Both USDF, and USEA have that requirement for their certification courses and tests.
Why “yet another” column on the same subject, it seems to have become an obsession with you. I realize you had a riding accident that involved a head injury but it still seems unhealthy that you keep posting about it and now want to write about SIS, which is a rare occurrence.
[QUOTE=merrygoround;7990278]
Both USDF, and USEA have that requirement for their certification courses and tests.[/QUOTE]
What we need are more certified trainers. But that’s another (half-dozen) thread(s).
[QUOTE=BAC;7990363]
Why “yet another” column on the same subject, it seems to have become an obsession with you. I realize you had a riding accident that involved a head injury but it still seems unhealthy that you keep posting about it and now want to write about SIS, which is a rare occurrence.[/QUOTE]
SIS is a rare occurrence but it is also a preventable one with proper education.
As it was explained to me (I have a soccer daughter too) if you get a second concussion before the first is fully healed you risk DEATH.
The brain can swell so rapidly that even if a paramedic was on the scene and witnessed the accident and you were airvac-ed to a hospital you could still die.
The swelling can be that rapid.
I personally applaud those who are trying to educate parents and trainers.
There is a very long protocol to return to sport after a concussion, no matter how mild. This is in place to protect the individual from rushing back into activity too soon.
There is much evidence that once you get a concussion, it is much easier to get a second concussion.
Multiple concussions as many have related above do affect your cognitive abilities and can change your brain forever.
It’s a serious enough topic that it needs to be brought up again and again until everyone is educated.
Note that in many states, ALL high school athletes need to watch a film on concussions and have a baseline test at the beginning of the seasons. In a sport (riding) that is known for concussions, should we be doing more to educate our members?
It would be easy for USEF and USHJA to have a concussion protocol information sheet that each member would be required to read (or at least to initial as saying they read it) when you fill out your membership form each year. It wouldn’t be difficult to do this. For those life members, they would need to initial it each year to remain active if they were showing. Horse shows could keep a few copies available at their show offices for people who register at the shows.
I know that this is what is being done with many youth sports. In order to register for our league in soccer, we must sign a concussion form. It states what concussions are, what to do when you suspect you have a concussion and that if you are removed from the field with a suspected head injury that you must have a doctor, nurse, NP etc sign off on your return to play.
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So, pretty soon soccer, boxing, football, and riding will all be considered “too much liability” and uninsurable.
I understand that equestrian professionals should educate themselves as to the proper protocol, just as for any other first-aid issue.
However, we’ve got a problem right now with falling numbers of participants ALL ACROSS the horse industry, and I’m not at all sure a high-profile TBI “Awareness” crusade targeting horseback riding, however well-intentioned, is a positive thing.
NO active sport is without risk, and most concussions are still due to household falls and car accidents–so that fact needs to be kept part of the perspective.
[QUOTE=Lady Eboshi;7990627]
So, pretty soon soccer, boxing, football, and riding will all be considered “too much liability” and uninsurable.
I understand that equestrian professionals should educate themselves as to the proper protocol, just as for any other first-aid issue.
However, we’ve got a problem right now with falling numbers of participants ALL ACROSS the horse industry, and I’m not at all sure a high-profile TBI “Awareness” crusade targeting horseback riding, however well-intentioned, is a positive thing.
NO active sport is without risk, and most concussions are still due to household falls and car accidents–so that fact needs to be kept part of the perspective.[/QUOTE]
I’m not sure what your beef is with awareness and knowledge.
I’m grateful that people pushing awareness and knowledge were successful in mandating approved helmets at horseshows. There was so much backlash initially but I feel it was absolutely the right thing to do. We now have a young generation of kids who don’t think twice about putting on their helmet before they ride.
We now have so many more options with approved helmets which are more comfortable and cooler.
We have a friend who was recently diagnosed with early onset Alzheimers disease from repeated concussions from playing in the NFL. He’s 51! Don’t you think he’d give anything to turn back the clock and be educated on what a concussion is and the proper protocol of returning to play?
