Concerned about head injuries...

[Myxococcus-Xanthus]

Hey yall, I'm very fortunate to have an acceptance to one of my top choices but thinking about starting medical school in 9ish months has me slightly worried about my brain health. For background I've been doing martial arts for a number of years and haven't had any serious head injuries. That said, I recently joined a new gym where I'm doing some fairly intense MMA training (jiu jitsu/MMA a couple times a week & kickboxing a couple times a week). We usually only MMA or kickbox spar once a week but I still take more hits to the head than the average person on this site (aka I'm not very good at it lol). I'm worried about this impacting my long term brain health, especially considering I'll be starting medical school in the near-ish future. On the other hand, I genuinely love my training. It's an incredible workout, builds a ton of confidence, and I enjoy learning new things. Just curious as to what any of you have to say because it's something I've been wrestling with for awhile. Thanks!

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[deleted1114112]

Considering your academics or medical school prospects aside, if you are generally worried about something causing brain damage then you should probably stray away from it...you could just not spar or wear headgear?

 

[SquidLab]

Sounds like something you should talk about with your primary care physician. I'm a roller coaster enthusiast so it's somewhat similar, but I am able to take breaks whenever I get dizzy.

 

[Proudfather94]

Hey yall, I'm very fortunate to have an acceptance to one of my top choices but thinking about starting medical school in 9ish months has me slightly worried about my brain health. For background I've been doing martial arts for a number of years and haven't had any serious head injuries. That said, I recently joined a new gym where I'm doing some fairly intense MMA training (jiu jitsu/MMA a couple times a week & kickboxing a couple times a week). We usually only MMA or kickbox spar once a week but I still take more hits to the head than the average person on this site (aka I'm not very good at it lol). I'm worried about this impacting my long term brain health, especially considering I'll be starting medical school in the near-ish future. On the other hand, I genuinely love my training. It's an incredible workout, builds a ton of confidence, and I enjoy learning new things. Just curious as to what any of you have to say because it's something I've been wrestling with for awhile. Thanks!

I'm sorry but the human body never evolved to take repeated hits to the head like that. CTE is a very serious thing and can develop up to 10 years after the injury. I'm sure you're going to be at a higher risk for crap like dementia with repeated head injuries as well. I wouldn't risk it but at the end of the day it's your choice. Alot of physicians drink or don't sleep and that's not great for brain health either.

 

[Myxococcus-Xanthus]

Considering your academics or medical school prospects aside, if you are generally worried about something causing brain damage then you should probably stray away from it...you could just not spar or wear headgear?

It feels like I'm not actually training if I never spar. It's a good way to learn and it's really fun. We normally (but not always) wear headgear. I'm not getting hit that hard usually because it's just practice but it's still something I worry about, ya know?

 

[axonaxoff]

It feels like I'm not actually training if I never spar. It's a good way to learn and it's really fun. We normally (but not always) wear headgear. I'm not getting hit that hard usually because it's just practice but it's still something I worry about, ya know?

Hi, I understand where you're coming from and I ultimately decided to stop sparring with any head hits. If medicine is your goal, you need all your wits about you. Beware false security from headgear, sometimes people up the ante when wearing it - it may protect against cuts but your brain is still getting knocked about. If you have training partners you trust, you could try sparring from the shoulders down to keep your movement and eyes sharp, and work on other drills for head defense. I miss sparring, but crossing my fingers and hoping for the best wasn't a wise strategy. One bad hit can set you back months, and you won't have any time to spare when you start school. Congratulations on your acceptance and good luck!

 

[YCAGA]

Just stick to BJJ, since you are much less likely to get a concussion from that, especially if you guys do not do a lot of standup/judo work. The standup work is obviously important if you want to compete or for self-defense but is also unfortunately a great way to get your head slapped against the mat. Even a "mild concussion" that keeps you from studying for 2 to 3 days will be a giant pain in the glutes during medical school and I don't even know if you could take off time during residency for that excuse. Maybe once but your attendings would probably say that that's the last time that can happen.

 

[Radetzky]

Your biggest concern about a head injury… is being able to study for medical school?

 

[YCAGA]

Your biggest concern about a head injury… is being able to study for medical school?

That would be most medical student's immediate concern? Per your flair you have been to medical school so it is extra strange to shame someone for wanting to not get behind in med school.

 

[Proudfather94]

Just stick to BJJ, since you are much less likely to get a concussion from that, especially if you guys do not do a lot of standup/judo work. The standup work is obviously important if you want to compete or for self-defense but is also unfortunately a great way to get your head slapped against the mat. Even a "mild concussion" that keeps you from studying for 2 to 3 days will be a giant pain in the glutes during medical school and I don't even know if you could take off time during residency for that excuse. Maybe once but your attendings would probably say that that's the last time that can happen.

One thing that's a concern with contact sports are the repeated hits that don't show obvious signs of a concussion. The damage can go unnoticed and accumulate over time.

 

[Obnoxious Dad]

Hey yall, I'm very fortunate to have an acceptance to one of my top choices but thinking about starting medical school in 9ish months has me slightly worried about my brain health. For background I've been doing martial arts for a number of years and haven't had any serious head injuries. That said, I recently joined a new gym where I'm doing some fairly intense MMA training (jiu jitsu/MMA a couple times a week & kickboxing a couple times a week). We usually only MMA or kickbox spar once a week but I still take more hits to the head than the average person on this site (aka I'm not very good at it lol). I'm worried about this impacting my long term brain health, especially considering I'll be starting medical school in the near-ish future. On the other hand, I genuinely love my training. It's an incredible workout, builds a ton of confidence, and I enjoy learning new things. Just curious as to what any of you have to say because it's something I've been wrestling with for awhile. Thanks!

If you enjoy learning new things, why don't you take up golf or tennis? Have you ever heard of CTE? Even boxers who were really hard to hit such as the great Sugar Ray Robinson ended up with premature dementia. Mike and Jerry Quarry ended up sitting in a dark room.