156 | The Concussion That Changed Everything: Dr. Shawn Eagle's Path to Purpose

It started with a severe AC separation in his shoulder.

That's especially problematic in a pass-catching tight end like he was, who was also frequently blocking big, quick defensive ends.

That initial injury cost him two-thirds of his senior season by itself.

And as he reflected, that time out might have also made him more susceptible to the injury he'd suffer next, a concussion.

Sean's helmet was most likely under-inflated, leaving him vulnerable.

And when he sustained a helmet-to-helmet blow, not only was he likely wearing an ill-fitting piece of protective gear, he probably also was not as strong in his upper traps and the surrounding musculature as he would have been had he been playing that whole time.

Regardless, the impact led to a concussion.

And what's worse, his symptoms lingered.

Even though Sean was at a small Division III school, his team had an athletic trainer.

And one of the things I love most about the profession of AT is that we get to really know our athletes.

Being embedded in the team, we're a perfect example of preventative upstream healthcare.

Sean's AT knew him because he'd worked with him in rehabilitating his injuries or maybe even just being in the locker room, the training room, or the weight room.

So when Sean's personality changed and those lingering symptoms of concussion triggered anxiety and mood changes in him, his AT noticed.

And that matters more than most people might realize.

At the college level, especially within organizations like the NCAA, access to ATs has thankfully become the norm.

The vast majority of NCAA programs have dedicated sports medicine staffs assigned to their teams, and that kind of coverage is expected today.

Now, admittedly, many staffs tend to be overextended and underfunded, but at least someone's there.

But if we zoom out for a second, we realize that Sean's story could have easily happened a few years earlier in high school, and that's where the gap becomes impossible to ignore.

Across the US, nearly eight million high school athletes compete each year through the National Federation of High School State Associations.

That's millions of kids.

Same collision, same risk, same stakes.

But only about two-thirds of high schools have access to a full-time athletic trainer.

And roughly thirty percent of schools have no athletic trainer at all.

Not full-time, not part-time, none.

So think about that.

It started with a severe AC separation in his shoulder.

That's especially problematic in a pass-catching tight end like he was, who was also frequently blocking big, quick defensive ends.

That initial injury cost him two-thirds of his senior season by itself.

And as he reflected, that time out might have also made him more susceptible to the injury he'd suffer next, a concussion.

Sean's helmet was most likely under-inflated, leaving him vulnerable.

And when he sustained a helmet-to-helmet blow, not only was he likely wearing an ill-fitting piece of protective gear, he probably also was not as strong in his upper traps and the surrounding musculature as he would have been had he been playing that whole time.

Regardless, the impact led to a concussion.

And what's worse, his symptoms lingered.

Even though Sean was at a small Division III school, his team had an athletic trainer.

And one of the things I love most about the profession of AT is that we get to really know our athletes.

Being embedded in the team, we're a perfect example of preventative upstream healthcare.

Sean's AT knew him because he'd worked with him in rehabilitating his injuries or maybe even just being in the locker room, the training room, or the weight room.

So when Sean's personality changed and those lingering symptoms of concussion triggered anxiety and mood changes in him, his AT noticed.

And that matters more than most people might realize.

At the college level, especially within organizations like the NCAA, access to ATs has thankfully become the norm.

The vast majority of NCAA programs have dedicated sports medicine staffs assigned to their teams, and that kind of coverage is expected today.

Now, admittedly, many staffs tend to be overextended and underfunded, but at least someone's there.

But if we zoom out for a second, we realize that Sean's story could have easily happened a few years earlier in high school, and that's where the gap becomes impossible to ignore.

Across the US, nearly eight million high school athletes compete each year through the National Federation of High School State Associations.

That's millions of kids.

Same collision, same risk, same stakes.

But only about two-thirds of high schools have access to a full-time athletic trainer.

And roughly thirty percent of schools have no athletic trainer at all.

Not full-time, not part-time, none.

So think about that.