I’m surprised there hasn’t been a thread about the NFL player who died on the field during MNF

[pinball]

And was resuscitated.

Damar Hamlin

I am loathe to link an article bc most people have their own preferred sources

😉

He communicated with his medical team (thru writing) when he first came out of med-induced coma and asked who won the game. 
 Last I heard, he was “neurologically intact” but still intubated

[sassenach]

There’s been a lot of talk amongst healthcare workers about the general public experiencing real CPR. Mostly in the vein of, wow, everyone finally sees how traumatic resuscitation is.  
 

It’s incredible that they assessed him quickly and started CPR right away. Top notch responders. 

Edited January 6, 2023 by sassenach

[Mrs Tiggywinkle Again]

Immediate, high quality CPR and early defibrillation if indicated are really the only things proven to have any effect on cardiac arrest and good outcomes.

Everything went right for this young man.  Buffalo is my home team so DH and I were watching when it happened, and both of us were convinced this would have a terrible outcome.

I hope it leads to public awareness of the important of CPR and having AEDs available for the public to use.

[Carrie12345]

Just saw that he had the tube removed, and I took it the wrong way as I was walking into the living room. Sounds like he’s got some phenomenal improvement going on!

[Carrie12345]

And yes to the CPR stuff. I didn’t realize how unfamiliar most people were. I’ve been taking classes since I was a kid, and Dh and dd have performed CPR on actual people many times. It’s awful, but can also be amazing.

 

[QueenCat]

Excellent on-field care and being taken to a top notch hospital are big factors in his recovery. 

 

[livetoread]

Football is modern day gladiator games where we pay people large amounts of money to sacrifice their bodies and mental abilities in front of us while we cheer. 

Yes, I know this particular incident was a rare, freak accident that can happen in any life situation where you run the risk of being hit in the chest. But pretty much everything else about the game is just watching people tear up their bodies and their minds every time they play.

 

[gardenmom5]

He's been removed from the ventilator and is breathing on his own.  He's speaking.

[Tenaj]

30 minutes ago, livetoread said:

Football is modern day gladiator games where we pay people large amounts of money to sacrifice their bodies and mental abilities in front of us while we cheer. 

Yes, I know this particular incident was a rare, freak accident that can happen in any life situation where you run the risk of being hit in the chest. But pretty much everything else about the game is just watching people tear up their bodies and their minds every time they play.

 

Except that gladiators were generally forced to fight . . .

[Tenaj]

I'm a long time Bengals fan who married into a family from Buffalo.  I was watching the game and am so thankful that Damar is having such improvement.  Absolutely agree with the decision made to cancel the game and so impressed with the support from everyone Damar and the Bills have received.

[Guest]

45 minutes ago, livetoread said:

Football is modern day gladiator games where we pay people large amounts of money to sacrifice their bodies and mental abilities in front of us while we cheer. 

Yes, I know this particular incident was a rare, freak accident that can happen in any life situation where you run the risk of being hit in the chest. But pretty much everything else about the game is just watching people tear up their bodies and their minds every time they play.

 

Yes. I read the book “Against Football” several years ago and it really struck a chord of truth for me. 
 

There was also a lot of discussion in that book about racism and the disproportionate exploitation of non-white athletes; I.e., “Here’s your golden ticket out! Just sign up to gamble your life and brains all season!” 

[sassenach]

54 minutes ago, livetoread said:

Football is modern day gladiator games where we pay people large amounts of money to sacrifice their bodies and mental abilities in front of us while we cheer. 

Yes, I know this particular incident was a rare, freak accident that can happen in any life situation where you run the risk of being hit in the chest. But pretty much everything else about the game is just watching people tear up their bodies and their minds every time they play.

 

 

6 minutes ago, Quill said:

Yes. I read the book “Against Football” several years ago and it really struck a chord of truth for me. 
 

There was also a lot of discussion in that book about racism and the disproportionate exploitation of non-white athletes; I.e., “Here’s your golden ticket out! Just sign up to gamble your life and brains all season!” 

IDK, I think you guys are missing the part where athletes enjoy being athletes. As the mom of an athlete, I think his passion is often dismissed as not having value. I find it a bit self-righteous to elevate pursuits of the mind and preservation of the body over what these men (and women) have chosen to do with their lives. They're not just lowly dummies being used and exploited by the system. They choose this life- often because they absolutely love it.

