Concussions and Pro Wrestling

One of the most common injuries in professional wrestling today and yesteryear is and will probably always be… the concussion.

In the past, athletes were not too concerned about a concussion. They just thought, what the hell, you’re knocked silly, dizzy for a bit and a little tired, but the feeling goes away. Nowadays, more research is being done and they are realizing the long term effects can be serious and sometimes even fatal.

What is a concussion? A concussion is a traumatic brain injury that alters the way your brain functions. Your brain is a soft organ that is surrounded by spinal fluid and protected by your hard skull. Normally, the fluid around your brain acts like a cushion that keeps your brain from banging into your skull. But if your head or your body is hit unexpectedly hard,or has a sudden impact, your brain can suddenly crash into your skull and temporarily stop working normally..

But what about concussions in pro wrestling? Where wrestlers don’t always get the proper rest and time to heal before that next booking? Some wrestlers don’t even realize they have a concussion when the step into the ring the next night. Others misinterpret the symptoms as just being tired, or having a big wrestling weekend and just being exhausted from the traveling, the hurry up and wait in the locker room and the busy weekend. So what are the symptoms of a concussion?

You do not need to have ALL of the following symptoms to have a concussion:

• headache or feeling of pressure in the head
• temporary loss of consciousness
• feeling of nausea or dizziness
• loss of short term memory
• lethargic, drowsy feeling, fatigue
• slurred speech
• confusion or “feeling like in a haze/fog”
• dilated eyes or “dead”eye stare
• temporary loss of depth perception

More severe symptoms include

• inability to concentrate or memory problems
• lack of balance/equilibrium
• sensitivity to light/noise
• sleep disturbances
• change in personality/ rapid mood swings

***PLEASE NOTE – A concussion may show symptoms immediately or symptoms can appear up to 72 hours or more after head trauma occurred.

Usually in wrestling, what happens is a wrestler, either gets knocked out in the ring, or more commonly, can make it to the back on his/her own, but knows they were “knocked silly” during the match… the best way to test for a concussion is as follows:

-ask simple questions (what day is it, where are they, who are they…etc)
-dizziness or nauseous feeling
-check for slurred speech/stuttering, not making sense when speaking
-have person keep head still and follow your finger with their eyes
-have them grab your index fingers and squeeze…should be strong equal pressure on both fingers, no weak grasps
-“Walk the DUI line” test to check balance and equilibrium
-Check pulse and blood pressure ( if available) standard BP is 120/80 and standard Pulse should be around 70 pulses per minute
-Give sugar to raise blood sugar levels…
-Check for dilated or “dead eye” stare

***if you have these or any other symptoms, you should get check out by a health care professional***

The next question people usually ask is what is the treatment/how do I treat a concussion? Simple, there is no magic pill to make the concussion go away. Time and rest the is best medicine for this diagnosis. Depending on the severity of the concussion, you may consider seeking medical attention and have more testing done such as a MRI or CT Scan, basically special equipment is used to take X Rays or pictures of your brain to make sure your brain is not bruised or bleeding.

So what are the long term effects of a concussion or, in some pro wrestler’s cases… repeated concussions. For the most part, if you only have one to two mild concussions, chances are, there will be no long term effects and you should be fine. But for those who have had repeated concussions, things can take a more long term effect. Recent studies have taken place regarding this subject, Dr. Maryse Lassonde of the University of Montreal conducted studies comparing athletes who had a history of concussions. When compared to one another they appeared within normal ranges, when compared to those who had not had concussions, did problems arise. Slight deficits it was determined are comparable to early stages of dementia, a disease usually effecting the elderly.

The brain of nine-year NFL veteran Tom McHale, who died of a drug overdose at the age of 45, was donated and the results of the biopsy showed that he suffered from a severe degenerative brain disease called chronic traumatic encephalopathy. It was caused by repeated concussions.

Testing was also performed on Chris Benoit’s brain tissue, a wrestling legend that took not only his own life, but the life of his wife and child during the height of his career. Julian Bailes, Chairman of Neurosurgery at West Virginia University and a founding member of the Sports Legacy Institute has stated that “These extreme changes throughout Chris Benoit’s brain are enough to explain aberrant behavior, including suicide and even homicide.”

“I can’t tell you if trauma was the sole or only factor, but these pathological issues are there,” said Dr. Robert Cantu, Chief of Neurosurgery, Emerson Hospital Concord, Mass. and another founding member of the Sports Legacy Institute. Benoit also had a long history of steroid use as well that could have been a contributing factor.

Indeed, by the time the 40-year-old Benoit killed himself, he had the brain of a man aged 80 or older with “very severe” Alzheimer’s disease, according to Cantu. “His was the most extensively damaged of the brains we have examined so far,” Cantu said. Who has also conducted studies on 4 other athletes brains to test this subject.

I recently sat down with Joey “kAos” Munoz, owner of Santino Bros Wrestling Academy in Bell Gardens, CA. Head Trainer & a 17 year veteran of wrestling, kAos made a name for himself as one of the homegrown talents of Xtreme Pro Wrestling, a company known for its extreme hardcore style of wrestling that incorporated the use of barbwire, thumbtacks, tables, light tubes and yes, chairs.
Now knowing that this athlete has taken numerous chair shots to the head in the past 17 years, I asked what he felt about his students taking chair shots? This is what he said, ” Here in 2011 at Santino Bros Wrestling Academy, I do not condone chair shots to the head. I think I have taken enough shots for my students, so that way they don’t have to take any chairshots! But this is the wrestling business and it is about what the promoters want and are looking for.
He continues, “I know it may sound hypocritical to say, but I do teach my students still how to give and how to take a chairshot. I do encourage them to take chairs across the back rather than to the head. Headshots I don’t how how you can safely take them without damaging yourself, but I can them (my students) my best advice. Cause’ its better to have some advice, than no advice. As for me, the damage is probably already done.”

So what is the bottom line here? Live life in a bubble and never try to live your dreams? No. Work Smarter, Not Harder! I know the crowd loves to chant “get the chair” and watch wrestlers take chair shots back and forth. Or even some of the insane dives I have seen throughout my years, but really, is it worth it in the long run? Is the crowd going to be there when (hopefully) you get older and brain starts to disintegrate at a more rapid pace than it should? I completely understand the adrenaline rush the crowd gives you, but when all is said and done, the crowd goes home and your left in an empty arena, reality tends to kick you in the ass. Never give up your dreams, whats life without dreams? But also, remember you only got one body and one brain… whose in control? The fans or you?

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