At just 17, Jarrod has experienced his share of concussions on the hockey rink.
During one particularly rough and tumble game, Jarrod fell backwards with enough force to break his helmet. Almost immediately, he experienced symptoms of a concussion. But his determination to finish the game kept him from sharing his headache with coaches.
Read Jarrod’s full story on ReThinkConcussions.com
After a sleepless night, Jarrod told his mother, Mary, about his headache, nausea, and dizziness. His mother recognized the symptoms due to his previous two concussions and took Jarrod to Urgent Care. He was referred to Micky Collins, PhD, at the UPMC Sports Medicine Concussion Program.
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Jarrod assumed he would recover from his concussion by getting plenty of sleep, staying away from electronics, and remaining in a dark room. However, Dr. Collins had a different course of action for Jarrod’s recovery.
Dr. Collins recommended that Jarrod participate in rounds of vestibular and ocular therapy and keep an active lifestyle that would stimulate the areas of his brain affected by his concussion.
Jarrod was impressed with the recovery process.
“With my previous two concussions, I wasn’t able to do anything and I never felt like my symptoms went away as quickly as I hoped they would. With this last concussion, as I did the therapy prescribed by Dr. Collins, I felt myself improving.”
Visit ReThinkConcussion.com to learn more.