Hey jvh, I have faced a similar struggle in my life. I've been skateboarding since I was 9 years old, it was not only my first love and passion, but I was also talented, and sort of expected to make a career out if it. I only had one concussion in practice— another was just a freak accident in daily life, and my most recent concussion was in the workplace. The one at work really threw me on my *** for the long haul.

I have A HUGE desire, but no will to skate since my accident because like Mark said, I've discovered that losing my health ends up my family's burden as much as mine, and I don't have anyone else willing to support me. I'm not even positive my former employer's insurance is going to cover the damage they did to me…
If my family weren't taking care of me, I'd have ended up homeless, possibly dead, or who knows what. So it's something to think about, in the end it's up to you. Have you thought of ways to be involved with martial arts without being part of the hand-hand combat aspect?
For me it's no question, after reflecting for a while, I discovered I'd rather just be alive and be able to take care of myself than to be out skating and rolling the dice… And yes, once you've had a few head slams in your past, anything that puts your head at risk is a dice roll, and could result in permanent disability.

Many professional skateboarders accumulate a ton of head injuries over the course of their careers, and a number of them appear obviously brain damaged later in life. For them though, skateboarding is more than just a passion. It's an industry, and quite tribal. Even after retiring, they have their sponsors, their marketing, their fans, and their film archives to support them and keep them 'relevant' at least until their middle age. It's like having a music or acting career in that aspect.

For us nobodies though, it's a hugely different story and the stakes are much much higher. We have almost nothing to fall back on when our bodies or brains collapse. I've reached out and spoken to a number of former aspirants and amateurs, even one ex-pro who had to give up skating after serious injuries. That's just how it goes for most of us. But many of the people I reached out to stayed involved through art, photography, film, songwriting, writing essays/articles, and even novels about skateboarding. They are living full, enjoyable lives and never lost their love for skating by quitting the practice. So just remember, no matter what you choose to do, if martial arts touched you and shaped you as deeply as skateboarding did for me, giving up the practice won't erase that love from your heart. It's a part of you, and that's probably going to stick with you forever whether you're physically involved in it, or not.