Five Pillars To Conquer Injury
While injury treatment may be clinically straightforward, mental twists and turns along the way are insidious obstacles and sometimes the biggest threats to a full recovery. A well-stocked toolkit of useful approaches, habits and mantras can enable the best chance at a great rebound, and the cleanest shot at some peace of mind along the way. The following tenets prioritize your inner dialogue as you dig into the journey — give yourself the gift of a solid foundation and honor your mind.
REST
Any good plan involves phases of recovery, many times beginning with rest. This can be one of the most challenging phases, especially for an active individual.
Your usual endorphin boost from a run is gone. The rush you get playing pickup basketball isn’t there. The invigorating crisp air from the evening stroll is out of reach. The absence of these positive inputs can cause your neuropathways and reward centers to go haywire. It’s essential to create a new narrative that allows you to feel good each day. Reframing the concept of rest as performance-based (and not laziness) is a shift being recognized by many top industries, and something already implemented by elite performers.
If the idea of rest drives you up the wall, consider LeBron James’ commitment to 12 hours of sleep. Consider Rafael Nadal dropping out of Wimbledon to treat an abdomen injury. Could these elite athletes push through pain and fatigue? Absolutely. Would they continue to be the best in the world and have sustainable professional lives? Likely not. Giving our amazing bodies the chance to recuperate is a crucial step along the way that cannot be skipped.
Feeling antsy or cooped up while initially staying stationary makes complete sense. Your body and in particular your brain are not getting the same feedback and activity that many times are the best part of the day. Focus here on your brain. As you put that foot up or get used to a sling, there is no equivalent alternative to the stimulation you are used to getting, so don’t try and find one. Pivot instead of resisting the moment. Perhaps you can’t achieve the same pulse rate, but finding invigoration from a different source is essential. You may fill your competitive spirit by digging into work. You may take this chance to finally read that book. Anything that can help focus your attention and mind is a welcome ally here.
2. CRAFT A PLAN
Hitting targets takes individualization, clarity and consistency.
Beginning with the correct diagnosis calibrates any approach, and is critical to successful outcomes. While crafting a plan, starting with outside help can mean consulting a doctor or synthesizing information available from trustworthy sources like healthline.com. Paralysis by analysis is a real trap here, so after you have a confident grasp on your situation, quiet the noise of constant information and dig into the groove of moving forward.
Choosing a detailed plan and sticking to it is the name of the game. On a day when nothing feels possible, when there is no visible hope, having a structure in place can save you. Even if you say out loud, “This is pointless and I’ll never be the same” before doing your calf raises, you do your calf raises. Having a carefully compiled schedule of things to do takes away the element of choice and removes the draining mental strain of uncertainty.
Making a commitment to a plan is making a commitment to yourself. Your brain will perform all sorts of mental gymnastics to rationalize deviation and amendment: Don’t blame it, but don’t let it win. Your current competition is sticking to the program. Checking the day of the week and the corresponding stretch or massage puts a target in your crosshairs. Even if it’s done from a place of darkness, it’s done. Your plan will save you when your mind becomes an adversary.
3. EMBRACE EMOTION
Setbacks are a normal part of the process.
True belief in this statement may be the secret sauce to almost everything in life. Put differently, success is non-linear. The realization that you aren’t healing as fast as you thought you would can be staggering. A random tweak when you get up for a drink of water can send the world spinning. The pure boredom or despair that comes with monotony can be crippling. Those feelings do not last forever – nothing does, but they are real and deserve respect.
When emotions hit, and they will, it may be tempting to fight back. After all, when you feel a burn in your quad while rocketing up the stairs, you might usually crack a smile and turn it up a notch. Emotions are more than sensations – they carry a lot of weight and information, and are central to the human experience. Emotions also play a massive role in dictating behavior. You have no say in whether or not they come up. You do have a say in how you process them.
Scream underwater. Write down what you’re thinking. Admit that you’re scared. Be honest with yourself about what you are scared of. Once you name something, it is no longer an enigmatic force to be defeated. It is a real consequence of a real situation and will pass like everything else. Consider a metaphor: If you are a dam and have consistent channels through which to let the emotions (water) flow through you, you can stand strong through any storm. If you fight to keep everything closed off and don’t let anything through, cracks form and the structure may crumble. Even if it doesn’t break, the surrounding environment (work, relationships) will suffer.
Open the floodgates.
4. SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCE
Much as naming something takes away its power, sharing your story takes away isolation.
Gritting through hard times may get you to a goal, and tenacity can be a torch in the dark. Don’t forget that there are other torches in the dark that you don’t have to carry. Just look up. Telling a friend or colleague what you are dealing with can release some pressure, regardless of their response. Expressing yourself is fantastic. Expressing yourself and being heard can be transformational.
Connection is critical, especially when your usual tools in life are taken away. Exercise and sports can be a huge pillar upon which mental health and well-being rest for many active people. When that is taken away, connection to other people can fill a void and even light a path forward. Chances are someone else has gone through a similar injury. Maybe you can even inspire someone else with your story and experience.
One of the most magical things about sharing your story is that you don’t know what will come from giving that gift. You may get nothing. You may feel better just to have it out there. Better yet you might create an honest emotional connection with someone who recognizes real vulnerability and struggle. It’s worth a shot and is low risk, highest reward.
5. ACKNOWLEDGE MILESTONES
Finally, give yourself some credit! It might feel funny to throw a party because you went up a flight of stairs, but who doesn’t want a cause to celebrate?
Don’t compare yourself to anyone else. Don’t compare yourself to your former self. Compare where you are at now as opposed to a different stage in your journey.
When you were first laid up or hindered by injury, it’s likely that you would have “given anything” to just to get up to go to the fridge. Now that you are comfortably walking, you might be lamenting the fact that you missed out on a race or don’t have the same exact strength in one leg as the other.
These emotions are valid, but when you compare them objectively to your state a couple of months prior, it can be immensely helpful and put some wind back in your sails. Recovering from an injury can be an arduous process, and it can also help you train yourself to be mentally stronger than ever before. Just as with any sports or fitness goal, falling in love with the process is what got you here — don’t abandon that mindset now. From putting a sock on to winning a triathlon and everything in between, the way you take care of your mind will dictate the way your body takes care of you.
