A new report from the Kansas State High School Activities Association has surprising information about concussions and high school athletes. Twice as many girl soccer players had concussions than boy soccer players, though the report doesn’t go into the reasons why. The three sports with the highest incidence of reported concussions were Football (6.16%), Girls Soccer (3.63%) and Wrestling (2.98%). The 2018-2019 school year marked the first year member schools were required to report concussions. More than 2,100 concussions were reported in athletes across grades 7-12.

One of those athletes was 15-year-old DeSoto High School sophomore Taylor Krebiel, who remembers well the moment she suffered a concussion while playing soccer. In a split second during the first game of the soccer season…Taylor was sidelined from the sports she loved, including basketball. Even going back to school was nearly impossible. In the video, she describes not being able to roll over or stand up without having the room spin. She said reading and concentrating was especially hard. She received treatment at The Sports Medicine and Performance Center at The University of Kansas Health System, and after working with doctors and athletic trainers, and with help from her school, she was able to make a full recovery.

Also in the video, Emily Volker, a physical therapist at The Sports Medicine and Performance Center.  She says thanks to the new Concussion Risk Reduction Program at the Sports Medicine and Performance Center young athletes like Taylor, may avoid the same fate. She describes the a 6-week program and how it’s meant for someone who has never had a concussion and looking to avoid one…or someone who’s had one in the past but fully recovered. She explains how the course trains things such as balance, agility, neck strength, shoulder strength and vision training all things which research has shown to help reduce the risk of getting a concussion.

The video also shows Taylor practicing soccer and playing basketball, as well as somebody going through the Concussion Risk Reduction Program.