There is a growing trend of professional athletes retiring from their sport due to chronic traumatic encephalopathy, including the 2014 NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers and pitcher Curt Schilling. The dangers of sports concussions have been known for decades, but some say it only became an issue with CTE in recent years. Sports leagues are still trying to figure out how best to handle players diagnosed with brain injuries during or after their playing career.
The “do i have cte quiz” is a quiz that allows people to see whether or not they have CTE. The test can be found on the web and on mobile devices.
Jim McMahon is frightened. The former Chicago Bears quarterback understands how fortunate he was, but he’s now dealing with the game’s dark side. According to a December investigation in The New York Times, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative brain illness linked to repetitive head trauma, was discovered in the brains of at least 315 former NFL players. McMahon is certain he has it.
CTE, or chronic traumatic encephalopathy, can only be diagnosed after death. Depression, violent behavior, memory loss, and suicidal thoughts are some of the symptoms. Dave Duerson, McMahon’s former colleague who died by himself in 2011, was diagnosed with it. Young football players Andre Waters and Junior Seau, as well as a number of others, committed suicide. CTE was discovered in all of them.
Memory loss and other symptoms associated to CTE have been reported by McMahon. “I know I have CTE,” the Super Bowl-winning quarterback said bluntly about the symptoms.
After their playing days, Jim McMahon has witnessed his old colleagues suffer.
During Super Bowl 20 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, on January 26, 1986, Jim McMahon of the Chicago Bears throws a ball over Dennis Owens of the New England Patriots. | Getty Images/Focus on Sport
In the NFL, McMahon’s style of play was unchangeable. He was a quarterback with the same toughness and tenacity as any other. McMahon absorbed the major knocks and, for the most part, he bounced back.
Sacks and takedowns seem to have caught up with the 62-year-old quarterback. McMahon has been diagnosed with early-onset dementia, according to a 2012 Sports Illustrated report. He’s struggled with memory loss, agonizing head pain, and suicidal thoughts.
He’s not on his own. Duerson accomplished precisely that in 2011. McMahon now has to watch former teammate Steve McMichael battle amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, often known as Lou Gehrig’s illness, in a wheelchair. Ex-NFL players diagnosed with ALS have been confirmed on autopsy to exhibit a kind of CTE, according to NWI.com.
In an August interview with NewsNation’s Rich McHugh, McMahon noted, “A lot of these men are suffering.” “One of my teammates, Steve McMichael, in particular, is one of the largest, strongest players in NFL history. He’s now in a wheelchair and gets about by blowing through a tube. He is unable to move his arms or legs. He has ALS.”
Jim McMahon admits to having CTE.
And then ten years later in November of 1986, the cheapest of all cheap shots. Charles Martin of the Packers body-slams Jim McMahon about 5 minutes after he threw the ball. McMahon missed the rest of the season. Martin was suspended for TWO games. Today, he’d be gone for a year. pic.twitter.com/jziYypzZ9N
— Funhouse (@BackAftaThis) September 8, 2018
While McMahon can’t be formally diagnosed while he’s still alive, he believes he has CTE.
McMahon told McHugh, “I know I have CTE.” “No one ever brought up the brain.” Everyone knows you’ll have poor knees and shoulders, but no one ever told you about your brain.
“The league was well aware of how harmful this game is to you. They understood what was going to happen to a lot of these men in the long run. We were not given that information.”
McMahon’s bodily pains are typical of someone who played in the NFL for 15 years and was constantly battered. He claims that his brain is the source of his problems.
“The hardest of my difficulties is my head,” he said. “I was losing my mind, full of negative ideas and excruciating headaches.” It’s not a pleasant sensation. You won’t know what to do if your brain begins to play tricks on you.”
He subsequently moved on to Duerson.
“I’ve had comrades commit suicide,” he said. “I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “I don’t understand how someone could take their own life like that.” However, I began to have those similar ideas after that. I wouldn’t be here if I had a gun because my brain aches so much that the only way to get rid of it is to kill myself. And thank God it didn’t come to that.”
McMahon has reaffirmed his claim that he had CTE.
“There’s no question in my mind that I have CTE.”
Jim McMahon, the legendary Chicago Bears quarterback, discusses the brain problems he and other former colleagues have suffered as a consequence of the game.
🗣️ “This is a violent game and your brain is not suspended by anything” pic.twitter.com/LQFVhVWW8g
— Off The Ball (@offtheball) February 10, 2022
McMahon said last month that he believes he has CTE. During a conversation with Off the Ball presenter Joe Malloy, he went into additional depth.
McHamon told Malloy, “There’s no question I’ve got it.” “Like I mentioned, the material had been laying there for years.” Your brain’s poisons are meant to be flushed out via your spinal cord. It’s like a cesspool when it’s simply sitting there, as a doctor stated to me. It just begins to eat away at the brain. That’s where CTE, holes in the brain, and other things like that come from.
“Obviously, I have it in some form.” As I previously said, I am able to function as long as I continue to get these therapies. I’m able to carry on a regular life. My long-term memory allows me to recall events from a long time ago. Those don’t appear to linger in my mind from a week ago.”
According to McMahon, the concussion protocol at the time was as simple as following a finger. You could get back into the game if you could accomplish it. He believes he had “three or four” confirmed concussions during his playing days, but he knows there were likely more, and he just brushed it off and returned to the game.
“This is a brutal game,” he said, “and your brain is not suspended by anything.” “If you have a collision, your brain will contact the side of your skull, and you will have some troubles.”
In the United States, dial 1-800-273-8255 to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Alternatively, text HOME to 741-741 to reach a certified crisis counselor via the Crisis Text Line, which is free.
RELATED: Jim McMahon Explains Why Bill Belichick Is His Enemy
The “symptoms of cte in adults” is a term that has been coined to describe the symptoms of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. Symptoms include confusion, memory loss, and depression.
Frequently Asked Questions
What if I think I have CTE?
A: I dont know what CTE means.
Do people know they have CTE?
A: Yes, people with CTE often experience symptoms such as depression, poor memory and inability to focus.
When do CTE symptoms start?
A: In some cases, symptoms may not appear for months or years after the exposure to radiation. On average, symptoms will show within two weeks of high exposures and five days in low-dose cases.
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