First of all, I am so sorry your family is experiencing this. I know it is incredibly difficult for all of you. I'm so glad you found us here. There is a lot of good information and support here.

I can relate a lot to your son. I was also a person who was used to "pushing through," who wanted to push through, and who made things A LOT WORSE by pushing through. From that experience, I can say that your son is probably not in a good place to be making his own decisions about what he should and shouldn't be doing at this point. In the first place, his brain is damaged and he's not able to think clearly. In the second place, there is a lot of grief and emotion and denial about giving up normal life and the things that we love to do.

Because of this, I think that one of the best gifts you can give your son right now is to be firm but loving about taking charge of what he is and is not allowed to do, even if he is angry about it and protests (which I am sure he will).

And based on my experience, what he probably needs is PHYSICAL REST and BRAIN REST until he gets to a point where he is largely symptom free. This certainly means that he should not be playing football (or basketball or baseball or lacrosse or pretty much any other sport) at this time. It might also mean that he should be taking a complete rest from school for a while if it is causing him any symptoms at all. He also should almost certainly be avoiding television, movies, video games, texting, crowded places (stores, malls, restaurants), radio, texting, computer time, etc. Substances to avoid include caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol (the latter two of course should be a given at his age).

What would be good for him:
- excellent nutrition - Mark has some good pointers above though I differ with him on the animal proteins - I would suggest a plant-based whole foods diet high in omega-3, tryptophan, folate, calcium, and iron in addition to the B vitamins,
- very gentle exercise that does not induce symptoms (such as slow walking or chair yoga)
- water - he needs to stay well hydrated and should drink half his body weight in ounces daily (i.e. if he weighs 100 lbs he should drink 50 oz.). There is also some hydrotherapy you can do to increase blood flow to the brain -- PM me if you want more details about this.
- sunlight - sitting or walking outside in the sun during the day is excellent for the brain. He needs to get sunlight through the skin for vitamin D and through the eyes for melatonin production.
- fresh air - again, walking or sitting outdoors and breathing deeply is excellent. Sleep with the windows open at night if possible.
- rest - At least 8 hours of sleep per night (more if he needs it) and naps during the day if his body and brain demand it during the recovery phase.
- spiritual practice - connecting with whatever faith tradition you practice can be very important in keeping a positive outlook through prayer, meditation, etc. If you don't have an active faith connection, a small step is to practice gratitude by making a list of 3-5 things he is thankful for or appreciated that day.

Again, this is such a hard journey. Keep us posted with how you do. It won't all get better at once, but it does get better over time.