A concussion is a brain injury that may occur when the head hits an object, or a moving object strikes the head. It can affect how the brain works for a while and can lead to headaches, changes in alertness, or loss of consciousness.

Mason Proctor, a senior at AMHS, recently experienced this. While on the ski trip in Snowshoe, West Virginia, Mason took a hard fall while snowboarding. Unfortunately he does not remember much of this, but luckily he has video evidence of his tumble. Since this incident, Mason has been diagnosed with a concussion and his life has been a little different.

I asked Mason about what it is like to live with a concussion. He described to me a typical day in his concussed life. He would wake up at 10 A.M. and eat some breakfast. Then he would “say hey” to his grandma before taking his morning nap. When he woke up he would put on some records and listen to music before taking his afternoon nap. Once he woke up from that nap, he listened to his music some more and talked to the family. Then he would eat some dinner before calling it a night. He describes this time in his life as “confused.”

BUT, IT’S NOT  FUNNY and can be quite scary.  It’s a serious brain injury and takes time to heal. Fortunately, most people recover fully.   Thankfully Mason is recovering from this injury and is able to attend 3 periods of school today. We hope that he continues to heal and will be back at it soon.