OT: RIP Junior Seau

[sfsportsfan]

sad news. his mom's press conference is hard to watch.

 

[msgkings322]

sad news. his mom's press conference is hard to watch.

Suicide, right? Another post-traumatic (football career) stress casualty. It's very sad, agreed. It's one of the reasons football is my least favorite major sport.

 

[sfsportsfan]

yes, they're ruling it a suicide right now.

I'm having a good discussion on another board with someone. they're saying with all the player's suicides being linked to head injuries, Steve Young will be next. i disagree though. sure, the head injuries play a big role in it, but Young is still involved in the game. Seau went from dedicating 30+ years of his life to a game, to just have it mean nothing in the end. He wasnt getting offers for ESPN, or for coaching. being completely out of the game has to be crushing, especially to someone who retired once and came back.


i jus dont see how you can stop head injuries in the NFL.

 

[powerchord86]

Suicide, right? Another post-traumatic (football career) stress casualty. It's very sad, agreed. It's one of the reasons football is my least favorite major sport.

Agreed. It's shit like this that really makes me think football sucks.

Throw in all the NFL thugs and scandals and it's a damn circus/soap opera.

RIP Seau

 

[msgkings322]

yes, they're ruling it a suicide right now.

I'm having a good discussion on another board with someone. they're saying with all the player's suicides being linked to head injuries, Steve Young will be next. i disagree though. sure, the head injuries play a big role in it, but Young is still involved in the game. Seau went from dedicating 30+ years of his life to a game, to just have it mean nothing in the end. He wasnt getting offers for ESPN, or for coaching. being completely out of the game has to be crushing, especially to someone who retired once and came back.


i jus dont see how you can stop head injuries in the NFL.

You probably can't, ergo it turns me off. I don't like boxing or MMA either.

Young won't kill himself, for reasons you mention and also he doesn't seem to have the lingering debility others like Mike Webster, or Seau, or that Bears guy who shot himself in the chest so they could autopsy his brain did.

 

[MarcoPolo]

yes, they're ruling it a suicide right now.

I'm having a good discussion on another board with someone. they're saying with all the player's suicides being linked to head injuries, Steve Young will be next. i disagree though. sure, the head injuries play a big role in it, but Young is still involved in the game. Seau went from dedicating 30+ years of his life to a game, to just have it mean nothing in the end. He wasnt getting offers for ESPN, or for coaching. being completely out of the game has to be crushing, especially to someone who retired once and came back.

Also, Steve Young is religious. I don't want to bring up the right or wrong (correct or incorrect) of it - but a person who is spiritual and truly believes in a higher power has something to fall back on, to support him in times of difficulty. And Steve is married with several young children, which (probably) gives him support and inspiration.

I think there is a lot more to it than just "head injuries". Yes, a grave injury that ends your career or has life-limiting consequences can be very depressing. But those who have positive support can get past it (hopefully).

 

[gp956]

Also, Steve Young is religious. I don't want to bring up the right or wrong (correct or incorrect) of it - but a person who is spiritual and truly believes in a higher power has something to fall back on, to support him in times of difficulty. And Steve is married with several young children, which (probably) gives him support and inspiration.

I think there is a lot more to it than just "head injuries". Yes, a grave injury that ends your career or has life-limiting consequences can be very depressing. But those who have positive support can get past it (hopefully).

I don't think the depression noted in these cause is a pure psychological phenomena, but rather, is part of the injury process itself, which can take many years to manifest into overt symptoms. Consequently it's probably not something they can "get past," if I understand your meaning correctly. It's essentially a new "state of the world" for these individuals, i.e. living in a depressed state. But, yeah, your overall point is probably valid, i.e. having social connections should help these individuals deal with their new situation.

 

[sfsportsfan]

from what i heard on espn, Seau has young children too. its a very good point though. but i think you're downplaying what head injuries can do. look at Chris Benoit. too many blows to the head and he snapped and killed his family. they said when they did the autopsy that he had the brain of an 85 year old with dementia. it'll be interesting to see what they say about Seau's.