Concussion: who here still races after a brain bump?

Just curious. Any lingering effects? Warnings from docs about getting another head bump?

 

ive had numerous concussions and i've been knocked out more than a few times. which explains a lot but i have no lingering effects and every doctor ive ever seen has told me i'm as healthy as could be and to not worry about it. it depends on severity level though.

none of those were from racing. all from bmx with no helmet. falling 12 feet out of the air onto your head or having the front wheel lock up going up a transition at full speed and smashing your forehead on the coping will ruin a few weeks of your life real fast though.

you have to make that decision yourself. if i ever felt as though i would be a danger to anyone else around me while on anything with a motor i would step away as fast as i could. that's me though and no one else's life is worth my stubbornness.


where is robby bobby? we need the chief medical officer to give you the full run down.

 

That's messed up.

 

Hey RB has already told me I'm a fool and full of shit. I consider that a compliment, considering the source!
And Mongo, yes, concussions are all different. Bottom line is a doc can't say if you are more at risk or less. I was kept unconscious for a few days due to brain bleeds. They cleared up in a day, which really shocked and surprised the entire medical staff. I can honestly tell everyone, the most painful and lingering injuries were the many broken ribs and lung stuff.

 

We talking about just one brain bump?

 

I've been knocked out 3 times from riding. The last one was the worst because I was wearing a cheap helmet and it really rang my bell. Took months to feel 100% right after that one. Though some would argue I'm not right in the head anyway

 

I've suffered from many concussions. Takes time to feel like yourself again. Only way I can put it. Seems just about every time I really start to feel like myself again another one happens. It's actually really weird because you forget how you really are until you are almost healed. I've suffered from different moods from each concussion as well. Depression, anxiety, and even surreal happiness. 4 years ago I had one playing ice hockey in college that really made hit home. I was instantly angry and depressed for a good 2 months. Failed a lot of tests in school, had to change major. I quit playing Ice Hockey at this point because the risk was too great for zero reward. I didn't step on the ice for a long time and when I did it was non contact. 5 games into a mens league I got hit but a stupid kid, and not very hard either. Almost back to square 1. Like you, I also had other injuries at these times and at first didn't think anything of the concussions and focused on broken bones/torn muscles/ligaments. You should try an ignore the injuries and think about how you feel mentally. Mental stability is far more important that a broken rib

It's closing in on 2 years now since my last one so hopefully I can make it to 10 years with out another one. It's very scary. What's most scary is that no one knows anything about the long term effects. They claim horrible depression, dementia, and suicide. I am no where close to any of those but my brain is no where close to what it use to be. This slows me down in racing which is 100% okay with me. When I see a racer hit their head and get up with no issue, the first thing that goes through my mind is "I would be knocked out from way less than that".

So I've been riding/racing dirtbikes and road racing now for just as long as I had played hockey/football for and have never once hit my head. Every time I've gone down it was in a rolling motion. This is one of the main reason I plan on sticking to lightweight/low HP racing. Yes, obviously things can happen but on the lightweight bike there is much less chance of a high side which would cause me to land on my head from many feet in the air. I would instantly retire from racing if I ever hit my head. I don't know how many you've had in the past but this one sounded pretty serious.

 

we are all different man and how things effect us. If a Nuro phyciatrist clears you, tech you are good to go BUT BUT BUT





You Know your self the best!!!!!!!!!!!!




Simply put, are you still the man you once were?

 

Here we go again......

 

i high-sided a few years back and besides the plates in my forearm now,i knocked my eyes cross-eyed.it took about an hour for them to really straighten out.then i was taken out by a kid who didnt realise he and i were not racing against eachother but he sent me over the bars and i slid on my head for several feet......that one knocked me out cold for a few minutes. im still going though.....but if i ever feel the need to sit one out,i do.

 

Man, I just lurk here but I see you posting about this kinda thing every month or so. You love racing/riding and you can't stay away... stop looking for justification to come back. It all comes down to how willing you are to literally gamble your life / family shit at this point. I had my first concussion at a crash during a trackday two months ago... just a minor one but it was still a HOLY SHIT wakeup call that this kinda shit is no joke.

 

I've had a solid half dozen concussions as a late teen/early adult......but then three years ago I went and knocked myself stupid at a track day. Still missing about a half an hour of time, had an entire convo with ER staff which I don't recall, etc.

My doc went up one side of me and down another.

 

I took a pretty good bump, was out for about 20 seconds. This was back around 2002. Having some docs in my family I got a full workup, cat scan and EEG (that's the one where they hook a bunch of leads to your scalp and flash some lights in your eyes). I was cleared within a week but I felt like crap for a month. Always hungry, couldn't exercise, couldn't take the heat of being outdoors.

I still race. It was a long time ago. It's a risk we all take. I hope none of you guys ever get a repeat one, I've heard they are bad news.

 

I started racing AFTER a brain bump

 

I boxed for many years. I had several brain bumps before I ever sat on anything with 2 wheels. I've had a few since then.

After my bad crash at the season opener in 2013 I stayed off the bike for almost 9 months. It was mostly due to my left arm, but my head was part of the reason too.

 

Everybody's situation and head is different. The best advice I can give you is to listen to the doctors and give zero fucks about what anybody on the Internet says.

 

I was just knocked silly at Barber.....was out for about 20 seconds or so and am missing about 20 minutes of memory but otherwise I had no after effects, including headaches and such. Had an MRI, which came back normal. I feel really lucky. This is probably my fifth or sixth concussion since I was a teenager. Each one has been different.

 

I had a little brain bump in 2008....
I could have raced again (no where close to the same level) and have done a couple of track days and the Pridmore Star school but it was more just to get back on the track to see if I 'could' do it again. After what I put my friends and family through I decided long before I got back on the track that even if I 'could' race again I wouldn't risk putting them through what the went through back in 2008. Oh I guess dying twice, a brain bleed, losing 2 months worth of memory (not a bad thing though), and learning how to eat,walk, talk and fucntion again makes it a little more than a little brain bump