On having a concussion

Here is an update on my concussion status.

As some of you know, I was injured a couple of weeks ago. My younger son knocked a metal sculpture wall hanging off its perch. It fell three feet and hit me on the left temple. After some initial pain I seemed fine, but headaches started the next day and I eventually ended up in the ER with a migraine that would not go away.

I was diagnosed with a concussion and while the CAT scan showed no permanent damage, I was told to treat my brain like a bruised muscle: lots of rest. I did not take this particularly seriously at first and maintained a normal schedule, but that turned out to be a mistake. The symptoms did not abate.

Late last week, I returned to the doctor and was told that I am not supposed to do things like read, write, listen to loud music, or do anything to stress my brain. Ideally I am supposed to lay around all day in a dark room doing nothing. That is simply not possible given my life obligations, so my doctor said to take it as easy as possible.

I did this for a few days and felt better yesterday morning, so I spent three hours writing the Third Round draft review. At first this was fine but the dizziness and head pressure returned yesterday afternoon and are back this morning.

Mistake. Today my head feels like it is going to pop.

So, back on the disabled list today. No writing (other than this message), no reading, no research.

If you have an injury like this, take it seriously, folks. My injury is very mild as these things go. A serious sports-caused concussion like those suffered by Justin Morneau or various NFL players...I can't imagine what those things are like, and I definitely understand now how serious that issue is and why it takes so long to recover. And I don't think I will ever enjoy an NFL game again.