[BlsdMama]

1 hour ago, livetoread said:

Football is modern day gladiator games where we pay people large amounts of money to sacrifice their bodies and mental abilities in front of us while we cheer. 

Yes, I know this particular incident was a rare, freak accident that can happen in any life situation where you run the risk of being hit in the chest. But pretty much everything else about the game is just watching people tear up their bodies and their minds every time they play.

 

Couldn’t agree more. In general, with what we now know about TBI, I’m bottled that football is still popular. 

[BlsdMama]

8 minutes ago, sassenach said:

 

IDK, I think you guys are missing the part where athletes enjoy being athletes. As the mom of an athlete, I think his passion is often dismissed as not having value. I find it a bit self-righteous to elevate pursuits of the mind and preservation of the body over what these men (and women) have chosen to do with their lives. They're not just lowly dummies being used and exploited by the system. They choose this life- often because they absolutely love it.

I think athletics have incredible value. I think football where we know we’re sacrificing young men’s lives is barbaric. 

[Pawz4me]

13 minutes ago, sassenach said:

 

IDK, I think you guys are missing the part where athletes enjoy being athletes. As the mom of an athlete, I think his passion is often dismissed as not having value. I find it a bit self-righteous to elevate pursuits of the mind and preservation of the body over what these men (and women) have chosen to do with their lives. They're not just lowly dummies being used and exploited by the system. They choose this life- often because they absolutely love it.

Ditto. I know a retired NFL player (he has a Super Bowl ring) and a former MLB player. They both played because it was their passion. Neither came from disadvantaged backgrounds and both have ample IQ points.

[Carrie12345]

1 hour ago, sassenach said:

 

IDK, I think you guys are missing the part where athletes enjoy being athletes. As the mom of an athlete, I think his passion is often dismissed as not having value. I find it a bit self-righteous to elevate pursuits of the mind and preservation of the body over what these men (and women) have chosen to do with their lives. They're not just lowly dummies being used and exploited by the system. They choose this life- often because they absolutely love it.

There is no doubt in my mind that these athletes love it.
That doesn’t erase the exploitation or the science.  It does make it easier to ignore.

[Corraleno]

1 hour ago, sassenach said:

 

IDK, I think you guys are missing the part where athletes enjoy being athletes. As the mom of an athlete, I think his passion is often dismissed as not having value. I find it a bit self-righteous to elevate pursuits of the mind and preservation of the body over what these men (and women) have chosen to do with their lives. They're not just lowly dummies being used and exploited by the system. They choose this life- often because they absolutely love it.

I'm also the parent of an elite-level athlete, so I understand the passion for sport. But most sports do not require athletes to submit themselves to chronic, repetitive head trauma in order to compete. The average length of an NFL career is only 3.5 years; so many of these young men are sacrificing their future health for a brief payoff, while the owners, NFL, sponsors, and others make billions off them. American football is really not comparable to other sports like track or skating or baseball or whatever — injury is always a possibility in any sport, but when 300lb men hitting each other as hard as possible is celebrated, and people are being asked to intentionally damage their brains for the entertainment and profit of others, something is seriously wrong.

ETA: I feel the same way about boxing and MMA

Edited January 6, 2023 by Corraleno

[Bambam]

I'm glad the young man is improving.

The thing that struck me about this entire episode is that so many people cared, were concerned, followed news reports, shared posts of progress, etc.  It was a terrible thing to happen to him. 

But we had over 1M folks (in America) die of COVID, and so many refuse to take any precautions to protect anyone else - or even themselves.  Or maybe that is just in my corner of the world.  

And it just seems strange to see folks show such care and concern about someone they don't even know personally. It's good and maybe it has awoken some long dormant feelings of care/concern for others? 
 

Edited January 6, 2023 by Bambam

[QueenCat]

1 hour ago, Pawz4me said:

Ditto. I know a retired NFL player (he has a Super Bowl ring) and a former MLB player. They both played because it was their passion. Neither came from disadvantaged backgrounds and both have ample IQ points.

