This past Wednesday was Rowan’s Law Day - a day aiming to raise awareness about concussions.
Odds are you know someone who's had a concussion, or you've had one yourself! Concussions can occur in sport settings, at home, work, and other environments too.
Rowan's Law includes important information that is good to know and recognize as a community member. Unfortunately, this law came about after a tragic incident. In 2013, a high school rugby player’s concussions went unreported while she continued to play. Later, she suffered from Second Impact Syndrome— catastrophic swelling caused by a second injury to a brain still healing from previous trauma. She sadly collapsed on the field and died four days later.
Learn the symptoms of concussions from the Ontario Government website →
The following information is directly from the Ontario webpage for Rowan's Law.
❗Important to recognize...
"Symptoms may appear hours or days after an injury, especially in children and the elderly. If symptoms appear or persist, visit a physician or nurse practitioner"
Red Flags to treat as an emergency and/or call 911:
- Neck pain or tenderness
- Double vision
- Weakness or tingling in arms or legs
- Severe or increasing headache
- Seizure or convulsion
- Loss of consciousness (knocked out)
- Vomiting more than once
- Increasingly restless, agitated, or aggressive
-Getting more and more confused
- Recognize signs and symptoms of a concussion and remove yourself or the athlete from the activity, even if you feel, or they insist that they are OK.
- Get yourself or the athlete checked out by a physician or nurse.
- Support gradual return to school and sport.
The general guidelines are HIT. STOP. SIT.
👊 A concussion = HIT to the head, neck or body that can make you feel different.
🛑 If you think you have a concussion, STOP what you are doing and TELL an adult you trust how you are feeling.
🪑 SIT out of sports and activities where you could get another concussion. This is followed by a slow return to activities. There are return-to-activity protocols suggested to minimize further injury. You can follow these with the assistance of a medical doctor and healthcare team (people like us at Dynamic Health and Performance)!
