Volleyball and Concussion

                                    ISL hosted a two day volleyball tournament with CEESA schools.  We were     glad that we were hosting and that Thomas didn't have to miss out on traveling with the team (he traveled for soccer and robotics).  I don't remember much about the first day except that Thomas had fun despite ISL losing some games.

The 2nd day on the other hand, was more exciting.  Even before the games began, some of the boys on the team were playing outside, goofing around.  They were trying to do something that caused them to lose conscientiousness.  What?!?!  Anyway, we got a call from the Sergejs, the organizer of the sports teams and ASAs.  He said that Thomas hit his head pretty hard like he could possibly have a concussion and that he wasn't feeling well and wouldn't be able to play now.  I thought maybe Sergejs was overreacting a little (Latvians are more conservative on health issues), so I got Bri and the girls in the car and headed over after we got dressed.  That seemed like an eternity to Thomas who was in a lot of pain.  When I walked to him sitting on the couch with the nurse, she said that he had a really bad headache and that I needed to take him to the doctor right away.  Again, I thought she was overreacting because Thomas has hit his head before and had a concussion when we lived in Alpine.  But when I looked more closely at him, I could see how much pain he was in and how pale he was, so we hurried out of the school.  Right as we get outside, he walked quickly over to some nearby bushes and started throwing up.  This I knew was not good.  He threw up two more times in the bushes before we could get him to the car.  We drove home and layed him on the couch while we made some calls to the embassy med staff to get their advice on where to go for treatment.  They were wonderful to help us and Lana, a local doctor, said that she would meet us there because she was on duty anyway.  Briant and I left the girls and home, and left with Thomas.

The grounds of the hospital and surrounding buildings were from the Soviet Union days.  Here's the map we saw when we entered the grounds where the hospital was.  I've been to a few other "campuses" for testing and stuff, and have always found it confusing to find the building you need for your specific issue.  Luckily it didn't take long to find the ER. Here's the walk up to the E.R.

This was our first time in a Latvian ER.  We had no idea what to expect.  The wheelchair wasn't much to write home about, nor the facility.  But we had a great experience with the staff who for the most part, spoke enough English that we could understand and communicate.  The wait time to get in was fairly short as well--I think only about 30 minutes or so. Thomas' head was in a lot of pain.  He looked so pale and ready to throw up.  We were relieved when he stopped throwing up after a few hours.  We were lucky enough to have Lana, from the med unit at the embassy, working at the hospital that day.  So she stopped in, spoke with doctors, talked about treatment, etc. to make sure they were on the right track.  They got Thomas in for a brain scan pretty quick to make sure there wasn't any hemorrhaging or any fracture of his skull, so we were relieved to get the results back to learn that no major damage was done.  We spent 5+ hours at the hospital as Thomas rested and was given fluids and meds through an IV.  His head started feeling better and he stopped vomiting.

It was nice to see a smile back on his face and have him start to feel better.  The doctors wanted him to stay overnight, but we didn't see a reason to if he could rest at home and he didn't need anymore meds.  When I asked how we were supposed to check out of the hospital and pay our bill, they said that we already had when we arrived.  It was true, I had registered Thomas and payed 65 euros, but I thought that was like a copay.  I expected a much higher price tag with just the fact that he took up a hospital bed for hours, had a brain scan, had an IV and meds, and had regular ER doctors look over him as well as a neurologist.  My experience with socialized medicine so far has been wonderful!  :)

We purchased a neck brace on the way home as suggested by the doctors to help stabilize Thomas' neck because of pain he had from the fall and hitting his head, and it helped remind him to take it easy.  He wore it for a few days and then was done.  ;)  It was hard for him, but the doctor told him to refrain from watching t.v., being on computers, and participating in P.E. or sports for 2-3 weeks.  He made it a few days without the technology and 2 weeks without the sports.  It was a hard few days for a kid that loves his computer games and videos and a long two weeks for a kid that's used to being active and loves sports!  We hoped that was enough for a full recovery!  Glad our boy is ok!