Concussions and What You Can Do

Concussions

TBI. Traumatic brain injury. Such a nice euphemism for a concussion, isn’t it? That’s what it is, after all. Someone’s brain was violently smashed against the inside of their skull which resulted in deep and, in many cases, permanent damage. One concussion is not all that bad; however, a second soon after the first can be crippling.

Additionally, after the first one, others come easier. The damage compounds upon itself over time even. Watch any interview with career boxers like Larry Holmes. By the end of his career he could barely form a sentence. As a veteran, myself, I can attest to the compounded damage and deterioration. Pay just a little attention to Veterans who have had a few concussions. You will see similar issues shared with professional athletes.

The Center for Disease Control says that between 500,000 and 3 million people in America are treated for concussions each year. Even on the low end, that is a huge amount a damage. Particularly when you consider how much work goes into trying to recover from the damage, to regain the skills lost, regain the physical functions that were basic non-issues just days prior to the injury.

Among the multitude of symptoms that can manifest after head trauma, the primary signs of a concussion to look for include:

·         Headache

·         Nausea/Vomiting

·         Dizziness/Balance Problems

·         Blurred Vision

·         Sensitivity to Light

·         Sensitivity to Noise

·         Numbness in any part of the Body

·         Can't Concentrate/Mental Fog

·         Can't Remember Events just before the injury

·         Can't Remember Events just after the injury

How does one recover from concussions? Does it just take time or is there something that can be done to strengthen the brain tissue itself? The good news is that, yes, there is something that can be done to assist in recovering from the damage. This practice can benefit the brain and body even if you have not had a concussion.

Tai Chi Chuan

Tai Chi translates to The Grand Ultimate. As a philosophy, it has existed for millennia in both India and China. The martial practice of Tai Chi Chuan around 1,000 to 1,500 years ago in China. Tai Chi Chuan means The Grand Ultimate Fist. For more information regarding the history of this art, there are several fantastic articles at YMAA.com, Yang’s Martial Arts Academy.

Practicing this art, as Catherine Kerr of Harvard Medical School (HMS) and many other studies have confirmed, is a unique culmination of physical and mental concentration and coordination. It brings together mindfulness meditation, light to moderate aerobics, and awareness of self and surroundings and one’s relation to them. It is a practice in moving mindfulness meditation.

Harvard scientists confirmed in 2011 that mindfulness meditation thickens the cortical structure in the hippocampus. This is the portion of the brain that governs learning and memory. By thickening the tissue here, essentially improving the function of the hippocampus, patients are able to learn new skills and improve in memory related tasks as opposed to patients with similar injuries who did not participate in tai chi chuan exercises. Due to this, the Veterans Administration has included Mindfulness Meditation exercises as part of its programs for Veterans dealing with traumatic brain injuries (TBI), PTSD, and anger and impulse control among other issues.

Practitioners also show improvements in up to eight regions of the brain (2). Regions associated with motor and executive functions are two important areas to consider. These benefits have been realized by hundreds of veterans through the SHARE Program at the Shephard Center in Atlanta, GA. As a veteran with TBIs, I started practicing tai chi chuan while at the SHARE program several years ago and still practice today. I continue to experience improvements and changes after five years of practice.

How Much Time is Needed?

As mentioned above, changes have been noted in several regions of the brain. This includes the lingual sulcus (LS). The LS encodes visual memories, logical order of events, and speech processing. Practice in amounts as small as 30 minutes per day twice a week have resulted in changes that are easily seen and tracked on a brain scanner.

One area changed is the Anterior Cingulate Cortex (ACC) behind the frontal lobe. This area is associated with self-regulatory processes. These include, but are not limited to, frustration tolerance, behavior inhibition, and self-regulation. Patients participating in studies of 24 weeks in length have shown improved affect in these characteristics (1).

The thickening of the matter in the prefrontal cortex and resultant tests from several studies show that sturdy participants showed improvements in the portions responsible for executive function and attention. Study participants demonstrated increased capacities to recall lists and tasks as well as complete said lists and tasks. There is also a corresponding increase in thickness of the cortical matter of the hippocampus. This part of the limbic system also governs learning and memory. It is also vulnerable to stress-induced injuries such as PTSD. Being able to repair damage to these tissues and regions is extremely hopeful for patients struggling with these issues.

More importantly than seeing these changes on a scanner, these changes are seen in how the practitioners improve in their ability to function in daily life. By thickening the tissue in the frontal cortex and in both the hippocampus and amygdala. These last two are part of the limbic system and are important to us in that they play a major role in memories, decision making, and emotional reactions. 

