Recovery time for concussion

Concussion Characteristics

Suffering from a concussion involves many different scenarios, some more serious than the others. This condition takes place after a head injury capable of temporarily dislocating your brain. This action easily causes damage to our brain, creating bruises which damage the nerves on its surface. Swelling and blood clots may appear as well, and present some of the worst case scenarios. This injury leads to nausea, vomiting, pain, blurred sight and even possible memory loss, including several other symptoms. Recovery from this mishap greatly depends on the seriousness of the injury itself. Thus, it may be quick and successful or it may take long time and provide only partial recovery.

Taking into consideration that this injury is inflicted only physically, athletes and people involved in martial arts are the most endangered groups. Therefore, rugby, soccer, football and other players, as well as boxers and other athletes enduring physical injuries to the head daily, are all prone to experiencing concussions sooner or later.

Manifestations of a Concussion

Apart from many symptoms mentioned above, dizziness, memory problems, light sensitivity, and concentration issues are just some of the additional ones. Also, quite often, a person suffering from a concussion may experience amnesia, forgetting facts memorized earlier in life, or events and facts which were in the process of getting memorized during the incident.

The most benign cases of concussions involve confusion and dizziness. More serious cases involve loss of memory regarding recent events, possibly accompanied with a short state of unconsciousness after the injury. All these combined with some or most of the above mentioned, present one of the most severe cases, including being knocked out for less than five minutes. The worst case scenario involves all these, with an addition of losing consciousness for more than five minutes. In all except the first case, permanent brain damage may take place.

Recovery and Treatment

The most benign concussions have all of their symptoms gone during a period of 15 minutes. With more serious cases, however, this period gets prolonged, depending on the severity of both the symptoms and the injury.

After experiencing a concussion, regardless of its severity, you are highly advised to provide your brain rest for several days. Try to limit activating your brain for more serious cognitive operations to a bare minimum. Instead, rest for several days, sleep and relax, far from computers, the TV or anything that may require you to strain this valuable organ of yours. Finally, make sure you consult with your doctor as soon as you suffer a concussion. This way, you will get additional information and be able to heal yourself more quickly and effectively.