It’s sobering. While he says he never had any bad concussions, here he is. He actually doesn’t remember any diagnosed concussions (they aren’t in his medical records), just getting dinged a little.
No one is saying not to ride, everyone accepts that there is risk. It is what you do to minimize your risk that makes the sport safer. This includes being informed and not riding if you have a concussion and following the proper protocol in returning to riding. Keep in mind this could be a month long vacation or even longer.
I guarantee a high profile death from SIS will do much more damage to our sport than trying to educate our own members in a positive manner.
“Victims” wagging their fingers so this can NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN!!
get tedious pretty fast. Most of us don’t WANT to think about stuff like this all the time, or we’d start questioning whether we should ever get on a horse.
Life itself can never be made “safe” enough that the odd and rare tragedy won’t take place. Hype of EVERY medical problem remotely possible over a lifetime has turned us into a nation of raging hypochondriacs, and the field gets smaller all the time of “acceptable” activities we can in good conscience allow our kids to do. There are exponentially more VERY FEARFUL adult riders around today than 30 years ago, plenty to the point where their horses are un-ridden pasture pets.
Don’t you think it would be a shame if a little girl wasn’t allowed to take riding lessons because Mummy saw a big, overblown “news” story on local TV touting THE DANGERS of horseback riding? That’s a very real, happening NOW, scenario. You’ll be watching the entry-level youth football ranks plummet, I promise. Next will be hockey, martial arts, skiing.
Treatment protocols are matters for MD’s and EMT’s to sort out; the major thing a rider and trainer need to know is how to tell you HAVE had a concussion.
I don’t think a new generation of crusading Pony Club Mommies getting in everyone’s grill at the shows is going to enhance anyone’s day–or safety.
This is my two cents on it. I have a child who rides and one who plays soccer.
Both are sports in which concussions are not uncommon.
I considered myself a fairly educated person as far as concussions go but when my daughter had a concussion about 6 years ago, we didn’t treat it as we should have. It was lack of knowledge on my part.
She was fine the next day, no symptoms etc and she played but she should not have been playing because she hadn’t been 24 hours without symptoms and gradually introduced to physical activity.
The VAST majority of sports related concussions do not go to the ER, nor do they go to the doctor’s offices. Many don’t even go to the show medics.
If your child fell at a show and he/she may have hit her head (it doesn’t actually even need to be a direct impact, many concussions are from whiplash effect-hence the newest evidence of concussions with NASCAR drivers) would you drop everything and have a $1000 out of pocket trip to the ER if your child just had a headache or was a little out of it? Most wouldn’t.
That is why it is important to educate parents and trainers on proper protocol. Also, note that it is important for adults to be mindful of the protocol as well. We had an adult who fell off at the show and received a fairly serious concussion. She refused treatment which is her choice. The trainer was sensible enough to not allow her to drive home (she said she was fine but had lost some short term memory). She scratched the rest of the weekend and that was the right thing to do. I wonder if our trainer wouldn’t have been proactive if she would have shown the rest of the week. I believe she would have. She wasn’t making good decisions and she was there alone without her husband.
I’m not trying to take doctors out of it but there is a list of items that physicians use to screen possible concussion candidates. If you check yes to these questions, you have a concussion. Period. There is no determining test like a CT Scan etc, concussions are for the most part diagnosed by the presence of symptoms.
Concussions are serious business but treating them correctly and resting the brain directly increases the likelihood of a full recovery.
I love horses, I want everyone to ride if they so desire. Having things in place to keep our kids safe won’t discourage parents.
It’s becoming a norm to speak about concussions with any sport, so having the equestrian community be a leader in this effort will be a positive thing, not a negative.
Maybe you’re not a parent with a child in another sport. If not, maybe you haven’t been bombarded with concussion issues in the past few years. It’s definitely a hot button topic but there are still a number of parents allowing their kids to play football and life is going on but with more awareness and better equipment.
