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Wiscasset High School sophomore Gabby Chapman fields the ball during a soccer game last fall. Chapman recieved a concussion early in the season. When she returned late in the season, she wore a concussion band to help reduce her risk of getting another one. |
By Paula Roberts
Candy Chapman was watching her son play soccer last fall when she got the call that her 16-year-old daughter Gabby had a ball kicked into her head while playing in a high school soccer game.
Fear welled up in the mother’s throat as she heard the news that her daughter was incoherent and they were transporting her by ambulance to the hospital.
Gabby’s father Scott met her in the emergency room and relayed by phone to Candy that their daughter was still not responding well.
Gabby’s concussion was her third in four years. Her first came in a soccer game while a seventh grader and the second at summer basketball camp her eighth grade year. In both cases, her only side effect was a headache.
“This concussion was totally different than the rest. The first two did not have many symptoms, but in the third there were 10 areas where she had symptoms,” Candy said.
“She had difficulty concentrating. Lights bothered her,” Candy said.
Gabby’s symptoms lasted three weeks, but she only missed three days of school. Her parents wanted her to stay out of school longer, but Gabby, a three sport athlete and a strong scholar, did not want to fall behind in her school work.
“The teachers at Wiscasset were really good. They allowed her to take her tests later. Missing school and not doing work on time really bothered her. She felt like she was getting further behind,” Candy said.
After three weeks, and three visits to their physician and a trip to a neurologist, Gabby was cleared to return to play. Although Gabby had a green light from her doctor, her parents were still seeing red and felt their daughter was not ready.
“I have never battled with my daughter before this,” Candy said. “It was a hard thing for us to go through. She said she was ready to return to play, but I had to be 100 percent sure.” Candy said.
Gabby’s concussion occurred in the third game of the season, and her parents held her out most of the season. “We decided as parents we would sit her out longer,” Candy said. “We stuck to our guns. If her first two (concussions) were as bad as the last one, we would have pulled her out (of contact sports).”
Although Gabby was medically cleared to return after three weeks, Candy estimates it was a month and a half before she was back to her full self. “She tried to go back some, but she was not up to par. It was a very difficult time. What killed her the most was sitting on the sidelines in close games,” Candy said.
“We decided if she was going to play something had to be done to protect her,” Candy said. The Chapmans purchased a concussion band made of thick foam that is worn around the forehead. “She does not like it and says it gives her a headache, but we tell her if you want to play you wear it and no heading the ball either,” Candy said.
Their doctor, who did sports medicine while in college, explained what could happen later in life, Candy Chapman said.
“He told her you cannot keep getting concussions. It is not healthy,” Candy said.
The Chapmans had a frank discussion with their daughter before allowing her to return to the field.
“People were saying how can you let her play,” Candy said. “Until you go through it, you don’t know. I know they are just looking out for her best interest, but I am too. If the doctor had suggested my daughter not play, we would have made a different decision. We would have adhered to the doctor’s suggestion.
“She just loves sports. To take that away would be a difficult thing for us as parents to do. Until your kid gets a concussion you don’t think much about them, but once they do, it’s a whole different ball game.”
The Chapmans advise other parents to educate themselves about the dangers of concussions. “We did not know much about concussions. We did a lot of reading up, and our physician provided us with really good info and suggestions,” Candy said.
The second bit of advice was to “come up with solutions: If you are going to play, this is what we are going to do,” Candy added.
“As a parent you ask yourself how many are too much. The physician told us it depends on the severity and it depends on the child. Some just bounce back quicker than others,” Candy said
Gabby, a sophomore at Wiscasset High School, still has a couple of more years to play.
“I know every single soccer game I’m going to be a tense bundle of nerves, because I know it might happen again. I feel more confident she won’t be as susceptible for a concussion with the concussion band on. Next season she will be wearing the concussion band every game, or she will not play,” Candy said.
