My head hurts

When I was at a Polson football game, a player was hit pretty hard. He came off the field and didn’t know the score. He was confused and looked like he was going to throw up.

A concussion.

He was taken away from the field and I didn’t think he would return in his uniform.

He did.

In the third quarter, the player returned and was running sprints on the sidelines, testing his ability to come back.

Bad decision.

The player didn’t return to the game and, no matter if his team needed him or not, that was the smartest decision.

Head injuries are not to be swept under the rug.

Trust me. I’ve had more than enough hard head hits in my lifetime. Some were mild where I was dizzy for an hour but some have bedridden me for a couple days, throwing up anything that I would try to eat or drink and unable to move without triggering that torturous dizziness.

Concussions are some of the scariest injuries because you can’t see it heal. If you break your arm, you put on a cast and see it get better.

You can’t do that with your brain.

And you only get one, as one dear friend advised me.

Loss of memory and confusion are also side effects that I have experienced directly following the head injury and feel now. There are things that I will forget over and over again and learning new things often become a challenge.

I remember, in high school, going to school the day after being on the wrong end of a hard hit. In Spanish class, I was so confused.

No one is sure how concussions will effect the player later on in life, but guesses have been made. None of them positive.

That scares many football players and if it scares them, you better believe I’m shaking in my well-worn skates.

Philly’s Brian Westbrook has suffered two knocks in a span of three weeks this season and has questioned his future.

Since it’s a new type of injury to watch, long term studies haven’t flourished yet. Westbrook will be one of the first to be studied for a long period of time. Its unfortunate, but someone has to be the first to cross the finish line.

The NFL FINALLY has put procedures into place. You know it’s serious when the governing body doesn’t wait until the end of the season to hand down new regulations.

“In the latest step by the league to address a hot-button issue, Commissioner Roger Goodell sent a memo to the 32 teams Wednesday saying a player who sustains a concussion shouldn't return to action on the same day if he shows certain signs or symptoms. Those include an inability to remember assignments or plays, a gap in memory and persistent dizziness and headaches.”

Previously, players shouldn’t return to play if they lost consciousness.

Duh.

So, it's an improvement of sorts but players might not report signs and such. A good step though.

I’m all for professional athletes not being little girls and playing through some injuries.

Those said injuries being blisters, paper cuts and other stupid injuries that everyone works through.

In that category isn’t head injuries.

I don’t want to be one of those fans who thinks the sport should change its nature to be safer. The whole point of football is to physically take down the ball holder and, in hockey, the puck carrier. I just feel that everyone can make smarter decisions.

Yesterday was the largest paper I’ve seen since arriving in July. 40 pages. Wow.

It didn’t take us long to get it done and we didn’t have to scramble to fill it since Aimee, Sasha and Jenna took one for the team and, basically, froze to get pictures of all the parades going on.

I, on the other hand, almost turned into a puddle at the wrestling meet in Polson. I didn’t realize how warm a gym could get.

The meet was okay. I’m still learning the more detailed strategy of the event.

This week starts winter sports in full swing. There are a couple weeks of (organized) chaos until everyone shuts down for the Holidays.

Arlee opened it’s gym up last night. I was unable to get to see it because of our design day, but I heard it was pretty neat and a million times better than the old gym. That first game will be pretty cool. Both the boys and girls team christened the gym with wins over Two Eagle River.

Upcoming, Polson and Ronan host a Tip-off tournament on Friday and Saturday. The girls play in Polson on Friday, while the boys are in Ronan.

On Saturday they switch locations. Pretty much every other team is traveling this weekend.

I just hope the sun peeks out from the clouds to warm the ice on the roads. I hate driving on ice. Its too slippery.

Speaking of weather, Lake County has got some snow, making it look more like December than the brown ground we’ve had to stare at lately.

In the Midwest, things have gone completely white. Minnesota got (an early Christmas present) blizzard.

Good to know things will be white for the Holidays when I go home. I was disappointed during Turkey day.

OH YEA.

Florida lost. I’m bummed. I like Tim Tebow and if that makes me a wagon jumper, than yea, I’m on that wagon.

However, people have questioned his ability to be successful in the NFL. He hasn’t even ended his collegiate career and people are plotting his failure for two years from now.

That’s how you know you’re in the big time.

Link: tough girl

Things to watch:

-Ronan/Polson Tip-off tournament

-Star Trek: I rented it last night and am pretty pumped to watch it