Concussion

[reptilicus]

Hey all,
I thought I'd introduce myself, might be here for a while...
I am writing from my room in Teton Village. Seems two days ago I somehow managed to give myself a decent concussion, feeling better now but been told to still take it easy....
The snow here in Jackson has been awesome since the end of December (after a slow start). Two days ago I was skiing away, hucking some stuff and skiing the sick pow...next thing I know I'm in hospital getting a CT scan. No recollection of what happened. No idea how I got down. Apparently I asked about 20 times in half an hour if the ski patrol took me down, and apparently they didn't, which I was very happy with (funny what seems important to you at the time!) For a while I didn't know what year it was or anything...I've got back pretty much everything now except a few hours of memory from about 2-3pm to about 5pm that night. When I got back to my place my buddies realised something was up, they drove me to hospital in Jackson, I got a CT scan and all was OK, so that's good I guess.
I have a decent mark on the top left hand side of my head. I think what must have happened is that I ducked my head to go under a tree (as I often do) and I have either miscalculated the thickness or height of the branch.
Never worn a helmet before, but I think I may be investing in one now!
Does anyone have any experience with this sort of thing? What's the recovery period like? I'm obviously not going to go hucking any huge cliffs for a while but how long should you rest for/how easy should you take it? I'm pretty keen to get back out there ASAP. I've had a few concussions playing rugby in Australia before but this is probabably the worst one. Rugby it's just have a week off, play the week after, but what's the deal with skiing?
Cheers,
Tom

[Arnold Babar]

Hey all,
...I've got back pretty much everything now except a few hours of memory from about 2-3pm to about 5pm that night. Cheers,
Tom

That's when I lent you that $500.00 Take it slow. Head injuries are scary.

[Big E]

Definitely get a helmet. You can probably count on one hand the number of people on here that don't wear a helmet. I found that not only do they protect your noggin, but when you find one that fits, they're comfier than hats!

Only thing I know about concussions is when you get one, you just made it easier to get another one.

[Castro's]

The best part about a helmet for everyday skiing is that you don't have to duck as low for the branches. Oh yeah, and if you are in a bad fall they can save your life. They take a little getting used to at first, but after wearing one for a while I can't ski without out it even if it is on a tiny little hill where the probability of hitting my head is slim and none.

[Mrs Roo]

You should probably wait a week, the same as rugby. When you go out again, sporting your new helmet, go gently because you may find your balance a bit off at first. This will gradually improve with practice. Dizziness is really common after minor head injuries so don't be suprised but the same advice applies. Gently challenging yourself on easy stuff to start with will allow your balance system to recalibrate.

Hopefully you'll be sound as a pound.