Injuries

Injuries are an unfortunate, but an everyday element of being a hockey player. Whether it is on ice hits or working out at the gym, players have come to expect that they will be injured at some stages of their career. Some more often than others.

What most people don’t realize that injuries are actually hidden opportunities. To recover from an injury, you require a certain element of problem solving skills and mental toughness. It is also an opportunity to rest yourself and get back to the game fresh compared to your team mates. It is also an opportunity for you to carry out mental rehearsals on your mind to visualise things that you do well and visualise the plays.

As you might have guessed when you started to read this, I am currently injured. I have a tear in one of my muscles in my hip and as a consequential result of that, I have managed to bugger up the ligaments that join the hip to the leg. Needless to say it is a tad bit painful. But for some reason, where in the past I have been disheartened by injuries and gotten back way too soon, I have managed to maintain a positive attitude towards this one. I have decided that I will use this injury, rather than let it use me. This way I believe that I will be a better player and a better person. Specially as the injury happened before our season started, so I am confident that I wont be losing any games.

What I have established is that by resting the injury will get better, though things like sitting hurts and sudden movements, such as muscle jerks hurt during sleep, the injury has gotten better already. It is not good enough to skate on just yet, but it will heal soon and in good time so that I can rehab myself and regain some of the strength that I am bound to lose during the healing process.

When I spoke to my parents about the injury their initial reaction was, well parent like. They wanted me to give up the sport, but then again, that is what they have said in the past as well on every injury that I’ve sustained. I am only using this as an example of the types of thoughts I can’t let take over my mind. This is letting the injury use me. I have all the confidence that I will be back from this injury, stronger, as a better player and most importantly a better person.

I have to tip my hat in admiration to one of my friends who is currently battling an injury, more severe than mine. He has been sidelined with a broken leg and the spirit he has shown is something that I can only aspire to. In many ways his attitude has been inspirational and convinced me that I will be able to bounce back by keeping a positive focus on things while i let the hip heal to a standard where I can start skating again.