By: Samantha Crisafulli, PT, DPT
If you watched the Women's World Cup this past month, you've probably been wondering 2 things:
- Why do all the players fall down dramatically when half the time they have not even been touched by another player and;
- How do they not all have head injuries from heading the ball constantly?
Well, the first question is unanswerable but the second question deals with how hard the ball is hitting their head or what they are hitting their head on whether it's the ground or another player's head. Majority of the time, the players are most likely causing a small amount of damage to their brain unless they hit heads with another player, causing a lot of damage to their brain and most likely resulting in a concussion.
Post-concussion syndrome is a complex disorder in which various symptoms, such as headaches and dizziness, last for weeks and sometimes months after the injury that caused the concussion. Concussions are actually a mild traumatic brain injury that can occur from any blow to the head, such as sports, motor vehicle accident, falls, etc. Symptoms of post-concussion syndrome include blurry vision, memory loss, headaches, feeling of pressure in the head, dizziness, nausea, mood changes and ringing in the ears.
Now, most people assume concussions require rest and that is absolutely true but if rest does not totally cure your symptoms and you continue to experience frequent headaches with a loss of mobility in your neck, affecting your daily life, it is time to visit a Physical Therapist at Professional Rehabilitation Services at any of our 8 locations.
With a referral from your doctor, a Physical Therapist will perform a mechanical and musculoskeletal examination of your head, neck and shoulders to determine the extent of the condition and potential for rehabilitation. Physical therapy will consist of soft tissue mobilization, passive stretching/range of motion and therapeutic exercises, which will improve your neck mobility and strength, and balance all while decreasing pain and headaches. All of these improvements will allow an individual to return to the activities they enjoy doing such as a world cup player returning to soccer to win another trophy for the USA. As neck mobility and pain improves, your therapist will provide you with a home exercise program to continue the exercises at home and prevent the risk of developing these symptoms again.
At Professional Rehabilitation Services, we treat a wide variety of musculoskeletal and neurological conditions using the latest in evidence-based therapies provided by highly credentialed physical therapists. Professional Rehabilitation Services has eight convenient locations in Pawleys Island, Murrells Inlet, Surfside Beach, Market Common, Myrtle Beach, Carolina Forest, Conway, and Little River.
For further information on this or other related topics you can contact Richard DeFalco, DPT, OCS, CSCS, CWcHP at Professional Rehabilitation Services (Myrtle Beach) (843) 839-1300, Brian P. Kinmartin PT, DPT, MTC, STC, OCS, CWcHP (Pawleys Island) (843) 235-0200, Richard A. Owens, MPT, OCS, Cert. SMT, CWcHP (Surfside) (843) 831-0163, Jill P. Phelan, PT, DPT, Cert. DN (Conway) (843) 773-3031, Lisa O'Brien, PT, DPT, Cert. DN (Murrells Inlet) (843) 314-3224, Karl Ehlers, PT, DPT, Cert. DN (Little River) (843) 281- 4222, Samantha Crisafulli PT, DPT (Carolina Forest) (843) 282-0440, Zach Daniels PT, DPT (Market Commons) (843) 213-6338 or visit our website at www.prsrehabservices.com where you can learn more about the company and even download a referral form for your physician to fill out. You can also call and schedule a free 15-minute consultation.