Before the current helmet rules (USEF) took effect, no one ever told me to replace my helmet after a fall. Those helmets I used to wear didn’t actually do much for my head in the first place. My dad always advocated helmet safety, but I admit I rode my bike as a kid without one and did not use those early generation safer equestrian helmets except for about 1 year (to appease my dad, but the thing hurt so bad that I refused to get another one when I grew out of the one).
I had a bad fall (horse slipped and fell in a corner) when I was 18 (not yet at college) that was likely a concussion. I didn’t black out or forget things, but I was very dizzy for a bit. I was riding alone. Trainer was in the office. My dad (a physician) just had my mom watch me for the rest of the day. He said do not take any naps. It did not keep me from riding, and I went to a show a few days later (with a very sore neck).
Next concussion was also on the “minor” side and due to a bicycling accident in graduate school. Someone rammed into me in a race, and I flipped. I cracked my helmet in a few places. Again, pretty dizzy at first but did not black out. The race officials asked me if I wanted to get back into the race. Um, nope! I replaced the broken helmet. It did not keep me from training on my bike. I had a massive headache and was fairly dazed the rest of the day. The paramedics didn’t talk to me about concussions or SIS. They just said if I started vomiting or something, I should go to the ER. That was the only bike crash that ended with a broken helmet.
Most recent hit on the head was the most minor thanks to my newer and approved riding helmet. Horse tripped and fell down at the canter. I was not dizzy and had a headache only about 10 minutes. Helmet was not obviously damaged, but I replaced it anyway.
I keep at least 2 bike and equestrian helmets in my possession at all times so I can have a backup in case I have a fall. Generally, they are not of the same vintage, so I don’t have to replace more than one at a time when it just gets to the end of its recommended life (with no accidents). I also never ride either my bike or my horse without one. Which came in handy when I got bucked off at the walk once last year.
I’ve lost count of the number of concussions I’ve had (the rule in our house when I was growing up was that if I threw up dinner after a fall, we’d head to the ER), but know of 2 where I lost time. Don’t think I’ve ever heard about SIS.
Knowledge is power, so I’m all for people being made aware of the risks.
[QUOTE=hype;7990693]
I’m not sure what your beef is with awareness and knowledge.
I’m grateful that people pushing awareness and knowledge were successful in mandating approved helmets at horseshows. There was so much backlash initially but I feel it was absolutely the right thing to do. We now have a young generation of kids who don’t think twice about putting on their helmet before they ride.
We now have so many more options with approved helmets which are more comfortable and cooler.
We have a friend who was recently diagnosed with early onset Alzheimers disease from repeated concussions from playing in the NFL. He’s 51! Don’t you think he’d give anything to turn back the clock and be educated on what a concussion is and the proper protocol of returning to play?
It’s sobering. While he says he never had any bad concussions, here he is. He actually doesn’t remember any diagnosed concussions (they aren’t in his medical records), just getting dinged a little.
No one is saying not to ride, everyone accepts that there is risk. It is what you do to minimize your risk that makes the sport safer. This includes being informed and not riding if you have a concussion and following the proper protocol in returning to riding. Keep in mind this could be a month long vacation or even longer.
I guarantee a high profile death from SIS will do much more damage to our sport than trying to educate our own members in a positive manner.[/QUOTE]
As it turns out there are NFL players who developed chronic traumatic encephalopathy from the subconcussive jolts to the brain that occur in every play for certain positions.
[QUOTE=Lady Eboshi;7990806]
“Victims” wagging their fingers so this can NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN!!
get tedious pretty fast. Most of us don’t WANT to think about stuff like this all the time, or we’d start questioning whether we should ever get on a horse.
Life itself can never be made “safe” enough that the odd and rare tragedy won’t take place. Hype of EVERY medical problem remotely possible over a lifetime has turned us into a nation of raging hypochondriacs, and the field gets smaller all the time of “acceptable” activities we can in good conscience allow our kids to do. There are exponentially more VERY FEARFUL adult riders around today than 30 years ago, plenty to the point where their horses are un-ridden pasture pets.
