1 By Mark Van Dompseler Where am I? Whose bed is this? Am I in jail? Where did these tattoos come from? What the hell s this thing down my throat? I want to go out for a smoke Gavin Edwards has no idea where he is, or why he is there. His vision comes into focus briefly and he sees his mom and dad, standing over him. Something about them being glad he s alive, that they didn t know if he was going to come to. It makes no sense. He passes out again. *** People who were at Ajax s Audley Recreation Centre on Saturday, June the 8 th, 2013 claim to have seen Edwards skateboarding around the new skate park, like many others who attended the grand opening that day. He was standing atop his skateboard when another rider collided with him at high speed. Edwards allegedly fell to the ground, and hit his head on the concrete. With blood rapidly pooling around him, he burst into seizure. He said that the friends he was with told him afterwards that a crowd had gathered around him in a circle, watching, unsure what to do until help came.
2 The ambulance arrives; the paramedics rush Gavin to the nearby Rouge Valley medical center. It doesn t take long for doctors there to determine his needs are more intensive. He s put on the next chopper to Toronto. *** When he regained momentary consciousness, Edwards was angry and confused. I remember coming to at one point, where I tried to pull out my breathing tube; that s when they put me into a coma, he says. Doctors at Sunnybrook Hospital in Toronto subsequently induced the 22- year old into a comatose state. Judging by the breathing tube incident, he was prone to possibly hurting himself. He remained unconscious for ten days before awakening. *** Within two or three days of working with a physiotherapist, he says he had regained most of his motor skills and his balance, and was able to walk on his own. He credits his astonishingly quick recovery time to the power of positive thinking. One guy I was stuck rooming with would just wheel around in circles in his wheelchair, constantly complaining about how he couldn t do this or that. I couldn t take that for too long; figured it wasn t helping me get better any faster.
3 However, Gavin is not sure if he is actually okay or not. This isn t the first time he s banged his head skateboarding. Approximately five months prior to the fall that sent him to the hospital, he had a seemingly minor fall at a skate park in Peterborough. Showing no obvious signs of concussion after a standard test, the hospital staff released him. They said I was fine, but I started having mood swings. I pulled into my driveway after work one night; had a can of Coke. Dropped it when I got out of my car, and I just started screaming and freaking out. My parents asked me why I was so angry, and I didn t know. It wasn t until after Gavin finished his rehabilitation that he started looking at traumatic brain injuries more closely. A document released by the Sun Life Financial Chair in Adolescent Mental Health, Understanding Brain Injury in Adolescence claims that only one in twenty individuals receive the needed rehabilitation. In other words, many people could be living with complications from a past brain injury which they believe is no longer a problem. Gavin thinks that brain injuries are not entirely understood, by both the medical and scientific community, as well as the general public. A general lack of knowledge about a subject, especially one that relates to the brain and mental health, is a recipe for stigmatization.
4 On the topic of safety gear, Gavin says that [Helmets] are demonized [within skateboard culture] If I was to go back to the skate park while wearing a helmet, everyone would laugh at me. People see a helmet, they think Oh, he doesn t know how to skateboard, when actually, a helmet has nothing to do with a person s skill level, he says. Skateboarders are not the only ones at risk for brain injuries, though. Recently, several NHL enforcers Wade Belak, for example - have committed suicide. All of them had sustained concussions at one point or another in their careers, some multiple times. Calls to crack down on hockey brawls were met with resistance from some diehard hockey fans, who see fighting as an integral part of the game. Another sport, which is fast gaining notoriety in relation to head trauma, is mixed martial arts. The most recent UFC matchup between Georges St- Pierre and Johny Hendricks resulted in a victory for St. Pierre, but landed him in the hospital after the fight. St. Pierre showed up to the press conference, but it was painfully obvious that he was suffering from some type of brain trauma. He forgot what round he was fighting, gave the same answers to the media s questions repeatedly, and seemed dazed. When Georges stated he was thinking of taking time off, the UFC s Dana White wasn t having any of it, and was clearly thinking about the success of his Ultimate Fighter franchise over the wellbeing of his champion fighter.
5 These are but a couple of telling examples of the public s perception about the seriousness of these types of injuries. Edwards thinks this might be because head injuries don t necessarily leave any visible markers, and often go unnoticed, much like mental health, which appears to be intricately linked to brain trauma. Because of this, many people suffer alone. Gavin says he battles bouts of depression and anxiety on a daily basis, but is able to cope, post- injury. Do stricter regulations need to be implemented when it comes to protecting people s heads? There are already fines in place for cyclists, but these rarely seem to be enforced. Many skate parks, like beaches without on- duty lifeguards, display warnings that state that individuals can use the facilities at their own risk. While helmets and other safety gear can certainly reduce the risk of head injuries, they are not a guaranteed lifesaver. Still, the reality that most people who engage in these activities are willing to forego safety measures in favour of adhering to the norms irks Edwards, but he knows he can t change people s behaviour. All he can do is relate his story to others, in the hopes that they will take extra care when skateboarding or doing any risky activities. Gavin s recovery continues to progress well, but he gets tired quickly and can t do as much as he used to. He s thinking of going back to school to finish his studies, but is waiting until he thinks he can handle the workload.
6 Asked if he still plans to continue skateboarding, Edwards says that his days of tricking off of ramps and grinding rails are likely over; trips to the store or leisurely rides are more what he has in mind. He says he ll never stop loving skateboarding, as he rolls back his sleeve to reveal the inked- on words: SKATE AND DESTROY.