I'm at risk of becoming one of the "wear a hat" brigade

PucciNPoni

PucciNPoni

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I will try to make this brief as possible. Found out last night that my 58 year old aunt in the US, who doesn't own a riding hat, and frequently rides hot horses got a serious head injury and had emergency brain surgery.

She was working on the ground in the stables and got head butted or somehow hit her head. She felt unwell for over a week, her speech wasn't right but family thought it was because she was taking massive pain killers that were making her loopy. Finally after a week of badgering, or maybe because the pain was too great, she went to the doctors. Unknown to anyone else as to why, she went to a random doctor rather than her own local one. They urged her to immediately go to the hospital - but then they phoned my uncle to say that she needed to go to hospital asap. They were concerned she wouldn't or that she shouldn't even be driving her car. He rang her then and she said she was going to hospital - but was lost (!) in an area that she should know. She arrived to the local hospital, which then had her airlifted to a bigger one to operate! By the time she got there, she didn't know who she was.

Sounds like she'll be okay, but the doctors think that the knock on the head earlier in the week aggravated a previous injury (she fell off on Christmas day on to frozen ground and whacked her head then - all seemed okay at the time and she was complaining more of back pain). So even if you think that the injury at the time doesn't seem so bad, it could be a ticking time bomb! She is looking at speech therapy and won't know what her motor skills functioning will be like yet.

Now there are lots of things that could have and should have happened and I don't want to start a debate over whether or not everyone else should wear a hat. But I will try to encourage her to start wearing one!

I just hope she gets better, and from I understand, this could be a bit of effort to get her well again.
 
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Thanks Booboos. It's quite stressful for the family - I've always been firmly in the camp of "it's your head, do as you wish" but I'm not so sure anymore.
 
I hope your aunt continues to improve . I am now a member of the always wear a hat club my OH squeezed a promise out of me a few years ago . A couple of years later I had a nasty fall and my head was cannoned into the corner of a square post on the school fence my hat was badly damaged I had a wedge shaped dint in my head for a while but I am ok lesson learned I always wear a hat now.
Now and again I take my patey out of its box and give it a stoke the put it away.
 
PucciNPoni said:
Thanks Booboos. It's quite stressful for the family - I've always been firmly in the camp of "it's your head, do as you wish" but I'm not so sure anymore.
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Yes, I've had a serious head injury. I've seen what it put my Mother and sister through, in particular, and three years on I'm still not 'right' and live in constant pain, so I am well and truly in the wear a hat camp.

I hope your aunt makes a speedy and full recovery. Thoughts to her and your family at this worrying time.
 
Thanks guys, it's a bit of a relief to know that she managed to get thru her op okay but *really* worrying that she was driving herself about in that condition!

Goldenstar and Puppy - am glad to know that you have recovered, but it's rather sobering to know that you've had some long term effects.
 
What a horrible time for you all, I hope your aunt recovers asap.

Having had a huge bang on my head last year while wearing a hat (if I hadn't have been I wouldn't have been here according to the nice man at Gatehouse who examined it) I fully support the wearing of hats. I am also a little surprised having had a crashing fall down my stairs at home last week how it affected my head even though I didn't bang it, the blurred vision made a reappearance and I certainly didn't feel myself for days. Our brains are precious and fragile, they need as much protection as we can give them.
 
alwaysbroke said:
Our brains are precious and fragile, they need as much protection as we can give them.
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^^^ This. I ALWAYS wear my hat now but I did used to go without and do silly things when I was younger and thought I was indestructible :rolleyes:

OP I hope your Aunt recovers quickly x
 
Glad it looks like your aunt is going to be okay. Scary stuff.

The problem with head injuries is they can be cumulative. Not just in the way your aunt's was, with two close together compounding the damage, but once you've had significant damage to your brain - even if you are not obviously permanently impaired - you are much more likely to see ill effects from a second bump, even a minor one.

