Usual reaction of athletes to injuries and stages.

Some athletes believe that they are strong and that they can keep playing their sports through their injury. However, that is a part of injuries. It is called the denial stage. Those athletes need to understand that they can make the injury worse and that they should go see a doctor or an athletic trainer. There are many cases where athletes just end up making it worse because they think that they are fine. Athletes also tend to get angry because of everything and very intense. Sometime if the doctor says that they are out for 6 months at five they would say I’m fine now, there is no difference between one month and six months; when there actually is a huge difference. That is one of the many cases that are seen with injuries and athletes. Athletes need to learn how to control their anxiety because when the recovery process s almost over they tends to get reinjured because they think that they are already 100% when they are really not.

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What athletes don’t understand is that the recovery process is still training; just another type of training, so athletes need to still give 100% or more effort to the recovery process. They should give more effort than what they put to their usual trainings. Athletes tend to get frustrated during recovery process especially at the beginning. Many times in the beginning of recovery the conditions are critical, so the athletes feel frustrated that they wont ever get better. However that is just temporary.

An injury can be very emotional for athletes and depends on the mental strength how the athlete reacts to it. An athlete cannot control the moment when the injury happens, but it can control the way to react towards the injury. 

Personal Experience

 I have personal experience in injuries. I am going to share my story, so people can learn from it.

I am 16 years old and I play at the IMG soccer academy. This is my first year here, however, I only got to play one tournament. I am a sports addict, which means that I play every day and every hour. During September and beginning of November we were getting ready for our first showcase on November 17, 18 and 19. Nevertheless, to evaluate the team my coach did a friendly game the weekend before the tournament. That was November 13; that day I started the game and 15 minutes after a girl kicked my ankle and it twisted and I sprained it like on a level 2. However, I thought I was fine and I told my coach I could still play and I did that two other times during the same game. I would shoot the ball and it would hurt a lot, but I would always just fake smile and pretended I was all right. At a point of the game another girls kicked the same ankle and I couldn’t even step on it that time. 

The next day my ankle was very swelled up and my trainer said I had to go see a doctor. At that point I was already imagining the worse and frustrated. That same week I go to the doctor and I had an MRI done on both ankle; it turned out my ankles case was very severe because I had chronic sprains also, so I had many stretched and even tore ligaments that I almost had to get surgery, but I didn’t because my doctor said it would be fixed with 4 MONTHS of physical therapy. I was devastated because I didn’t only miss that showcase I also missed another showcase during winter break. However, I did my physical therapy the best I could. I was trying to be positive the whole time I have to admit that it was hard I cried and I thought would always say “why me?”. Four months after I have my doctor’s appointment to get cleared. February 141h I get cleared. I was the happiest person. I was not allowed to do a whole practice but at least I could do half of practice. I was determined to get better, stronger, much better and mentally stronger. I practices 15^th, 16^th, and 17^th, on the 18^th we had a showcase and I was only allowed to play for 10 minutes each half. I didn’t start, but he put me in the last 10 minutes of the first half and I when I went out second half I feel that I accomplished my goal. I played and nothing happened. Same thing the second half the last ten minutes and everything was fine. On the 19^th we were playing against a tough team. My coach put me in the last ten minutes of the first half and again everything was fine. However and started the second half, which I was not supposed to but I was so anxious and my coach put me in that I kept playing. I was very determined to do very good that game and I did but only while it lasted. 11 minutes after the second half I am going to step to a ball and I twist my knee and I immediately fell on the field. I heard a “crack” but I thought I just overstretched my knee and that was it. I learned the lesson of the other game and I didn’t deny the pain I went out and sat in the bench. The pain went down for a little bit and I tried jogging on it but I couldn’t. After the game is over I could barely walk. The pain started growing and my knee got swelled up. All my teammates were freaking out, but no one would tell me what was going on. I started crying in our two hours drive back home and I was icing the whole time. I couldn’t sleep because of the pain and the next day I went to my trainer and as soon as she saw me her face was like looking at a ghost. She couldn’t believe it she knew what was going in on the first test that she did to my knee. She even asked me if I would get surgery here or somewhere else. She told me that I needed to see a doctor and that there was no way I was playing again in the showcase. When I went to the doctor he said it was more than only my ACL. He was 95% sure I tore my ACL, MCL and meniscus. I was devastated. I can’t even put in words everything I felt and I feel even today that I am in the recovery process.