Don’t you think it would be a shame if a little girl wasn’t allowed to take riding lessons because Mummy saw a big, overblown “news” story on local TV touting THE DANGERS of horseback riding? That’s a very real, happening NOW, scenario. You’ll be watching the entry-level youth football ranks plummet, I promise. Next will be hockey, martial arts, skiing.
Treatment protocols are matters for MD’s and EMT’s to sort out; the major thing a rider and trainer need to know is how to tell you HAVE had a concussion.
I don’t think a new generation of crusading Pony Club Mommies getting in everyone’s grill at the shows is going to enhance anyone’s day–or safety.[/QUOTE]
That is absolute BILGE. You seem to be posting on your idea of this thread, and not the thread itself.
This thread is about whether or not riders are advised by anyone to replace their helmet after a concussion, or warned about SIS should they suffer a subsequent concussion.
You are saying you object to information disseminated among riders experienced enough and well-horsed enough to be members of USEF riding at a horse show. What does that have to do with victims wagging fingers?
You seriously need to dial back on the all caps outrage-o-meter, there, Lady.
I posted about my own concussion in the other forum, but no one had to tell me to replace my helmet, and I was told three months of no riding. Again, I have never heard of anyone else being told the same thing, which is a shame.
Has anyone seen this article? http://www.outsideonline.com/fitness/bodywork/the-fit-list/The-New-Science-of-Concussion-Recovery.html
I’ve had at least one concussion where I still have a memory gap of several hours. That was 6 years ago. I don’t think he used the term SIS, but neurophysician did tell me not to ride for 1 month, and get a new helmet (that I already knew to do). No trainer involved in that incident, so can’t answer that question.
I have had two serious concussions, neither directly riding related… the first I fell down some stairs, resulting in an alteration of consciousness, and my roommate realized something was wrong the next morning when I was speaking gibberish. I took 6 mos. to be fully back to normal, and probably took at least 2 mos. off of riding and the same off of school. Two years later, and just a few months ago, my tack trunk shut on my head while I was wearing a helmet. Another alteration of consciousness, another concussion, although this one was quite a bit milder. Had to take a few days off work and work part-time for two weeks, then took it back up slowly. Took a week or so off riding (I’m a persistent idiot with a perfect horse, if you don’t consider the risk of falling riding lightly is similar to a lot of the recovery exercises they have you do…) and nearly two months off from jumping.
Concussions are no joke and I’m worried I’ll never be quite “normal” again.
I like the article Grasshopper shared. I went to a concussion clinic in VA (not one of the states mentioned) and they used exercises like those described to diagnose, assess and treat me.
Wow, I saw a post above that must be a new low. Bashing the OP on a subject that is undeniably a safety and education issue.
I have been educated by things I have read on this post, so thanks OP!
I got bucked off a greenie at one of her first shows two years ago. I didn’t lunge her as much as she should have been, didn’t have a mounting block with me like usual so didn’t use one. All my own stupidity. She bucked HUGE before I even had my feet in the stirrups. Later when I was untacking her I found a big wood chip/shaving under her pad that I’m sure hurt with weight in the saddle. Even when fresh she was never a bucker, but had a terribly fitted saddle with previous owner so I think she felt a little pain and anticipated more.
