I am doing an I-Search paper on injuries in teenagers involved in sports. I would like to get information on what occurs psychologically when an active teen gets an injury like an ACL tear. What happens to them emotionally and what does it take to recover mentally as well as physically. Any information you could give me would be greatly appreciated. thank you.

-- Rachel Weisser (Shmoogabrg@aol.com), March 02, 1998

Answers

Your question caught my eye because I am going through this exact situation. I am a junior in the biggest high school in Ohio and a very competitive basketball player. During our season this past winter I sprained my ankle, sat out one game and then returned to practice full-go the next day. It seemed like it was okay and I finished out our season with no major problems. But, recently as I began serious workouts with a very competitive AAU tournament team my left foot started to bother me a lot. It got worse and worse. I wasn't about to sit out though, it was a major honor to even get asked to try out with this team. The girls were the best in Ohio-and the tournaments guaranteed great college exposure. So I kept playing on it until it was impossible for me to even walk on it at all. As a result I am sitting here typing this with two major bone fractures, a snapped ligament in my right foot and a non-weight-bearing cast up to my knee. NON-WEIGHT-BEARING!!! This means no running, walking, biking, lifting or any other physical activity for at least 5 weeks. I cannot put any weight on it at all and am forced to get around on crutches. Already I have had the cast on for two weeks, but it seems like an eternity. Mentally I just cannot handle it. I never thought that I could get a addicted to anything ever but I was wrong. As I sit around my house resting my foot to let it heal I feel depressed and tired all the time. I cry when I hear my friends talk about their own summer basketball plans. I crave to be able to just go and run or go out and lift weights. I have come to the conclusion that I am addicted to working out. Without lifting and running I feel like trash. I have always been very thin and now I am deathly afraid of gaining weight and "getting fat". So I try to watch what I eat and I am constantly sneaking out to lift weights at the health club my family belongs to-even though my doctor would kill me if he knew. It is hard to get through the days. Today I felt good though because I went to lift. (shhh! don't tell) But anyways I have a lot more to tell if you would like to hear it. Actually I would love to tell someone who is educated in this field about it- my mom seriously thinks I am nuts! I am very interested in the field of sport psyc. and exercise science and I would love to hear from someone who is into it. I feel that my story could help you out a lot- let me know! -S.B

-- Sarah Boyle (SBoyle2688@aol.com), May 20, 1998.

Your question caught my eye because I am going through this exact situation. I am a junior in the biggest high school in Ohio and a very competitive basketball player. During our season this past winter I sprained my ankle, sat out one game and then returned to practice full-go the next day. It seemed like it was okay and I finished out our season with no major problems. But, recently as I began serious workouts with a very competitive AAU tournament team my left foot started to bother me a lot. It got worse and worse. I wasn't about to sit out though, it was a major honor to even get asked to try out with this team. The girls were the best in Ohio-and the tournaments guaranteed great college exposure. So I kept playing on it until it was impossible for me to even walk on it at all. As a result I am sitting here typing this with two major bone fractures, a snapped ligament in my right foot and a non-weight-bearing cast up to my knee. NON-WEIGHT-BEARING!!! This means no running, walking, biking, lifting or any other physical activity for at least 5 weeks. I cannot put any weight on it at all and am forced to get around on crutches. Already I have had the cast on for two weeks, but it seems like an eternity. Mentally I just cannot handle it. I never thought that I could get a addicted to anything ever but I was wrong. As I sit around my house resting my foot to let it heal I feel depressed and tired all the time. I cry when I hear my friends talk about their own summer basketball plans. I crave to be able to just go and run or go out and lift weights. I have come to the conclusion that I am addicted to working out. Without lifting and running I feel like trash. I have always been very thin and now I am deathly afraid of gaining weight and "getting fat". So I try to watch what I eat and I am constantly sneaking out to lift weights at the health club my family belongs to-even though my doctor would kill me if he knew. It is hard to get through the days. Today I felt good though because I went to lift. (shhh! don't tell) But anyways I have a lot more to tell if you would like to hear it. Actually I would love to tell someone who is educated in this field about it- my mom seriously thinks I am nuts! I am very interested in the field of sport psyc. and exercise science and I would love to hear from someone who is into it. I feel that my story could help you out a lot- let me know -S.B

-- Sarah Boyle (SBoyle2688@aol.com), May 20, 1998.