I've had two similar crashes - wearing a hat although one was when I was a child so not much of a helmet - and now have what amounts to a 'glass temple'. Even very minor taps make my head spin.

I think it's starting to be immaterial whether people approve on a personal level or not - the culture is clearly shifting pro-hat. It will take a generation or two but I would say even now, going hatless is no longer a sign that you're cool or a good rider.
 
I do hope she makes a speedy and full recovery, and I send all my best HHO vibes to her, you and your family for it.

Having seen my daughter crash and burn at Portman last season, cracking her HS1 in half and walking away with some mild concussion I am even more evangelical about hat wearing. I have been known to get quite heated over the 'my head, my problem' brigade and its not cool or clever either.

For example, we all pay tax and NI, these payments contribute towards the NHS, who the poor soul who hurts their head after a non hat wearing accident will gratefully turn. On top of that, what about the poor family? As Kerilli has been known to say - do they want to change your nappy for the rest of your life. I will get off my soapbox now, but I do get so annoyed about the whole issue.

Once again, I hope she gets well soon.
 
Hope she's ok.

I used to be a bit of a non hat wearer, but I changed that last year when I had youngsters to bring on. However in December I had a nasty fall off my big WB it was a freak accident. I was wearing a hat a Uvex but I ended up with a very nasty bump to the head.
I've not been 100% myself since I'm suffering with mood swings & depression something I didn't realise a bang to the head could do.

But I have bought myself a PROtector hat as if I'm wearing a hat I really do want something that has the best safety rating possible. The Uvex did save my life but it isn't substanstial enough, I do feel that I wouldn't of suffered anywhere near as bad a head injury if I had of been wearing the PROtector instead. But lesson learned & I'm ok.
 
i hope your aunt makes a full recovery and thoughts to all the family and friends she is going to need to help her


its surprising how easy accidents can happen ,i had quite an argument with a bhs instructor about wearing a hat while clipping (it wasn't thought necessary) i always wear a hat when clipping even though my two are 100% to clip

a friend of mine was helping clip another friends horse and the horse lashed out and slung her against the stable wall ,she hit her head on the wall and was knocked out and air lifted to hospital
she has made a good recovery but has been left with a chemical imbalance in her brain which has left her with bouts of serious depresion :(

the horse was unpradictable to clip so they should have all been careful but it is thought that he did get an electric shock from the clippers as a fault was later found so even a quiet horse may have had this reaction
 
angelish said:
its surprising how easy accidents can happen ,i had quite an argument with a bhs instructor about wearing a hat while clipping (it wasn't thought necessary) i always wear a hat when clipping even though my two are 100% to clip
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I let people feel the dent in my skull if they are undecided about wearing hats for clipping :rolleyes: :D
 
Thanks everyone. It's really scary reading some of your stories, but it's important that people know how serious it is. I don't ride without a hat, but I never wore one (or even owned one) when I rode back in the US.

Her birthday is coming up in June, I'm thinking of getting family to club together to get her a good hat -- but want something with a bit of bling to maybe encourage her to wear it ;) Knowing her though, she'd probably tell me where to go stick it. :eek:

She's been around horses all her life, she rides and drives. She keeps stallions. She never thinks twice about the handling of any of them and at 58 takes a fair share of tumbles out riding, and just climbs back on. I just hope she won't be so stubborn and take some advice about wearing a hat in the future. I've always looked up to her and I would just like her to be around a bit longer :)
 
I sincerely hope she makes a full recovery.
A lot of good points have already been made. I really hope TarrSteps is right and the tide is turning. Courtney King-Dye's very high-profile injury, and even Valegro's vertical stunt at the prize giving last week, show that even the very best in the world can be caught out, or nearly caught out, let alone the rest of us.
I put a hat on automatically now for clipping, for leading a horse that has been on box rest for a while, for loading youngsters or horses I don't know - any situation where I think things might go pear-shaped. Now when I get a good buffet on the head in those situations I just laugh... ;) ;)
big vibes to your aunt and your family.
 
