I would be remiss if I didn’t take the time to mention our loyal followers out there, thank you! We get a lot of email from all sorts of places and most of it is very informative – with the occasional “will you link this” which turns out to be sports betting or worse. I received this email a while back and while cleaning out the inbox felt compelled to share;
My name is Jacob Lichtenbaum. I am currently a senior at the Potomac School in McLean, Virginia. This semester, I’ve been writing a column about concussions in sports and also in general and your website has been a fantastic resource for me. I love the spins you guys put on all the issues and your candid, educated opinions on all concussion-related events. I especially appreciate your work because I am someone suffering from post-concussion symptoms myself.
This past summer, I suffered a concussion while participating in my varsity football training camp. You’ll be glad to know I was removed from action immediately, but my post-concussion symptoms unfortunately sidelined me for the entire season. I still experience the symptoms to this day, unfortunately with no end in sight.
I decided to write my semester-long column about concussions because I wanted to know everything about the injury which has caused me so much pain. It’s been a humbling experience; everyday I learn about people who have it so much worse than I do. People who have the same symptoms as me, but also have to feed a family or pay bills.
Here is the link to my column:
http://columnwriting.potomacschool.wikispaces.net/JacobLichtenbaum
My hope is that you can find some way to feature this on your website, if even for a short time. I think it would be a great way for teenagers to get become better informed about concussions; learning about them through someone they can easily empathize with, a fellow teenager.
Thank you so much for your time. Regardless of your decision, please know that I will continue to loyally visit your website to increase my knowledge on this terrible injury so that I may improve my work and perspective.
Sincerely,
Jacob Lichtenbaum
Well Jacob, there you go, and keep up the good work! I hope that you get some visitors and feedback! Keep in touch!
The Concussion Blog 
Jacob,
As a mom, I applaud for your effort to learn from your injury and try to make a difference for others. And as a teacher, I applaud your hard work to gather great information and share it with your peers and the public through your writings. My high school son has been struggling with his symptoms for over a year now but he mostly struggles in silence because there are not enough educated students and adults who understand how a concussion can completely change a person and even a family’s life. I plan to share your column with him and hope that it will encourage him that there are students who struggle just like him. I would also like him to see that speaking up and finding your voice on this subject can sometimes be part of the healing process. Keep up the good work.
Reblogged this on The Fight of My Life: Living with TBI and commented:
Getting the word out to teens about concussions – awesome! 🙂 Go Jacob!