INJURY RECOVERY

Sooner or later we all get injured. I won’t water it down or sugar coat the fact that getting injured sucks! But the reality is, despite your current state of confusion, anger or doubt that you’ll ever play again you WILL. You will heal & you will play again. As is the case with anything else in life the outcome of your recovery is entirely up to you.

The mental aspect of injury recovery is HUGE! Your approach and attitude will greatly affect the new you that will emerge on the other side. If you take the victim route and ask “why me” or “how did this happen” your recovery will be a long hard road. You will become frustrated and demotivated to get better. There is a better way and it will lead to a better, faster, stronger more mentally tough you! It starts with you being willing to ask yourself, “What can I learn from this situation, how can I grow?” Here are a few suggestions to help you through the process.

Be Positive – A positive constructive attitude will do wonders for your recovery. When people ask how things are going be honest and positive about what you’re doing and how you’re progressing. Be positive about your therapy and workouts. Don’t let the injury define who you are or who you are becoming. This positive attitude will spill over and be a great strength when you are healthy and playing.

Be Proactive – So much of injury recovery is people doing things to you and the injured area to get you better. You sit in the training room getting iced, ultrasound, stretched etc. Use that time to your advantage and do some imagery of your injury healing. Imagine the tendons, cartilage, muscle or bones healing properly and correctly. Talk to the trainer, doctor and/or physical therapist about the healing process, get pics of a properly healed muscle, ankle, knee etc and use those images in your imagery.  Next, hang up a picture of yourself doing what you do. That is the ultimate goal, to get you back doing what you love and do best!

I helped an older woman who was an avid horse rider and trainer through her recovery after having both ankles replaced due to rheumatoid arthritis. She had been riddled with pain and decreased mobility for years.  As part of  her recovery plan I suggested she hang up or keep a picture of her riding her favorite horse to remind her that if she didn’t get up and do her exercises she wouldn’t ride. She also picked a date she would get back on the horse. She did it and is loving riding horses to this day. Your mind is very powerful so put it to use and be proactive about your healing.

Be Practicing – When athletes and other performers have completed their recovery regimen they are usually strong enough physically to play and in a lot of cases are even stronger than before the injury.  The area in which they are deficient is their mental state. They can be worried about getting injured again, concerned they are not strong enough or 100%, generally tentative about playing and just plain rusty. This is natural because they haven’t been playing but it doesn’t have to be the norm.

I worked with a basketball player back when I was getting my Masters who had injured his back and was unable to practice and play. I asked how things were coming along and found that he was discouraged and had a bad attitude about his rehab workouts due to the reasons I talked about above. I suggested he start being positive and proactive about what he could control then recommended he start practicing in his mind. Part of his rehab was to ride a stationary bike during practice. We decided that while he was riding the bike and watching practice he would imagine he was playing his position. Thinking about what he would do on defense, offense and what his roll was on each play. The next day after practice I asked him how it went. He got a big smile on his face and said it went really well. He was excited to do his exercises and get better so he could get back out there.

As you begin to follow these 3 guidelines to Be Positive, Be Proactive & Be Practicing you will find you have a new perspective of your injury and your situation. You will, like the basketball player & horse trainer, get excited about getting better and doing what you do again. Remember you are not your injury and you will get better! You will play, race, dance, fight, run, swim, jump or ride again!

Your dreams are waiting, don’t keep them waiting too long.

BE POSITIVE!     BE PROACTIVE!!    BE PRACTICING!!!