 I ended up having surgery on March 8^th and it was my worse experience and also my first surgery. I couldn’t even be on crutches there was something special with I case that I had to be on a wheel chair for a week. I have to admit that this has been my biggest challenge and today is when I really understand how I am supposed to react to it. I have only gone once to practice since it happened and all I did was get depressed. I have to say that it has been really frustrated and it still is. The beginning is the hardest part. Learning how to walk all over again and also the long that the recovery is, from 6 to 8 months. I have cried so many times I cant even count them. It has been seven weeks and I still have a hard time getting through it, but I have to say that between my friends, family and coaches I have received a lot of support and they have encouraged me to keep my head up. I have learned a lot. I feel that I have gotten mentally strong and I know that I will go back to playing and that I will get stronger and better. I am doing my best to be positive. 

Satisfaction in overcoming and the decision of suffering.

The satisfaction that is felt after overcoming an adversity is indescribable. The harder the challenge is the better feeling the athlete gets after accomplishing it. The bigger the difficulty is the more recognized the athlete becomes after getting past it. As soon as an athlete gets back to his or her sport after an injury the energy and happiness in the athlete is hardly found in regular basis. Athletes after injuries go back to their sports more determined, stronger, faster and tougher.

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The pain of an injury is inevitable but suffering because an injury is optional. An injury is usually very painful and it takes time to heal. However, depends on the athlete if he wants to suffer or not because suffering is not the same as pain. If the athlete lets the injury mess his or her whole life; then he is going to suffer. Nevertheless, if the athlete learns how to live and take advantage of his injury it is only going to be pain.

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Obstacles from the past may be the doors to new beginnings.

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For some athletes an injury could help them in a good or positive way. It depends on how the athlete takes advantage of the time off in his sport. Maybe some of those injuries might become a gateway to new beginnings, new opportunities or new experiences. No one knows until the time comes or until it happens. However, it isn’t really about that; it is more about athletes thinking about the thousand times they have had a good time and laughed in their sport than in thinking about the day or moment of that injury that took them out of their sport for an amount of time. It is more looking at positive sides than negatives. Looking for support from others to because it is not easy to overcome an injury for athletes, especially mentally. Teammates could help if it is a team sport and if not normal friends could also give support. If an athlete is determined to get better and works hard to get better it will happen. Nevertheless, if an athlete is not determined to get better and it is thinking that he or she is never going to be the same he or she will eventually face some discomforts in the recovery process. It depends on how much the athlete wants it and how much effort the athlete puts into it. 

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Difficulties are meant to help to succeed not to stop the progress. Forget bout yesterday, about tomorrow and think on the present.

       

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An injury is definitely a difficulty for an athlete. However, the difficulty that creates on an athlete is meant to rouse that athlete after overcoming the difficulty not to discourage him or her. Athletes don’t need to be physically strong only. One of the most important characteristics of an athlete is the mental toughness. Being able to overcome the pressure, fear, challenges, etc.

A difficulty does not kill an athlete it makes him stronger. It makes the athlete value his sport more. It makes the athlete better. Injuries are obstacles that help with development, not obstacles that prevent development.

It is so important to overcome the past because no one is going to a better athlete if they keep thinking on the mistakes committed yesterday. An athlete needs to move forward no matter the size or type of mistake they committed. Athletes have to let the past go to be able to succeed in the present. For an athlete that had a bad performance one day to be able to have a good performance the next day the athlete has to stop thinking about the performance of yesterday and start thinking how the next performance will be better.

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Overcoming Injuries

For athletes getting knocked down could be the worse thing that could happen to them. The life of an athlete is sports and not being able to play your sport could be devastating. An athlete may feel useless when it comes to stop playing for a while because of an injury. The hardest part of overcoming an injury for athletes is the mental part more than the physical part. Athletes start having the doubts that of not knowing if they are going to be the same when they get back to their sports. If they are going to be out of shape, if they are going to be able to play again, if they are going to need surgery, how long are they out for. Fear that someone may take his or her spot. Many possibilities come to the mind of an athlete when injured. Sometimes it is a chronic injury. Sometimes it happens time and time again and what do you have to do? Get back up and keep moving forward.

What some athletes don’t understand is that an injury makes you better. An injury is a lifetime challenge for athletes. An injury is going to make athletes stronger. What makes a great athlete? Pushing forward when others would have given up. Injuries are only obstacles that strengthen you. Real athletes turn their personal struggles into helping others.  A real athlete does not give up because of an injury.