Yep! There is a former MLB player in my Rotary Club. He's an intelligent, successful business owner. Baseball is his passion.

[Kassia]

2 hours ago, BlsdMama said:

Couldn’t agree more. In general, with what we now know about TBI, I’m bottled that football is still popular. 

 

2 hours ago, BlsdMama said:

I think athletics have incredible value. I think football where we know we’re sacrificing young men’s lives is barbaric. 

 

1 hour ago, Corraleno said:

I'm also the parent of an elite-level athlete, so I understand the passion for sport. But most sports do not require athletes to submit themselves to chronic, repetitive head trauma in order to compete. The average length of an NFL career is only 3.5 years; so many of these young men are sacrificing their future health for a brief payoff, while the owners, NFL, sponsors, and others make billions off them. American football is really not comparable to other sports like track or skating or baseball or whatever — injury is always a possibility in any sport, but when 300lb men hitting each other as hard as possible is celebrated, and people are being asked to intentionally damage their brains for the entertainment and profit of others, something is seriously wrong.

ETA: I feel the same way about boxing and MMA

I agree with all of this.  

I had a dear friend who played football through college and ended up dying by suicide after suffering with mental health issues for many years due to multiple concussions.  He was an amazing man who made such a positive difference in so many lives.  Such a huge loss for him, his family, and the world.  

[livetoread]

People love doing all sorts of things that are bad for them. Throw a few million at them and they'd love doing it even more. But that doesn't mean we as a society should be cheering them on, IMO.

1 hour ago, Bambam said:

And it just seems strange to see folks show such care and concern about someone they don't even know personally. It's good and maybe it has awoken some long dormant feelings of care/concern for others? 

It's a very selective care. No one wants to see him die now but don't care if he kills himself years from now after no one is paying attention. They'd rather he keep entertaining them now and his mental health after he retires is his problem.

[Hilltopmom]

5 hours ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle Again said:

Immediate, high quality CPR and early defibrillation if indicated are really the only things proven to have any effect on cardiac arrest and good outcomes.

Everything went right for this young man.  Buffalo is my home team so DH and I were watching when it happened, and both of us were convinced this would have a terrible outcome.

I hope it leads to public awareness of the important of CPR and having AEDs available for the public to use.

My dh just took over as head of Safety at a new facility. They do not have AEDs and one of his first to-dos was to get them in and get his staff trained. He literally used this example with the big wigs this week (who are more likely to suffer a heart attack at work) for why they need them. They decided to proceed with ordering them and having everyone trained.

 

[Grace Hopper]

4 hours ago, Tenaj said:

Except that gladiators were generally forced to fight . . .

And we commoditize them. 

[Clarita]

4 hours ago, sassenach said:

IDK, I think you guys are missing the part where athletes enjoy being athletes. As the mom of an athlete, I think his passion is often dismissed as not having value. I find it a bit self-righteous to elevate pursuits of the mind and preservation of the body over what these men (and women) have chosen to do with their lives. They're not just lowly dummies being used and exploited by the system. They choose this life- often because they absolutely love it.

I don't think they are lowly dummies but I do believe some college athletes are being exploited by the system. Especially those who have a love and passion for the sport. I believe college athletes should be paid to play and make appearances for their sport. If colleges are going to charge admission and get TV money for it the players should get a piece of that money pie. The fact that they are not compensated (although I think there is some changes to that recently) is exploitation. 

[kbutton]

6 hours ago, sassenach said:

It’s incredible that they assessed him quickly and started CPR right away. Top notch responders. 

On site medical personnel...https://www.cleveland.com/bengals/2023/01/buffalo-safety-damar-hamiln-suffers-medical-emergency-during-first-quarter.html

Quote

UC Medical Center is contracted to have personnel at Bengals home games that include the EMS technicians with the ambulance, an emergency medicine physician with the visiting team, an airway physician onsite operating and neurologists related to the NFL’s concussion protocol policy.

 

31 minutes ago, Hilltopmom said:

My dh just took over as head of Safety at a new facility. They do not have AEDs and one of his first to-dos was to get them in and get his staff trained. He literally used this example with the big wigs this week (who are more likely to suffer a heart attack at work) for why they need them. They decided to proceed with ordering them and having everyone trained.

 

That's awesome!