I remember turning to my friend and joking that I’d never gotten on her from the ground before. Then I was on the ground looking up at my mom, a friend’s nurse mom, and my poor boyfriend. Of course, it was my first show he’d gone to, and the first time he’d ever seen me with horses. :lol:
There is a gravel “road” about 20 feet in front of the arenas that I stupidly decided to mount on. So, I landed head and back first on gravel and cracked my helmet in half. No hospital. I hurt but my teen self was to embarrassed to worry about that. I kept saying I was fine and wanted to get up and finally did. Walked over to my horse and got on while my friend’s dad held her. I couldn’t see straight, my vision was blurred and I could see squiggles but dammit I was going to show. :o Warmed up, showed in one walk trot class and decided it was better to hop off. I didn’t even think about a concussion until I was untacking and BF asked “Aren’t you even a little mad at her?” “No, why?” “I mean, I’d be at least a little annoyed.” “What’d she do?” And that’s when BF freaked out a bit, and probably his first warning that I was a crazy horse girl. We hadn’t even been dating for two months, but we’re still together so I guess he’s either learned to put up with crazy, or he’s crazy too. 
Helmet replaced. No hospital but memory loss, blurred/squiggly/sparkly vision and dilated pupils (not to mention my ability to retain memory since the fall still sucks), leads me to believe I had a pretty gnarly concussion. I may have blacked out for a few seconds but I was determined to show that dang horse!
[QUOTE=Alpha App;7991804]
I got bucked off a greenie at one of her first shows two years ago. I didn’t lunge her as much as she should have been, didn’t have a mounting block with me like usual so didn’t use one. All my own stupidity. She bucked HUGE before I even had my feet in the stirrups. Later when I was untacking her I found a big wood chip/shaving under her pad that I’m sure hurt with weight in the saddle. Even when fresh she was never a bucker, but had a terribly fitted saddle with previous owner so I think she felt a little pain and anticipated more.
I remember turning to my friend and joking that I’d never gotten on her from the ground before. Then I was on the ground looking up at my mom, a friend’s nurse mom, and my poor boyfriend. Of course, it was my first show he’d gone to, and the first time he’d ever seen me with horses. :lol:
There is a gravel “road” about 20 feet in front of the arenas that I stupidly decided to mount on. So, I landed head and back first on gravel and cracked my helmet in half. No hospital. I hurt but my teen self was to embarrassed to worry about that. I kept saying I was fine and wanted to get up and finally did. Walked over to my horse and got on while my friend’s dad held her. I couldn’t see straight, my vision was blurred and I could see squiggles but dammit I was going to show. :o Warmed up, showed in one walk trot class and decided it was better to hop off. I didn’t even think about a concussion until I was untacking and BF asked “Aren’t you even a little mad at her?” “No, why?” “I mean, I’d be at least a little annoyed.” “What’d she do?” And that’s when BF freaked out a bit, and probably his first warning that I was a crazy horse girl. We hadn’t even been dating for two months, but we’re still together so I guess he’s either learned to put up with crazy, or he’s crazy too.
Helmet replaced. No hospital but memory loss, blurred/squiggly/sparkly vision and dilated pupils (not to mention my ability to retain memory since the fall still sucks), leads me to believe I had a pretty gnarly concussion. I may have blacked out for a few seconds but I was determined to show that dang horse![/QUOTE]
This is a classic example of why everyone needs to be educated on concussions. The person injured especially with head injuries often doesn’t make good choices.
The story ends well in that she didn’t have a second concussion that day but she did put herself at a higher risk of one by riding when she wasn’t 100% right.
As it was explained to me, the less you rest your brain after a concussion (no screens (phones, tv etc), physical activity, reading, etc-basically anything but sitting in a dark and quiet room) the longer it takes your brain to heal. The longer it takes the brain to heal, the greater chance you have of a less than full recovery.
We as an industry need to be aware of replacing a helmet. Our helmets are designed to crack and absorb impact when they have a direct blow and then need to be replaced after any hit. Football helmets are not designed that way. I’m not sure about motorcycle helmets but I think bike helmets are like our riding helmets.
It is up to the consumer to be aware of what you are purchasing and hopefully you are purchasing from a retailer who is up to date on safety issues and will educate the consumer at the time of purchase.
I think most of our helmet manufacturers offer a replacement price for a helmet damaged in a fall. When I’ve purchased helmets at a retail location, I have always been informed of this.
