Why am I more likely to get another concussion if I've had one before?

If you have had a concussion, you are three to six times more likely to get another concussion, and part of the reason is because you have a glucose energy crisis in your brain. Your brain is more vulnerable to another injury when it's not quite running on full power. When this happens, your reflexes are slow, your reactions aren't quite as good and you don't think as well. If you go back out into a situation where you will have to make split-second decisions and are trying to perform athletically at a high level of your ability but you have some of these handicaps, you are more likely to get injured again. You can get better with time if you let the brain heal.
 
This content originally appeared online at UCLA Health.