This week, our lead article, Concussion significantly increases the risk of severe mental health illness post-childbirth, is in the Women’s Health category.

In this newsletter: Opportunities, Education, Self-Care, Mental Health, Youth, Women’s Health, and CTE & Neurodegeneration Issues.

We appreciate the Concussion Alliance volunteers and staff who created this edition:
Writers: Ella Webster, Sravya Valiveti, Chelsea Ryan, Runa Katayama, and Malayka Gormally.

Editors: Malayka Gormally and Conor Gormally

Do you find the Concussion Update helpful? If so, forward this to a friend and suggest they subscribe.

Opportunities

A man sits on the floor in front of his couch studying his laptop that is on the coffee table; he is taking notes

Fridays, January 3, 10, 17, 24, 12:30 - 1:00 pm PST: A free series of short webinars, Understanding Cognition; A Workshop Series, presented by Miranda Gendreau, SLP, and hosted by the Brain Injury Alliance of Washington State. Register in advance.

Wednesday, January 8, 4:00 pm PST: A free Weekly Meditation Class led by Diana Winston, Director of UCLA Mindful, and guests. The program is every Wednesday, 4:00 - 5:30 pm PT, except during the holidays. The Zoom link is here; no advance registration is required.

Tuesday, January 14, 6 pm EST: A free webinar, Introduction to the Treatment of Concussions, presented by Dr. Charles Tator (Neurosurgeon), hosted by the Canadian Concussion Centre. Register in advance.

Thursday, January 16, 11 am PST: A free webinar, Navigating SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance) & SSI (Supplemental Security Income): Understanding Disability Benefits, presented by Aliza Hauser, MA, CRC, PHR and hosted by the Brain Injury Alliance of Washington State. Register in advance.

Last call for enrollment (courses are almost full) for two kinds of free, interactive, online 6-week programs from Love Your Brain. Join a Zoom call for either Group Discussions (45 min classes with group discussion) or Yoga and Discussion (75 min classes with gentle yoga & group discussion.) Each program comes with weekly emails with four mindfulness tools, as well as specialized programs for BIPOC, Veterans, LGBTQIA+, and more. The programs begin in January.

Call for study participants: military veterans who have had concussions and/or a traumatic brain injury, including any injury to your head or neck that caused you to lose consciousness or feel dazed/confused/experience a gap in memory. This includes brain injury resulting from exposure to blasts. Read our blog post for more information on the Late Effects of TBI (LETBI) study. If you are interested, please contact Julia Kirschenbaum at julia.kirschenbaum@mountsinai.org, call us at 212-241-5152, or sign up online.

Education

New tools from CATT and PedsConcussion for screening, diagnosis, and management of brain injury due to intimate partner violence

Blog

PedsConcussion, the Living Guideline for Pediatric Concussion, has published a Supplement: Intimate Partner Violence-Related Head and Neck Trauma. The Concussion Awareness Training Tool (CATT) for Women’s Support Workers has a free online training course on brain injury and intimate partner violence.

Read More →

Self-Care

Download a free, high-quality mindfulness app

Blog

Learn about a free, high-quality mindfulness app created by UCLA Mindfulness Education Center ; our previous newsletter covered meditation, particularly mindfulness, for at-risk populations.

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Mental Health

Psychiatric symptoms caused by multiple concussions may be due to the kynurenine pathway and structural changes in the brain in collegiate-aged athletes

Blog

A study investigated the link between concussion history, changes in limbic brain structure (the emotional processing system), and psychiatric symptoms, focusing on the kynurenine pathway (KP) as a potential mechanism. The KP is a metabolic pathway connected to inflammation, the immune system, and neurological conditions.

Read More →

Youth

Sleep problems, depression, are risk factors for lower quality-of-life scores after concussion

Blog

A study investigating health-related quality of life (HRQL) metrics and other psychological factors post-concussion in youth found that that psychological risk factors such as anxiety and depression negatively impact health-related quality of life in the initial 6-month phase of pediatric concussion.

Read More →

Women’s Health

Concussion significantly increases the risk of severe mental health illness post-childbirth

Blog

A study found evidence to suggest a link between concussion history and a 25% increased risk of severe mental health challenges in the 14 years after childbirth in comparison to those who have no history of concussion.

Read More →

CTE & Neurodegeneration Issues

Retired rugby players with concussion history have biomarkers that indicate risk of neurodegenerative diseases

Blog

A new study by researchers involved in the UK Rugby Health Project found that retired rugby players who have a history of concussion have altered levels of specific proteins in their blood, indicating greater neural damage than their uninjured peers.

Read More →