Mom’s Team

How To Choose A Sport

Dustin Fink1 Comment

Choosing a sport/activity for your child can be difficult – it shouldn’t be initially – as they progress in age and skill level.  Some believe there are factors that come into play when beginning to “specialize”, including injury risk; this is true.  However, our current culture is making the sporting issue way more difficult than it needs to be.

I may not be the best parent, certainly I’m not the first to accomplish this feat, but I do try to be A PARENT and not a friend.  When it comes to sports I let my children choose what they want to play.  My son is now 7, getting ready to get neck-deep in sport and the culture of sports.  He has shown some above average skills in a few sports, and loves one sport; however I will not force him to be exclusive, nor will I be crushed if he chooses not to play.  I will encourage him and my other kids to play MULTIPLE sports and do multiple things, for their entire life.

Alas, there are some families that are weighing the issue of choosing, say football over soccer, or vice versa; tennis or hoop, etc.  Injury risk can be a massive component in this decision so getting all the information is best before choosing, just like making informed decisions.  When discussing concussions and catastrophic injuries the sports we play do matter.

Mom’s Team has a video from Dr. Lyle Micheli, Director, Division of Sports Medicine at Children’s Hospital Boston, which can be found HERE.  It does bring up some good points but Continue reading →

Family Travels Long Road of Recovery – TCB Suggestion

Dustin Fink5 Comments

Brooke de Lynch of Mom’s Team sent over this article and video about a family and their dealings with post-concussion syndrome and the long recovery after a very “innocent” looking hit.  It begins as most complex cases often do, with incorrect initial management;

On the evening of Friday, February 12, 2010, my then 15-year-old daughter Heidi was hit on the head by the stick of a teammate as she was warming up in goal before a hockey game.

It was not a catastrophic brain injury requiring a trip by ambulance to the hospital. But the blow did result in a concussion; one that turned out to be far more severe, complicated and long-lasting than initially thought.

Because multiple mistakes were made in the immediate aftermath of the injury by all parties – including by me, her mother – which exacerbated her symptoms, that cold winter’s night marked the beginning of what would turn out to be a fourteen-month long search for answers to the enigmatic riddle that is post-concussion syndrome.

Another great perspective from a mom, this time about a girls hockey player.

Listen, all cases are not as drawn out like this one, in fact stats tell us that some 75-90% of all cases of mTBI/concussion recover in 7-10 days.  Remember that the “recover” portion of that last sentence is from symptoms AT REST.  This brings me to my soap box moment of the day… Continue reading →

Mom Seeking Answers and Insight

Dustin Fink1 Comment

There are great websites out there to visit to find information about injuries and concussions, I hope this is a good resource for all of you.  We are not the be-all-end-all rather just a piece of the puzzle when it comes to awareness.  There is a great site that is devoted to the Mom’s of the world called “Mom’s Team“, headed by Brooke de Lynch.  A serial emailer sent along a recent letter a concerned mom had about a concussion her son endured while playing tackle football – her son’s age… 8;

The following is a redacted version of a letter one mom of a concussed young football player recently sent to her state legislators in a Midwestern state:

Dear _________________:

As the mother of an eight-year-old who sustained a concussion during bantam football practice, I believe it is essential for the provisions of our state’s youth sports concussion safety law to be applied to all children participating in contact and collision sports held on school grounds. The injuries which occurred on my son’s team of approximately 25 third- and fourth-graders clearly demonstrate that concussion information is necessary for these players, their parents, and their coaches.

The letter is very compelling and articulate, it is worth the jump and read Continue reading →

A New Angle/Question

Dustin Fink1 Comment

Brooke de Lench, the founder of Mom’s Team, has recently been exposed to an interesting question about youth sports; “Are parents who allow young athletes to play contact or collision sports guilty of child abuse?”  A very weighty question, however as silly as it appears to most of us, a valid question.

In light of the recent question  de Lench wrote a post about it;

On the other hand, while I personally think Dr. Cantu’s recommendation is worthy of serious consideration, I don’t believe parents who allow their kids to start or continue to play collision sports before middle school are engaging in child abuse.

I could not agree more with this statement.  There are instances when the line may be crossed Continue reading →

New Link

Dustin FinkLeave a comment

We have linked Mom’s Team to our website after being approached by Brooke de Lench, Publisher.  Mom’s Team has been publishing information about youth concussions since 2000.

MomsTeam has oft been cited as the “pioneers in youth sport concussion information” by Dr. Bob Cantu, one of the country’s leading neurosurgeons who specializes in sports concussions. MomsTeam has been researching and writing about concussions since 2000 and to date we have more than 300 pages of current concussion information for sports parents. Also, In 2003, at the request of a number of our visitors whose children died from concussions (or other sports injuries) or who were catastrophically injured while playing sports, I established Teams of Angels as our nonprofit organization to educate and provide support to these families.

Please take time to click link to the left.  In the “Worth Surfing” section is the home page.