Tavares Gooden must dim the lights

Tavares Gooden always wears a tinted visor on his helmet whenever he's on the field. And he always wears one of the ten pair of dark glasses he owns whenever he's off the field. But the linebacker isn't looking to make a fashion statement. He's trying to avoid the worst pain he's ever experienced.

"It hurts really bad. It feels like a headache, a super headache, basically one you don’t want to feel," Gooden explained. "It’s basically like your brain is splitting in half, that’s what it feels like, and for people who haven’t felt it, I wouldn’t wish it on anybody. It’s just an ongoing pain."

Gooden suffers from migraines. The debilitating headaches are a direct result of the four concussions he's suffered throughout his football career. They can hit any where at any time, so Gooden sports his sunglasses year round. But the four year veteran can be considered more fortunate than some migraine sufferers. He knows what triggers his -- light.

"It’s not me directly looking into the sun," Gooden said. "But say if I’m looking certain places, the light can catch me in certain spots in my eyes, and it can give me severe head trauma. So we limit that with the polarized, certain medication and the shield so that I won’t get those migraines any more."

The NFL is aware of Gooden's condition, and the 49ers medical staff and trainers work with him to help prevent a migraine's onset as much as possible. His last one came earlier this season during the Cincinnati game.

"It was real bright that day, real sunny," Gooden said. "And I caught a migraine in the locker room."

Gooden was able to control that episode with medication. More importantly, Gooden says he hasn't had a concussion since 2008. To help avoid that, he has changed his approach to practices.

"[I] Keep my head out of the play. Never run into anybody full speed except for the game. That’s the only time," Gooden said. "I try to limit my contacts because I know in a game, they used to call me ‘wild child’ so I’m going to run wild and I’m going to try to put my facemask in there, but what I’ve learned is to use my hands more, technique."

Gooden may no longer be a "wild child" but he is still a "riled child." He plays without fear of what could happen should his head take another big hit.

"I just go out there and go as hard as I can and if something happens then I’ll take a break," Gooden said. "But until something happens I just continue to grind it out. Continue to do what I do since I was ten years old. I think that’s what it is. It’s the passion of the game that keeps me going."



(csnbayarea.com)