The Unseen Challenges of Athlete Concussions | Isabel Dwyer
Show Notes:
When the cheers fall silent and the stadium lights dim, the struggle of athletes with concussions truly begins. Today, Isabel Dwyer, Miss Lilac State's Teen a fierce advocate for concussion awareness, bravely unpacks her journey through the murky waters of post-concussion syndrome.
Navigating the sidelines isn't just about physical recovery; it's an emotional marathon, especially for athletes. Isabel opens up about the isolating skepticism from teammates, the tug-of-war with her own eagerness to return to cheerleading, and the stark reality of mental health battles that loom over the healing process.
By amplifying stories like Isabel's we work for a future where athletes can chase their dreams without risking the sanctity of their minds and bodies.
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Please note episode transcriptions may not be 100% accurate!
Bella Paige
Host
00:02
Hi everyone. I'm your host, Bella Paige, and after suffering from post-concussion syndrome for years, it was time to do something about it. So welcome to the Post-Concussion Podcast, where we dig deep into life when it doesn't go back to normal. Be sure to share the podcast and join our support network, Concussion Connect. Let's make this invisible injury become visible.
00:26
The post-concussion podcast is strictly an information podcast about concussions and post-concussion syndrome. It does not provide nor substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or another qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you've heard on this podcast. The opinions expressed in this podcast are simply intended to spark discussion about concussions and post-concussion syndrome. Welcome to episode number 129 of the post-concussion podcast with myself, Bella Paige and today's guest, Isabel Dwyer. Isabel is currently Miss Lilac State's teen and is running for Miss New Hampshire's teen in February of 2024. Isabel's community service initiative is one in doubt. Sit them out awareness of athletic concussions and she is here to share her concussion story and why awareness is so essential for youth athletes. Welcome, Isabel. Hi, thank you for having me. So to start. Do you want to tell us a little bit about your concussions that you've had?
Isabel Dwyer
Guest
01:41
Yes, well, I've had two so far and they've both been related to athletics. So my first one happened in gym class when I was in sixth grade and somebody threw the ball like they were shooting towards the basket and it ended up hitting my head so that it was pretty much a mild concussion. So it occurred for a couple weeks. It wasn't too bad. But then my second concussion was significantly, much worse. It happened at cheer practice. We were stunting and I'm a back spot, so I'm the person in the back and the flyer who's like up top. She lost her balance and she fell backwards and her tailbone ended up hitting my forehead and the impact was so strong that I ended up falling backwards onto the mat.
Bella Paige
Host
02:41
Ouch, definitely unique experiences, for sure. Everybody's concussion, so many different stories. And so after your concussion, especially the second one, what type of symptoms did you deal with?
Isabel Dwyer
Guest
02:54
I had such bad symptoms, so at a constant headache, and the lights in my room or even like the fluorescent lights at school were so much and the normal sounds of like the TV, like my dog barking and just my family talking were suddenly too much.
Bella Paige
Host
03:17
I always wonder why they put those bright fluorescent lights in schools, because I'm pretty sure no one likes them. And then you have students with head injuries and any type of brain injury and they're way too much all the time In the hallways, in the classroom. You don't need that much light to read any piece of paper.
Isabel Dwyer
Guest
03:38
Yeah, no, they put it everywhere, and even some people who just get migraines, it's a bother.
Bella Paige
Host
03:46
Yeah, it's really unnecessary, honestly. Maybe one day we'll steer away from that and see how it's going to school. Obviously, you had noise sensitivity and light sensitivity, and so how is that? Because you're in high school at the time.
Isabel Dwyer
Guest
03:59
Yeah, so it was really difficult because some teachers didn't understand what it was like. So they would give me like a week's extension and they'd be confused like why I couldn't complete my work in a week's extension, even though I explained to them that I just couldn't do it. Even with just like my classmates. You don't understand, because when someone has a concussion you can't see it, so it's like invisible. Most of my classmates, or even my teammates, just assumed that I was faking it and I wasn't experiencing any of those symptoms.
Bella Paige
Host
04:42
Yeah, though I had that problem too. I had teachers that didn't get it, I had some that did and then I had a concussion. The opposite situation, because for me it affected me for so long. I was accused of like faking it or, you know, just needing excuses not to do work or not do exams, and all these types of accusations I dealt with and trying to explain that, even though I looked okay, like you said, that invisible aspect didn't mean that I could, you know, get work done on time, and it's not like it's always consistent. I would have a good day and maybe I would make it through school an entire day, but then the next three days I'd be in bed. So really trying to get that across when you're a teenager and you know you're in school is really hard to even explain it to them.
Isabel Dwyer
Guest
05:29
Yeah, especially since, like, having a concussion is not just like a linear like process, it's like up and down like you can have. I had my good days where I could sit through school, school and like do other things, but then, like, the next day I'd be in bed and I just couldn't even deal with all the noise outside.
