The Lived Experiences of Retired Collegiate Athletes With a History of 1 or More Concussions

CONTEXT: Concussions remain misunderstood, underreported, and undiagnosed. Although most concussion symptoms resolve within 2 weeks, some patients experience persistent symptoms that adversely affect physical, emotional, social, or cognitive functioning or a combination of these. Minimal evidence delineating the effect of concussions on recently retired collegiate athletes currently exists. OBJECTIVE: To examine the lived experiences of retired collegiate athletes with a history of 1 or more concussions to discern individual concussion histories, knowledge and perceptions of concussions, and postconcussion quality of life. DESIGN: Qualitative study. SETTING: Telephone interviews. PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS: Former National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I athletes (n = 14) with a history of 1 or more concussions and retired from 1 to 5 years. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Fourteen semistructured telephone interviews (8 men and 6 women) were audiotaped. Interviews were transcribed and inductively analyzed by 3 athletic trainers with 34 combined years of professional experience. Themes were negotiated through consensual review. Participant checks were completed to ensure trustworthiness of the findings. RESULTS: Participants sustained their first concussion during adolescence and often experienced difficulties transitioning back into the postconcussion academic environment. Judgments of injury severity were clearly evident in participants' knowledge and perceptions of concussions. Participants experienced an array of emotional, physical, cognitive, and social challenges during the immediate postconcussion period but did not feel their concussion history decreased their current quality of life. CONCLUSIONS: Adolescent exposure to concussions is of concern due to the risk imposed on the developing brain and the potential for adverse outcomes later in life. Although a graduated return to play is heavily emphasized in concussion management, researchers need to investigate barriers inhibiting the implementation of return-to-learn protocols. Concussion education should aim to modify indifferent attitudes toward concussive injuries. Additionally, investigators should continue to assess how a history of concussion affects quality of life in recently retired collegiate athletes.