Athletes who play a contact sport have a 15-45% chance of sustaining at least one concussion (mTBI) during their athletic experience. Multiple studies have shown that concussions are the most common type of injury that athletes are expected to incur during their time playing. The extant research contains a substantial number of quantitative reviews on concussions and how athletes are at risk for receiving them; however, there are not many accounts from the athlete’s perspective about how sustaining these injuries affected their undergraduate experience. I used a qualitative study with a semi-structured interview design to examine the social, academic, and athletic experiences of undergraduate athletes who sustained a concussion during their time playing at the undergraduate level. A total of 11 athletes were interviewed, including members from the football (7), baseball (2), ski (1), and swim (1) teams. Transcripts were coded and analyzed using Dedoose to find key themes. The results of the present study will be used to understand how athletes feel their concussion affected them, how to make the recovery process easier for athletes, and to understand the education that athletes have about concussions.

Mind blowing, or blowing out their minds: Concussions and how undergraduate athletes experience them