Bella Paige
Host
05:53
Yeah, it really is like that roller coaster of up and down symptoms, or you know, you kind of push through and then you're not okay and you pay for it later. But the thing is is, you know your teachers, they don't see that part, they don't see that you paying for it later, and sometimes friends don't either. And so how is that with friends? Did you explain it to friends? Did some of them get what was going on with you? How, what did you do about that?
Isabel Dwyer
Guest
06:17
Yeah, the friends thing is so hard because in the beginning my school year, before I got my concussion, I had so many friends and my social life was really good and then, once I got my concussion, it's like they didn't like get it. So I lost like a bunch of friendships because of it, because they just assumed that I was faking it or that I was just like acting weird all of a sudden. Because having a brain injury does kind of change your personality.
Bella Paige
Host
06:49
Yeah, absolutely it does change you. It can change you in a lot of ways and I think at any age, like even older adults deal with it. Teenagers, your age you know people deal with after concussion. Sometimes you don't feel like the same person and you know maybe that old you kind of mixes with the new you, but you're still not exactly the same and so you know friendships. Sometimes friends notice that and they don't understand what's going on with you or you know they think you're just weird. Now. Yeah, Things like that, Trying to explain to them what's going on when you don't even understand it yourself is really challenging. Because I think that was the hardest thing for me is I already didn't know what was going on, so I couldn't explain to others what was going on.
Isabel Dwyer
Guest
07:33
Because before I had my concussions and obviously concussions are definitely very common, like athletics and sports, like I've heard of them and then your one year teammate like has a concussion. You don't really get it. So even before I had my concussion, like everyone is always just like does she really have one? She's just faking it because that's just how it is. I feel like just like the culture around it because people aren't used to just what it's like. Then you have to have a concussion to like understand, just like the impact of it.
Bella Paige
Host
08:12
Yeah, that's very true. A lot of people don't understand, and they really have a hard time understanding, that you're not okay when you're not walking around school with crutches or you know a cast after surgery or you weren't out in the hospital for a week because of another illness Like they don't always understand because it doesn't have that dramatic emphasis on it that you can see or that you can try to understand. Oh, they were in the hospital for a week and they look really sick. People can kind of try to understand it that way With a concussion, your brain is injured, which is very serious, but without that visible component to it, it really makes it really challenging for people to get it.
Isabel Dwyer
Guest
08:49
Yeah, especially like I've seen like classmates in the nurse's office when I had my concussion last year and they've had it just for a long time. And then I've heard the rumors throughout the school like, oh, they're faking it and that it's not real and it's happened, for it's been for months since they had it, so obviously they're faking it right now.
Bella Paige
Host
09:15
Yeah, which is crazy to me because I deal with survivors who are years out still dealing with symptoms. But I also understand that if you've never been around it, you don't believe, like you know, year, two weeks, you hear maybe a month but you don't realize that there is individuals that after one concussion sometimes after multiple concussions you know things change and sometimes they change for a long time. And so I really want to get into kind of your experience of taking a break from a sport cheerleading. You know the importance of sharing concussion education with others that we've talked about before. But before that we're going to take a quick break. Do you struggle with your eyes or your vision? And I'm not talking about 2020. You can now get help on concussion connect with our vision course. This course is now up and available, so make sure you check it out and get help from light sensitivity, computer sensitivity, dry eyes and so much more. All of this course can help you, so make sure you check it out. If you've been having trouble with your eyes, all you have to do is go into concussion connect today and check out courses.
10:20
Welcome back to the post concussion podcast with myself, Bella Paige and today's guest, Isabel Dwyer. So we've been talking a little bit about Isabel's experience in, you know, school, taking a step back, dealing with symptoms, dealing with friendships that definitely can change. And what I want to talk about next is your experience with cheerleading. I know you took a break, so how did it feel to take a break from cheering?
Isabel Dwyer
Guest
10:44
It was really hard because cheer is one of my passions. Thankfully I can still cheer now and currently cheering. But before I had to take like a couple months break and it was really hard because my teammates didn't understand like why I was taking a break, and especially since they accused me of faking it was because it was anything but the truth. So I visited my pediatrician every week to assess if I could go back to cheering and it was just hard because the pressure of my teammates and my coach pressured me to get back to cheering so in time for competition season. It was just a struggle because those girls who I made connections with just suddenly weren't there for me anymore, because they didn't understand what it was like.
Bella Paige
Host
11:44
Yeah, I think you touched on a lot of important things that you know. Not believing in you same thing with the friendships and the pressure, the pressure to get back is something that a lot of athletes feel and I think versus individual and team sports, it can be really different the type of pressure that you deal with when you add that team sport component into it. You know you get all those pressures from not just your coaches and not just yourself, which can be an immense amount of pressure but your friends, the people that you spend all your time with that are like why aren't you back? We need you, we need to get ready, what are you doing?