Conclussion

Both Tai Chi Chuan and mindfulness meditation have shown to increase tissue density in the frontal cortex, as mentioned already. Tai Chi Chuan increases tissue density in the limbic system. This thickening, as with increased tissue and activity in the frontal cortex, results in improved functions. Test subjects show improved memory recall and better emotional control and response to situations.

Outside of personal my experience and interviews along the way over the past several years, studies referenced include:

Ncbi.nim.nih.gov Tai Chi and Qigong for the Treatment and Prevention of Mental Disorders

Ncbi.nim.nih.gov Tai Chi Chuan Baduanjin practice modulates functional connectivity of the cognitive control network in older adults

a.      This is also applicable to younger patients who have sustained brain injuries

Journal.frontiersin.org Mild Traumatic Brain Injury and Delayed Alteration of Memory Processing

Bibliography

1.      https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5294576/

2.      http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0061038

The Core of the Matter

 The Core Issue

Spring is coming. Summer is all too soon after that. Thia means beaches, pool parties, BBQs and our midsections are out on display. We all want to look our best for the season. Let’s look at the structure and understand what to train, how to train it and the why behind it. It’s not as cryptic as you might think.

Training takes time. You will see and feel the changes in about two or three weeks. Your intimate partner should see those changes in about four to five weeks. By the time the bathing suits go on, your core should be plenty hard and shredded. 

The information below is applicable whether you are in middle school, high school, college, or on into retirement. The one thing I will caution you about is the bicycle crunches. While I do enjoy them for their quick and dramatic results, there are times when the twisting motion proves to be too much for my lower back. This rotation sometimes twists or pulls a vertebra out of place. 

My point being, do the bicycle crunches slowly and with good control. Speeding up to "get more repetitions, man" is a sure way to an injury.

Please, check with your doctor prior to trying anything new or changing up your program. For us older folk, we need to be certain that we are not making our physician go gray prematurely. 

Of course, you will want to be assured of the efficacy of the routines included. I put these together to be effective and efficient. I train in the martial arts with kids a little more than half my age. I do get hit and kicked. Probably more than should happen, but my midsection has always been able to take the impacts. As far as I am concerned, the routines work.

Give them a try for eight to 12 weeks, three or four times a week. You will need to do three sets to failure on each set.

Have fun.

Train smart.

Train hard.

Your Core Muscles

            Your core is more than the “six-pack,”  the Rectus Abdominus. Included are the obliques, just beneath the “love handles.” These muscles form a girdle that, when properly engaged and trained, lift and pull in. This action reduces the waistline.

            An often-overlooked segment in training the core is the back, the erector spinae. These are the straps of thick muscle that parallel and run the length of the spine. Training these muscles is important for several reasons, but we will consider two. First, a strong posture brings a pain-free back. Second, keeping these muscles strong prevents a painful muscular imbalance in the hips that comes from only training the abdominals.
           

Training Your Core Muscles

            Time is a commodity that is at a minimum for most of us. The two routines below are designed to hit the core muscles completely and quickly. Both routines can be done just about anywhere and anytime, no equipment needed.

            Workout 1:

1)     Back Bridge – lay on your back, bend your legs at the knees, place your feet flat on the floor near your buttocks. Lift your body so that your feet, shoulders, head, and arms are on the floor and your body is in a straight line from your shoulders to knees. Hold for two seconds, relax. Repeat for 10 to 12 repetitions for three sets with a two-minute rest between sets.

2)      Front Plank – elbows and forearms on the floor with your elbows beneath your shoulders. Lift your body up so that it is in a straight line from shoulders to ankles. Hold for 15 to 60 seconds, repeat it for two to four repetitions in one set.

3)      Side Plank – Support your weight on your right or left forearm with your shoulder directly over your elbow and your feet stacked one on top of the other. Keep your body straight and in full alignment from shoulders to ankles. Hold this for 15 to 60 seconds. Repeat it for two to four repetitions in one set. Repeat on the other side.

Workout 2:

1)      Bicycle Crunches – from a position of lying on your back bring your shoulders and knees up so that you are in a V-Seat. You can keep your legs straight to increase the intensity or bend your legs at the knees. Your hands will be near your ears, but not holding onto your head, pulling against your head has proven to cause neck injuries. Bring the opposite elbow and knee together to touch above your midsection. Your right elbow will touch your left knee, left elbow to right knee, and back and forth. Keep this up at a moderate pace with good form until you can no longer hold proper form. Repeat for three sets. If the repetitions are easy then lean further back so that more of your mid-back is on the floor.

2)      Superman – Lay on your stomach. Slowly contract the muscles along your spine and lift your head, shoulders, arms, and legs simultaneously as high as possible, hold for two seconds, lower and repeat for 10 to 12 repetitions. Repeat for three sets.