Concussion & Problems Visualizing

Hi guys,

I play a lot of correspondence because it gives me time to think about moves I'm unsure of. I have difficulty visualizing the board. OTB or in timed matches I make a lot of blunders. Forget about bullet or blitz.

I had a concussion and while it wasn't super bad, I feel it had some minor impact on the problems I already faced.

I've been doing the Chess Knight exercise, and doing my best to push myself to think about these things.

Does anyone have any ideas about this? For instance, in my mind, it is difficult to track more than 3 moves ahead. Really difficult. I was able to, before, think about ~5 moves ahead. Even with 3, I often muck the board state up and end up blundering due to square color positions (e.g. where a knight is attacking or what a bishop is capable of doing.)

 

Thanks.

Have you seen a neurologist? Maybe they can give you some exercises that would help--not just chess related but in general.  

Chess was his suggestion, heh. I suppose that's why I'm asking for a way to perhaps accelerate things. It was not TBI-level, so he's been conservative in his approach. He doesn't think it's anything I won't recover fully from, but encouraged chess knowing I had an interest in it. Wanted to keep me from being discouraged.

 

Maybe what I am doing is enough, then? It's frustrating sometimes, though.

Ah okay, well I guess if a doctor was going to prescribe me chess I would be pretty happy.  But yeah I wish I had more to offer. Maybe someone else will see the thread who has some relevant knowledge.  If the neurologist thinks it's temporary it probably will get better as you keep playing.  Tactics Trainer helps you to work on your calculation (but I like to turn off the timer and try to force myself to calculate the whole problem first; otherwise, you end up making one move at a time and it doesn't challenege the brain as much). 

A guy named Manju has a couple of good videos on YouTube concerning visualization. He reads five moves in notation, then makes those moves on the board. Then another five and so on.

It might help to play through games in this manner.

Give yourself time heh.

I haven't had a concussion, but one thing I like to do when I feel like my visualization is getting bad is to set up a board and get a game score. After about 10 moves into the game I read the next 1 or 2 moves (not too many). Then I look at the board and try to clearly see the future position. I consciously note:

Which pieces are gone? Which files are opened? Which squares were undefended? Which are newly attacked?

After I feel like I can see it clearly, then I move the pieces and compare the board with my mental image to see what I might have missed. I feel like this comparison is important. Sometimes it's something simple like I forgot a file was opened up after a pawn exchange.

Then I do it with 3 or 4 moves, etc.

Even for me, who hasn't had a concussion, and I can see a good number of moves ahead, I start small. One reason is that once you can see 2 or 3 moves ahead and have a clear idea of that future position, you can use that as a stepping stone to see another 1, 2, or 3 moves.

So this is another exercise. See 2 moves ahead, essentially memorize that position, then try to go another 2. Now with a total of 4 move the pieces on the board and compare to the image in your head.

I stumbled across this because I had a concussion recently and have experienced some similar issues. In my case I seem to get headaches when I stretch my ‘visualization muscles.’  It seems to be getting better as weeks go by but it is still frustrating to get physical pain from my favorite pastime. The doc says it could last months but expects a full recovery.

I realize this thread is old but I am curious if you felt your chess recovered fully? How long did it take? I am about 6 weeks out.

If I get no response, I’ll post my own recovery story here for the next poor guy or gal with a concussion who is worried about their chess and finds this in outyears.

 

 

Based on your description of your symptoms, I would estimate that 95% of us have had the same concussion.  

I am confused by this statement. Are you being facetious about the common challenges of chess visualization? Or are you saying that 95% of us have experienced a diagnosed concussion that led to weeks or months of augmented chess skill?

 

If the former, troll points awarded.

If the latter, false.

 

I wouldn't say he was being a troll.  I think he's just saying it's not easy to visualize.

Yes of course.

He said "in my mind, it is difficult to track more than 3 moves ahead. Really difficult."

That is not unusual at all, is it?

I find in Chess  many things can trigger a bad spell of form, that are purely psychological in nature.  I was completely knocked out as a kid and was temporarily blind after coming to.  It took me a few months to recover.  Based on xray and mri I have no permanent brain injury.

Recently I was on antidepressants that caused drowsiness.  They very much affected my Chess.

Now i am coming off them, I find I can concentrate a lot better after cardiovascular exercise.  Especially at faster time controls physical fitness in general is important.  If I am able to exercise regularly I find blitz and bullet a lot easier, also to a lesser but still significant effect, Rapid.

Fair point but he referenced 3 moves compared to 5 before. Troll was too strong of a term. Sorry for that. I would delete if it weren't quoted.

In my case, I get lasting headaches that rule out chess for the rest of the day if I try too hard. It's a real bummer because trying hard is my greatest strength in chess. Hey, if I naturally try hard, can I call myself a natural chess player? :-P

I have the same problem!!

The worst thing for a chess player.

The best thing you can do is to solve tactics. Train with a book with 1000 exercises. You don’t have to thing very long to solve a complex exercise, for example a combination with four or move moves using an idea that you didn’t see before. You try to calculate something, and if you don’t get the right move you look at the solution.

Now you begin the proper training. You see the whole combination move by move, and you have to understand these moves, of course. Then you go again through the whole combination from the starting position. If you failed to do this, see the solution again and try to visualise again.

You should do this until you can see the end position in your mind. Let’s say in the end position a knight is giving checkmate. You should be able to tell exactly why the opponent king played can’t scape.

With such exercises you will be not only be able to improve your tactical skills dramatically, but to a certain extend also your ability to calculate and visualise.

If you play Daily Chess as I do, using the analysis board instead of calculation, you will stagnate concerning visualisation. You have to train this specifically.

I recommend you to train using spaced repetition to make sure that you learn in a systematic and efficient way. You can do this with the book 1001 Chess Exercises for Beginners, available in Chessable.
Good luck!