Athletes at all levels are constantly playing their sports while injured.  One of the more common injuries that athletes play through is a concussion.  Playing a sport with a concussion is tempting because the athlete might feel fine, but they are really putting themselves at an even higher risk.  By continuing to play, these athletes are susceptible to long-term effects that can impact the rest of their lives for the worst.  This happens with young children, high school and college students, along with professional athletes who should all learn to be safer when it comes to returning to action.

When it comes to young children from ages 8 to 14, it’s not so much that they are too stubborn to sit out, but more often than not these children cannot tell when they are concussed.  This is not good because young brains are still developing and multiple concussions could cause permanent damage.  Studies show that a good percentage of these kids could not tell that confusion, nausea, and sleep disturbance were possible symptoms of a concussion.  “I am hit in the head and have a headache, it is OK to continue to play, as long as I didn’t lose consciousness” is believed by about 63% of these young athletes (McAllister-Deitrick). This is clearly an issue that needs to be dealt with, which can be done by making these children more knowledgeable about concussions at an earlier age.

Athletes both in high school and college have many motives to continue to play through a concussion.  These range from individual pressure and even the feeling of being unstoppable.  The pressure of wanting to pull through and play for your team and school and be great enough that some players will do anything not to get caught with a concussion.  For example, Chris Coyne was a senior captain for his high school football team and suffered a concussion, but did not let his athletic trainer or coach find out (Hoffman).  He ended up with 6 total concussions over the next year, which ended his football career forever.  Just like a typical teenager he felt as if he would be fine and nothing would happen to him, but his situation ended awfully.  All he had to do was sit out for a longer period of time to let his concussion heal and he might still be playing today.

Professional athletes tend to put a lot of wear and tear on their bodies throughout their careers.  Many of these athletes (most of whom are in the NFL), have suffered concussions multiple times.  After they retire, these individuals are shown to have more symptoms of depression (Didehbani).  A very good example of this is the former NFL star Junior Seau, who had many concussions throughout his 20 year career.  All of these concussions caused him to become diagnosed with a brain disease that made him depressed.  Last year, he was found dead after shooting himself, which led to increased concern about concussion protocol in football (Avila).

Concussions are a very serious issue with athletes of all ages and all skill levels.  Although these athletes have their reasons for playing through a concussion, none of these reasons are worth the long-term affects that multiple concussions can have on their bodies.  It is better to be as safe as possible when a head injury comes about rather than wishing you took more precaution when it’s too late.