Yes, people need to be aware that you often can’t tell by looking at a helmet that it has had a hit. The one where my horse stepped on my head the helmet looked fine from the outside because the shell was intact. I got back on the horse and rode around for half an hour, until I rode up to someone and said, “what horse am I riding? i don’t remember this horse.” then took one loop around the ring and rode up to her again and said “What horse am I riding? I don’t remember this horse…” Not good.
when my mom looked she found a deep divot in the foam under the shell and cracks in the helmet. from the outside, the helmet looked just fine. She wouldn’t have let me climb back on the 3 year old I was riding that day otherwise!
As it was, they basically had to drag me off it to take my insane self to the hospital, I just kept saying over and over “I have to ride this horse.” I was totally out of it, but I knew that I’d fallen off and YOU HAVE TO GET BACK ON WHEN YOU FALL OFF. :lol: Horse people! But so dangerous. With the second one I did take more time off because it happened just before I started law school. However, I did suffer severe and debilitating headaches daily in law school, it was a real difficulty trying to read for hours a day when you’ve just had a serious head injury. I would be in tears from the excruciating head pain at night. it was agonizing.
A couple winters ago, horses were super fresh since they couldn’t go outside. After dealing with the initial idiot of a horse that I got, he settled down and went to work. We were jumping really small jumps and he launched himself at one from a longspot that I wasn’t prepared for and I cam off as he went through the turn. I rolled and hit the wall, stayed still while my coach checked me out and I convinced her to let me back on. I had broken my glasses in the fall but could see well enough to point myself where we needed to go. We finished on two tiny single jumps which we did quite nicely and then I cooled him out.
As I was picking his feet, something fell behind him and he spooked, knocking me against the wall. It was at that point that I couldn’t remember what had just happened. Horse was quickly taken from me and I was sat down in our lounge. My coach insisted that I go to the hospital and I had my mom come get me (didn’t want to drive and couldn’t legally without glasses).
ER nurse asked all of the usual questions (where are you, what day it it, etc) to which I was fuzzy (mainly because I didn’t see which hospital my mom took me to and I can never remember the date but I did know which day of the week it was). Regardless, they did a CT scan to check for bleeding (nothing found!)
Even though they said it was a minor concussion, the rules were simple. No screens (tv, phone, computer…) and keep things real simple for the first bit. Simple repetitive things were ok, but nothing that you needed to think about. When I saw my family doc she said I could slowly add activity back in after a few weeks, to keep my heart rate below 120.
It took about 2 months for my mild symptoms to go away. The headaches were the key for me and signaled when I pushed it too much.
Its a tough one and I am super sensitive to the signs now. I took a fall last week and it was a big concern for me, but I didn’t have any symptoms.
As a precaution, anytime I fall and hit the head, helmet gets replaced. My couch would recommend it, but I was already aware. I am an engineer and have done a fair amount of reading on the subject. I am also the one in the barn that nags people about their old helmets.
I can’t say I have heard of SIS specifically, but it sounds like the warning to not get another while recovering from the first. I will admit that I am cautious by nature, so it wasn’t a rush to get back to riding, as much as I wanted to.
I think that the helmet companies are doing well at some awareness as well and I appreciate the discount programs that they offer. My tack shop was also very good about letting me know about it and doing the discount on their end and taking my old helmet to send back to the manufacturer. Made things super easy to do!
First aid courses are always a good idea for not only staff at a barn, but also individuals involved in horses in general. You never know when you might be at the barn just to have a quiet ride and something happens. Be prepared! 
Here’s the thing. If you are younger (like under 21 or so) then a second impact before the first has healed can lead to lifelong disability or death. Really. It’s that serious. So nobody should be dismissing concussions.
For older folks, there is the risk of developing post concussion syndrome (which is by definition, prolonged severe concussion symptoms) which in some cases never resolves. So, the message here is, take them seriously and don’t go back to mental or physical exertion until symptom have resolved.