I hope you're right about the tide turning. I spoke to my cousin yesterday and we talked about hat wearing and it creeping in to some of the non-traditional places for hat use. The style of riding they (my cousin and aunt) do is Saddleseat - and I can't think of a type of horse more prone to spooking and dumping a rider than a hot park type horse (flat saddle, nothing to hang on to, no knee roll or cantle, hackney gait, and loaded like a stick of dynamite). But she told me that they're just starting to see people riding at shows forgoing their toppers and derbys for hard hats to wear with their saddlesuits.

I must admit, I don't wear my hat beyond riding (and tacking up, but that's just more to keep the hat off the floor). However, I possibly would do if I handled other people's horses, did clipping etc, but I don't and it's probably not good enough - but there it is. I'm very conciously safety minded about things like hacking out in high vis ... so I guess I should maybe think more about wearing my hat when helping anyone clip or whatever.
 
PucciNPoni - Wishing your Aunt a speedy recovery!

I really wish the "its my choice not to wear a hat" brigade would take notice of threads like this!! It may be "their choice", but what about the choice of the friends and family who are left behind to pick up the pieces?!

Rhino - I never really thought about wearing a hat to clip before *doh!* but I will do so from now on!
 
Your aunt has been amazingly lucky! Hope she continues to improve.
My brother in law is a neurosurgeon and he says even what seems to be an insignificant tap on the head can have devastating consequences! Not equestrian, but Natasha Richardson is a case in point.
 
You are right about the consequences. Was talking to my mom last night who lives with my aunt - now my aunt is ornery at the best of times and just now while she's in the hospital she's fairly unbearable to speak to (was warned this might happen post head injury?) Sorry, don't mean to imply that head injured are unbearable, but like I said, my aunt, whom I adore, *is* ornery already. They're afraid to go in to her hospital room :eek: The update is that the speech is in good working order LOL (okay, great for my aunt, but maybe not so much for my uncle/cousin/mom who have been getting the sharp end of it). :rolleyes:
 
Should the NHS refuse to pay for people who have riding accidents whilst not wearing a hat? Or car accidents not wearing a seat belt?

Maybe controversial but it might have an effect.
 
A few years ago on my first week on a snowboard I stupidly didn't have a helmet. First day I landed with a crack on my head on the ice - catching an edge on a snowboard HURTS. That day was new years eve, so of course went out and got drunk. Next morning the world was spinning, and I thought it was just a combination of the drink and the altitude (staying in val thorens, highest ski resort in europe at 2300m). Took me a few days to realise I had concussion, but yet this didn't stop me going out everyday and attempting to snowboard and every day hitting my head again :o

I wear a helmet now, but being better at the game I rarely hit my head anymore - but its still worth it :)

Hope your aunt makes a full recovery. I admit, I don't wear a hat for stable duties though :) :o
 
Dotilas said:
Should the NHS refuse to pay for people who have riding accidents whilst not wearing a hat? Or car accidents not wearing a seat belt?

Maybe controversial but it might have an effect.
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Controversial big time, but I do sneakily agree with this sentiment, a little bit. However, where would it end? Does the NHS refuse to treat smokers,binge drinkers, drug adicts, the obese?

Or alternatively, make it law that you have to wear a riding hat every time you ride on the roads, just like you have to do on motorbikes.

Somehow I dont reckon it would happen.
 
TheoryX1 said:
Controversial big time, but I do sneakily agree with this sentiment, a little bit. However, where would it end? Does the NHS refuse to treat smokers,binge drinkers, drug adicts, the obese?

Or alternatively, make it law that you have to wear a riding hat every time you ride on the roads, just like you have to do on motorbikes.

Somehow I dont reckon it would happen.
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I think this is a very slippery slope. Those who do nothing more dangerous than sit on the sofa might be well justified in saying 'anyone who gets on a horse should pay for their treatment if they get injured'... we could say the same about those who enjoy mountaineering (they make eventers look positively sane, btw!), sky diving or any other dangerous sport.
 
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