Mandy Oaklander | September 20, 2026

Recovering from a concussion can be tedious—and exacting. It can involve getting enough rest and easing your cognitive load (without letting screens fill your newfound free time) in order to let your brain heal.

That's a lot to expect from patients, especially when they’re kids. But Dr. Teena Shetty noticed that in her concussion clinic, a particular parenting style seemed linked to better outcomes for her young patients. In her new essay for TIME, Dr. Shetty reveals what approach seems to work best.

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The parenting style linked to better concussion recovery

By Dr. Teena Shetty

Malte Mueller—Getty Images

Concussions in children are alarmingly frequent, affecting over a million children in the U.S. each year. An estimated 50% of all concussions are undetected, unreported, and untreated.

As the founder and director of a concussion clinic in New York, I see my fair share of concerned parents who want to do everything they can to help their kids heal from concussion. It’s a good instinct: Early and active intervention with targeted therapies is critical. From years of caring for children and adolescents with concussion, my team and I wondered if the parents most involved in their children’s recovery—some might call them “helicopter parents”—could be a key part of navigating a serious medical problem which, left untreated, may have devastating consequences.

Our society has turned against helicopter parents, viewing them as unnecessarily controlling. But they are uniquely valuable as a temporary framework for healing. The treatment regimen for concussion involves drastic lifestyle changes surrounding their daily screen-time exposure, shifting circadian rhythms, intellectual stimulation, and the cognitive demands of school or work. Everything has to be turned down or dialed back, sometimes for weeks at a time. The brain heals gradually, and each lifestyle change removes a source of strain it would otherwise have to contend with while heeding a vigilant dietary and sleep schedule.

Read the full essay here.

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