Personal Experience: Returning to School Following a Concussion

During my freshman year of high school, I suffered a sport-related head injury. At the time, the school had warned us about concussions, but it was one of those things you never thought would happen to you…until it did. I had no idea what a concussion really entailed– no one really understood the severity of a concussion. The symptoms I experienced– light sensitivity, headaches, confusion, disorientation, memory loss, and so much more were beyond what I had expected when I thought of a concussion. It affected me more severely than I could have ever imagined. 

I had a week of rest– without my phone, computer, or iPad. Then, I was thrown back into school as if nothing had happened with a big stack of missed work that had piled up. I remember sitting in math class but not remembering anything the teacher had written on the board. I was filled with overwhelming emotion and panic. This is how I felt in every class. It was horrible. I would also struggle to even sit in class with the lights blinding me. Just walking in the hallways with loud chatter was an overwhelming experience. I would frequently hide in the bathroom while having panic attacks. 

On a social level, I was extremely irritable. It was hard just to have a basic conversation, especially when I was already so overwhelmed and confused by just being in school. The nurse and my teachers checked in on me and asked how I was doing, but when I told them I was struggling, I was met with sideways looks and questioning faces. They thought I was being dramatic. I felt dramatic. They did not understand how hard it was. 

I felt very alone during the whole process, especially being at boarding school. There was not much support or even knowledge about concussions, which really made me struggle more than I should have. I had to work twice as hard after returning to make up missed work while staying on top of my current work. It took me about a month and a half to truly feel better. I really believe that if there had been more common knowledge about concussions and better safeguards for students, I would have recovered much faster and smoother.