Our community blog page is a collective of stories, articles and important discussion topics put forth by the Headsup Concussion Advocacy Network. We are so grateful to have so many amazing advocates and writers who are passionate about sharing their experiences and perspectives of concussions. Our blog is an amazing lived experience resource that touches upon several different aspects of the concussion recovery experience. Each story will provide you with a unique perspective that may help people going through an brain injury of their own. Please feel free to leave comments on each blog post and give feedback on how the article may have helped you or stimulated curiosity in a new area. Happy reading!
Today's feature for Lunches in Lockdown is a tuna-veggie salad with balsamic & EVOO drizzle. Tuna has some highly sought-after OMEGA 3s that our brains could always use more of, and is a great to switch it up. I usually make this whenever I have some yummy roasted broccoli left over so I have to do minimal effort to throw this puppy together! 🥗
Read MoreToday features one of my favourite brain-friendly lunch (or dinner) options - the Everything Bagel Spiced Veggie Bowl!
Read MoreEveryone deals with the concussion recovery process differently. The journey is non-linear and some people notice their symptoms prolong for extended periods of time. Much longer then they were told by their doctor or had previously planned for. Seeing others recover from the same injury as you can bring a lot of hope, but it can also spur the ideologies of jealousy. It’s important to note that we all deal with this injury differently and this post looks at the different ways to deal with the stigma’s associated within the recovery process.
Read MoreConcussion Advocate Daniela Boada shares her concussion story in an effort to spread more awareness and advocacy on concussions. Learn more about her concussion story here!
Read MoreWe talk a lot about PTSD but we don’t hear very much about PTG. PTG stands for Post-Traumatic Growth a term used to talk about the benefits and the growth that can come from experiencing trauma. In this article our content writer discusses the areas he has seen the most growth in himself.
Read MoreConcussion Awareness Facilitator, Mitchel Tunnell opens up about the fear that can come from hitting your head. He offers valuable insight as to how he deals with this fear, breaking it down into 5 main points!
Read MoreAs a kid growing up in the 1960's, a combination of being a bit of a daredevil, and also being in the wrong place at the wrong time, led to many bumps on the head, and even stitches. Back in those days, a lot of the time, my head was my helmet. I figured things like seeing stars and having ringing ears was just a part of life, like a scraped knee or something.
Read MoreWhile my concussion didn’t seem so bad compared to sports injuries and auto accidents, as the weeks passed we realized just how much I’d been affected. In the long list of possible symptoms I struggled with everything except for seizures, nausea, and light sensitivity. It was difficult to do the simplest of tasks, cooking was a nightmare, I was bruised from bumping into walls and furniture, and reading a simple sentence made my eyes ache. My head felt like it had been used for batting practice.
Read MoreI have suffered from concussions for quite a few years now. My first when I was 10 and have suffered 4 others since then. In November of 2016 I suffered a concussion that was not diagnosed properly. Months later I was diagnosed with Post Concussion Syndrome and convergence insufficiency. In November of 2017 I suffered another concussion and was then diagnosed with POTS. After trying several treatments with no success I recently went to Connecticut for a week of “brain camp” and now I am finally starting to feel like myself again.
Read MoreUpon several conversations with my network of TBI friends I realize this topic needs to be unpacked. We all have family and therefore all deal with some level of family stress. Adding a TBI on top of this can make it more complicated to cope with. This led me to hypothesize why this is the case. Three main hypotheses came to mind. First, as I mentioned in my previous blog, limbic dysregulation can lead to lower levels of emotional processing power.
Read MoreMy name is Kayla and I am 23 years old. I was born and raised in Peterborough, Ontario. I recentl moved to Oshawa, Ontario and am currently enrolled in the animal care program at Durham College. I always wanted to be a nurse growing up, and in my eyes I still am, just for animals instead of humans. But my compassion doesn't end at just animals. I care more about others than myself.
Read MoreI would want to advocate for concussion awareness cause i would really like to inform young teens, teenagers, adults that concussions could happen in any sport at any level. After my story slowly got out to my friends they doubted my injuries cause i never played “contact” sports or any high level sports. I’d really like to push on educated coaches, parents, players, student etc... that these injuries can happen at any level, any age and that it could really take a toll on someone whether is physically or mentally.
Read MoreConcussions have affected my life in many ways. Both indirectly and directly I've experienced and seen others go through what is and can be an extremely frustrating process. Those being all the unknowns that come with concussions (at least what used to be unknowns growing up and playing sports). As a teenager playing contact sports like basketball and hockey, concussion was a scary word, no one wants to have one, and frankly people avoided even bringing them up.
Read MoreI have had at least 3 concussions in my upbringing as an ice hockey goaltender. Only one was documented and a part of my role would be to create more awareness from stepping away if you think you have suffered a brain injury. I was raised in the old era to stay in the game and athletes need to be more intune with their bodies. That is why I went to the lengths that I did to heal myself (yoga/spirituality/Cannabis diet). It affected my life because I was institutionalized.
Read MoreHi, my name is Ailish and I’m a fourth year Sociology and Legal Studies student at the University of Waterloo. I love to read, listen to audiobooks and podcasts, swim, workout, and do yoga! When I graduate university, I hope to attend a Canadian Law school and, eventually, become a Criminal Prosecutor. I am using this quarantine time to study for my Law School Admission Test (LSAT) in August and spread awareness about post-concussion recovery on Instagram!
Read MoreAlthough I played hockey almost my whole life, I never truly understood what concussions were until my university career. In my 3rd and 4th year I sustained 2 concussions a year apart from one another. Both in which I did not take as seriously as I should’ve, rushing my recovery so I could play hockey again.
Read MoreHi my name is Qais Nasseri, I am finishing up my B.ed. and will be working towards my goals in Education. I have been involved in sports all my life but found a growing passion with Rugby in 2010, I play/coach for the Ajax Wanderers and I played for Trent during my undergrad. That was where I had my first experience with concussions.
Read MoreSuffered my first concussion back when I was in grade 10 (approximately 10 years ago) from a snowboarding accident and sustained even more in the following two years through playing rugby, ultimately leading to missed school, giving up contact sports, and managing prolonged symptoms even up to today.
Read MoreHi, my name is Melissa Rogers and I am from Northern Ontario. I'm married with two kids and a dog. Prior to my concussion, I worked as an Acquired Brain Injury Outreach Worker and case manager for mental health and addictions. I enjoy gardening, swimming, spending time with my family, music, and many other activities.
Read MoreWith the current pandemic situation and winter near site I thought a good topic to write about would be emotional well-being, how it can impact concussion recovery, and an app that has been a game changer for my emotional and psychological well-being. In general, I find this part of our health often gets neglected, I personally only sought out psychological therapy in recent months, and despite recent efforts there is still a significant amount of stigma surrounding the topic. I have found medical doctors to sometimes perpetuate these stigmas with statements like “it’s all in your head”, “that’s not related to the concussion”, or” you’re just hypervigilant”.
Read More
