect everyone differently. Common signs and symptoms of concussion are: dizziness, fogginess, blurred/double vision, headaches, light sensitivity, and neck/shoulder soreness. Worry not, A physical therapist can help you with one or multiple of these symptoms and can get you back to doing what you love to do.

Physical therapy for concussions is designed to find out specific causes of dizziness and problems related to the individual. Common therapy for a concussion used to be “lock someone in a dark room for a couple days.” This is actually been shown to increase the duration of the concussion due to depriving the brain of stimuli necessary to function in the real world. So if you don’t use it, you lose it!

Here at Premier Therapy we would first find out what is causing your symptoms (head movement, vision, balance, room spinning) then focus our treatment plan on reacquainting the brain with these everyday actions to emphasize full recovery. We would assess posture, current activities, job requirements and offer education about concussions to give support during this process in any way we can. If you or someone you know has or may have a concussion, do not be afraid to call or stop by!