12:18
Or in hockey, a lot of time missing out on games that are important on weekends and things like that, and it's like what are you doing? Where are you? Or you try to participate and still sit around and watch and maybe sit on the bench or sit on the sidelines and sit on the mat and just participate. That way then it can cause other issues where you deal with the comments of aren't you fine? And things like that, despite the fact that you're not, you're not okay and it's important that teammates and other athletes are understanding that, but it's definitely something that needs a lot of work. I'd say, like you mentioned in the culture of sports specifically, that just because somebody doesn't look into it doesn't mean that they are okay to get back into it.
Isabel Dwyer
Guest
13:01
Yeah, I know I sat in for one of my practices during practices when I had my concussion and it was just so hard. The atmosphere was just tough to be in because you have everyone, like the coaches, screaming at the team, the counts or what we have to do, and that did not help with my noise sensitivity. And then you had the fluorescent lights in the gym and your teammates going up to you and being like why don't you get to be back? And it's just a lot with all the lights and just the noise especially.
Bella Paige
Host
13:39
Yeah, that's a really important point to talk about that. Your symptoms. It's already a lot just being there, let alone actually participating. For myself I had a really hard time. I was okay going, so I show jumped on road horses, so I was okay going to ride or go watch training rides and stuff, but say horse shows, where I lived and breathed for it. I had a really hard time mentally with it for a long time that when I went to these events I really felt like I was missing out. I'd be happy for friends, love watching, love helping out, but when I'd leave I'd feel like this missing out component that was really hard on me mentally, really hard to get through. That feeling would go away. But those first few days for me it was really constant and it was really hard to get over that missing out feeling of watching others do something that you love so much.
Isabel Dwyer
Guest
14:33
Yeah, especially that happened to me. It hit me hard because I would see my teammates at competitions or even just cheering at the football games and I so desperately wanted to be right next to them cheering, because it's something I love so much and I definitely, I think, during my concussion, experience a little bit of just depression, because you're kind of isolated from everyone during it.
Bella Paige
Host
15:01
Yeah, isolation is a huge component and you can be isolated in so many ways and from feeling alone, having people not understand, dealing with the comments. There's a lot of different components to it on how that isolation can grow and grow and grow. And then you add a brain that's injured, that definitely has some chemical changes going on. That makes you feel like you really are the only person on the planet going through that, which is why we have the podcast to try to help that feeling a little bit. You know, do you want to share a little bit of why you wanted to come on the podcast and why the importance of education about concussions is so important to you?
Isabel Dwyer
Guest
15:37
Well, I wanted to come on to the podcast because this is just one topic that deeply like I connect with, because I had such a hard time going through school because people just didn't understand and for me I couldn't find any like resources how I was experiencing and it was just very hard to find just like content of like what other people went through with their concussion, especially since at school I was dealing with the pressure to come back and cheer, the pressure of getting all my work in, and like the pressure with friends and especially with my teammates, because I'd be in the hall like just trying to get to my next class and be so much, and then I would have to deal with their comments like you're faking and stuff like that. And I still don't really get it because why would I be faking something that it's so hard to fake?
Bella Paige
Host
16:39
Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's really hard to fake because not even just like you could limp around and fake it. It's really hard to fake because there's so many different aspects to a concussion, and so I really loved what you said about not being able to find anything, and you know. That really just reminds me that anyone who is listening to this share it, share it on social media, share it with your friends, share it with your medical professionals, because sometimes you don't realize who needs it. A lot of the time we don't see it. You know that others don't see you suffering, so maybe others around you are suffering too. So by just sharing it on social media or to friends and things like that especially medical professionals who can share it outwards as well to their patients it really helps get it out, because I felt the same way that you did Trying to find someone to understand or relate to was nearly impossible, and sometimes you come across the right thing, but it's really hard to find in general, and so taking the time to share can make a really big difference, and so thank you everyone that does that, and so.
17:39
Is there anything else you would like to add before we end today's episode?
Isabel Dwyer
Guest
17:44
Yeah, what you were saying about the sharing is so important because before I couldn't find anything, but now, since I'm doing like pageants and you have to have a community service initiative, and mine is, when in doubt, sit them out. Awareness of Athletic Concussions. I'm finding all these like content about concussions that I wish I had and now I'm using, like my title as Ms Lilac State's Teen, just to bring awareness of surrounding concussions and changing the culture around it and having people understand what it's like to have a concussion Absolutely.
Bella Paige
Host
18:27
Well, I want to thank you so much for joining. You know you shared a lot of things that are definitely a vulnerable thing to share and it definitely makes a huge difference for others who can relate to you. So thank you.
Isabel Dwyer
Guest
18:39
Thank you so much for having me.
Bella Paige
Host
18:41
Need more than just this podcast. Be sure to check out our website postconcussioninc.com to see how we can help you in your post concussion life. I believe life can get better because I've lived through it. Make sure you take it one day at a time.
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This cookbook was something I had been looking for! It pairs nutritional information specific to concussion recovery with tips for symptoms, and the recipes are delicious!! My husband and teenager loved it too! Very grateful to have this resource! - Halli
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