Humanities Homework Help

1. Watch Headgames in class or watch it hear (Links to an external site.)
2. Answer the following questions.
   1. What is happening in the brain during a concussion?
   2. What are your attitudes/thoughts about sports-related head injuries?
   3. Were you affected or surprised by the information in this documentary?
3. Reply to these two responses.

Here is the first one you should reply to

• A concussion is usually caused by a blow to the head. It is considered a traumatic brain injury that affects your brain function. Effects are usually temporary but can include headaches and problems with concentration, memory, balance, and coordination. Traumatic brain injuries, like a concussion, can cause bruising, damage to the blood vessels, and injury to the nerves. The result is your brain doesn’t function as it should.
• In high school, I ran both cross country and track, so I experienced a fair amount of injuries while running. Although it is nothing compared to a concussion, I had severe shin splints throughout the season. I personally think that when you sign up to play a sport you should be fully aware and okay with some of the injuries you may endure. I had friends who played football and they always seemed to have concussions. When it comes to football I think that the sport, in particular, is very aggressive and needs to be less aggressive or the players should be better equipped with better headgear. Furthermore, I think football coaches should be more educated when it comes to the severity of the possible concussions their players can potentially get.
• After watching the documentary, it was a real eye-opener to hear everyone’s stories including how it personally affected them. I would say for the most part I was shocked to find out that coaches didn’t really value their players enough to let them sit out due to an injury. They were expected to simply play through the pain even if something was seriously wrong. I think there is a lot wrong when it comes to sports and that is one thing that needs to be addressed.

Here is the second one you should reply to

1. During a concussion, your brain starts to change shape very fast around the jelly like structure inside our brain. This traumatic injury will cause neurofibers to start stretching causing the neurofibers to not be able to process information like before. As the neurofibers get stretched out this causes a chemical destruction. This then will disrupt the brain and won’t be able to function like before.

2. I am a cross country and track runner and running is a mental sport. 25% can take training but when it comes to racing tough courses 75% relies on your mental toughness. Therefore, my thoughts on head-injuries is that you have to be careful with taking care of your brain because your brain is a vital thing when it comes to playing sports. Even so in some sports its very hard to protect your head like football. Most sports consist of being mentally strong and your brain has a lot to do with that. Head-injuries like a concussion are scary experiences as you might not be yourself ever again from this.

3. I was really surprised since I knew already what head-injuries can do to athletes and its sad to see it happen to athletes since most of their time they spent countless hours in the field training to be win the next game. Even though the athletes know that there is a high chance they may undergo a head-injury they still undergo with it hoping that it may not happen to them but as always it happens unexpectedly. Therefore, seeing this documentary of families being impacted by head-injuries is sad to see and to think that their athlete might not be able to play again is just another heartbreaking experience to see.