Why I wrote this book.
– Bruce Parkman
Think of the millions of American children, teenagers, and adults who have been exposed to years, sometimes decades, of contact sports with little understanding of the physiological damage those years of contact and trauma can do to a brain.
Continuous and unrelenting physical damage causes irreparable harm to the brain resulting in mental illness due to an abnormally functioning brain. Eventually, the mental illness will manifest itself in mannerisms, actions, and decisions caused by the psychological distress and physical ailments that come with brain damage. Over time, their mental illness progresses until some athletes become depressed, schizophrenic, suffer anxiety, act impulsivity, and some, like Mac, commit suicide.
As parents, you know the risks your kids face every day – drugs, the internet, video games, strangers – and you work diligently and with love to protect them. Why? We do so because we are aware of those risks. Well, I didn’t know about the risks of concussive and subconcussive trauma that we discuss in this book. I couldn’t protect my son….and I lost him.
That is why I wrote this book, to try to heal through the sharing of knowledge that I have gained over the last year or so. That there is a demonstrable link between concussive sports, developing brains and mental illness. I want you to know what I now know… You don’t want to be in my club.
Especially when it is avoidable.
WHAT PEOPLE SAY
Alison Haddad MSN, APRN, PMHNP-BC
This book gives an introduction to a colossal issue that everyone turns a blind eye to, the raw and deplorable truth behind concussive trauma as a result of contact sports in our youth. A must-read for every single parent and healthcare professional as this book paints a clear picture of a direct link between head injuries and depression/suicidality.
Beth Brewer
Sometimes you pick up a book that inspires you or perhaps entertains you. Rarely do you come across one that has the power to change the trajectory of your life and protect that which is most precious to you: your child. As a mother who buried her son a year ago, a decorated Captain in the Marine Corp who began wrestling and football at the age of 7 and continued to play at a D1 collegiate level, my tears and broken heart echo the raw plea at the close of the book.
Doug Zegel
StopCTE.org
Bruce Parkman just did the human race a huge favor. This book tells the tragic story of Mac Parkman, followed by an inspired summary of the development of the most intricate organ known to man…the human brain. This book is a “must read” for every parent, grandparent, every school board member, every athletic director, trainer, counselor, mental health professional, law maker, or just plain everyone who has a stake in the human race and the order of our society. Like the Parkmans, we learned in the most difficult way imaginable that the human brain is much more fragile than we ever knew. Now YOU can know. Because your child’s future is only as good as the health of his brain.
Carmine Cassara
As a trainer of young athletes for different sporting activities, I have only concentrated on preparing them physically. After reading this book I am able to have informed conversations with parents on their child's preparation for their sport of choice. I encourage all parents to read this book to educate themselves on the seriousness of this topic. If we are able to have conversations with informed parents who understand the effects of sub-concussive trauma on young athletes, I believe our children can compete safely and reap the benefits of sports.