Washington Redskins athlete Jordan Reed was placed on reserve/injured list Sunday after the seventh documented concussion of his career.
Reed was placed on this list two months after his latest concussion. He has received so many concussions NBC wrote an article detailing each concussion and injury he’s sustained since 2010.
The rule of thumb I’ve always heard is after three concussions, you’re no longer allowed to play contact sports — although there’s no hard and fast rule to how many you can have before you’re no longer able to play.
From firsthand experience, one concussion can severely affect your life. I’ve had three concussions in my life. One concussion in particular has left me with problems after almost three years. I have developed severe migraines, speech problems and other issues I’ve never had before.
When I heard Reed got his seventh concussion, I couldn’t believe it. The incident got me thinking about how many concussions are too many for a player.
Since the overall consensus from most doctors leans toward three concussions being too many, I would think high school, collegiate and professional sports would follow this.
The concussion protocol for each level is so vague that athletes end up going back to sports before their brains heal.
There is a multitude of evidence out there documenting the damage that comes from concussions received during sports, particularly for football. This is why I’m baffled there are talks determining whether or not Reed’s career will continue.
At this point, it shouldn’t even be a question that Reed should no longer play contact sports. Even if he gets the proper treatment for his newest concussion, the damage he has endured from these concussions is obviously there.
My problems from my mere three concussions aren’t nearly as bad compared to the issues Reed obviously has from this many concussions.
I will never understand why after all this evidence showing how concussions permanently damage the brain, why concussion protocol for the number of concussions allowed isn’t explicitly outlined. I understand each athlete is different when it comes to how they recover from a concussion.
Factors for healing from a concussion include age, how severe the concussion was, how many concussions they’ve had in the past and many other factors.
Although healing from a concussion involves many complex factors, the current protocol allows for an athlete to receive well over the number of concussions recommended by a doctor to be too much to play contact sports.
A closer consideration of concussion protocol needs to be addressed across all levels of sports, because it’s getting out of hand.
Nicole Hindberg can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @HindbergNicole