I recently had the privilege of interviewing a vibrant young woman named Sarah Weubbolt on The Concussion Coach Podcast. She has experienced three concussions starting at age 12.
One point that she made that really stood out to me and that I believe is a particular challenge for youth struggling with concussion recovery is that “time moves on — no one pushes pause on everything,” and there is a legitimate fear of falling behind.
There are so many things that culturally we assume will happen in a linear fashion for young people — high school and all the activities associated with that (which we assume will happen within a 4 year timeframe), then college or trade school or work following that. The high school years have a lot of expectations around them, and if something happens that disrupts that expected flow, it can be very disconcerting and confusing.
If that has been the experience of someone you care about, please know you and they are not alone, and that even if things don’t pan out as we had expected or hoped, that doesn’t mean that those things aren’t panning out for the best. Good things can still come in the future, and may even be happening now if we’re open to seeing how.
Sarah’s insights are helpful and very apropos for teens. Her Instagram @hopepostinjury offers young survivors relatable support and free recovery tips. She has also created a concussion recovery pamphlet that shares strategies for concussion recovery.
Click here if you want to listen to the full conversation with Sarah.
All the best,
Bethany