For all athletes in any sport the new requirement is to take a concussion test. A concussion is caused by a blow to the head, it can lead to confusion or you can lose consciousness. The test is for our athletic trainer to have a baseline test where he knows where a players head is at normally, so that if we do get concussed we don’t go back into the sport to early. Brody, the Arlington High School athletic trainer, said “this test is good for any athlete because now I can tell where you are so if you get a concussion you don’t go back to early and make even more damage”. The head is a sensitive part of your body and I can see why our school would make this a requirement. The test consists of memorizing words, shapes and reaction time.

All of these tests challenge your brain and test you to your full ability. Then if you take hard knock to the head, you go back to the test and if the scores don’t match up evenly then you know that something is not right. “Head injuries are dangerous and some can even be fatal” says Dr. Mark Colombo of the Everett clinic. Hugh Duffy knows firsthand the consequences of to many concussions. “After eight concussions while playing football the doctor told me I couldn’t play football anymore”.

Second impact injuries are the scariest, and this typically happens when an athlete goes back to early with a concussion, and then immediately gets another head injury.