Injuries of any sort fail to be terribly enjoyable, but I would argue that they’re usually worse when you’re an athletic person, or, worse again, if the injury occurred while doing physical activity we love and appreciate.
Rugby is an escape for me, much like any sport is an escape for any athlete who plays it. It’s a mental and physical release, and I absolutely consider rugby to be something that benefits my mental and physical health.
I sustained a decent injury in the last game I played, and the days since have not been overly joyous. I can’t complain, because the injury could have been far worse, and that is what I continue to remind myself of. The mental impact of this injury, however, has been just as miserable as the physical impact, and a sports injury can be incredibly isolating in the sense that you’re not able to do much of anything, let alone the one thing that provided you with so much happiness.
It’s normal for negative thoughts to begin to develop once we find ourselves in a situation we do not wish to be in. I find myself questioning why this had to happen at all (although that’s an endless battle), why I went in for a tackle the way I did, whether or not this injury could have been avoided, only to discover I have zero answers and arguably never will.
A solid chunk of my independence is temporarily gone, and this is one of the hardest things to grapple with as a result of the injury. I can’t work, nor can I do most of the things I normally do in a given day, so, naturally, I feel like a burden, and that just makes my mental health worsen again.
Sports injuries positively suck, but it’s rarely just the physical symptoms that are so frustrating to deal with.
Photo by Claudio Schwarz on Unsplash
ontheedgeofeverything 