TO Rachel and Sarah, I am currently doing research for my PhD into the psychological aspects of recovery from sporting injury. Rachel should check out articles by Britten Brewer from Springfield College, who has done a lot of research in the area. If you like email me and I'll give you some references. Generally however athletes experience increased negative mood initially which slowly decreases over the course of rehabilitation, this is parralelled by reduced self esteem and confidence in their ability to be successful in their sport. Those who maintain thier confidence do much better in rehab. Sarah described what most athletes who are highly involved in their sport experience, that is negative mood especially frustration and depression, a loss of self esteem, and a tendency to continue in sport even when advised against it. I would strongly suggest strict adherence to your medical advice - If you can do gym with non-weight bearing on your leg that is a good way to keep fit and have a positive frame of mind. But beware of trying to return to your sport too quickly - you will have a much better result in the long term if you take your time. Good luck adam

-- Adam Hall (a.hall2@pgrad.unimelb.edu.au), February 04, 1999.

I believe that fellow conributors have already answered your question, sarah by giving her experiences and the other interpreting what those experiences mean. Anyway my experience is that about two years ago I severely damaged my shoulder joint playing Rugby,(for those who do not know what that is, its kind of similar to American football but without the padding and helmets!) I am a sports nut! my whole life revolves around sport, watching, playing, talking, eating sleeping e.t.c.. my problems started when the doctors couldn't pinpoint exactly what the injury was, and just told me that rest was the only cure! (my arm at this time was in a sling and any movement at all was painful!) Anyway after 4 months (yes that long!) my shoulder was still no better than the day that I had hurt it, I visited numerous physiotherapists who couldn't help me either. I have been told recently that i wasn't a pleasant person to live with during this time, I became more aggressive with a short temper, I gained weight, I rarely went out, and eventually I began to lose interest in sport in general and became a couch potato watching t.v. all day. My studies suffered e.t.c.. Anyway enough of the sob story, eventually I came to realise that sport wasn't everything that I was good at in my life and concentrated on other aspects of what I did everyday, my mood changed, self-esteem improved, i wasn't so aggressive anymore e.t.c.. when i did this my shoulder gradually recovered and I am now back to being the same old sports nut as before, however I now know who my friends are, I know that I have other things in my life that I can do, so if i get another injury I know that i'll be mentaly strong enought to deal with it. Well how about that as a bit of a case study!! good luck Rachel, bye!

-- Philip Wood (h9652241@hud.ac.uk), March 10, 1999.

You say you want an injury such as an ACL tear? I have a perfect answer. I can not promise you that my answer is that which everyone will respond, but here is my case. my senior year of Varsity soccer was rough. I was captain and I tore my ACL half way through season. I was crushed. I was in a position to be the backbone of this team and now I was to sit back and support from the bench. I had an arthospic surgery in June with hopes to play my first year of college ball come August. I was having a very difficult time deciding wether to play with a brace or to get the reconstructive and red shirt the season. I played and it was a lot tougher than I could ever expect. I started as a center mid and I had to not only adjust to the level of play but also my new brace. Mentally I was shot and pyhsically I was close to shot. It took every once of my body and mind to finish out the season. Lets just say that I played goalie the last three games... it was interesting. I was challenged in ways soccer has never challanged me before. As for recovery, that is a different story. i had surgery immediatly following season. The recovery has been long and I am just now able to run. I will be ready just in time for season to start up again. The fear is there that I will do it again, or maybe even to the other knee. The outcome of my rehabilitation is not in my hands. I know that I must just go out and have the confidence I need to play my game. It is so hard not to think about the previous injury. So much of it is mental. Any suggestions, through your research, that will help me out? If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask.

-- Angela Gramazio (ag7988@cs.arbor.edu), April 19, 1999.

I know that you have gotten a few responses already, but I felt like I should contribute as well. I have been a gymnast all my life. I was involved in competitions since I was 7 years old. I competed all the way through college too. At the end of my sophomore year of college, I fell off the beam and tore almost everything in my knee, including the ACL. It was such a tough time for me because of some other factors that were involved too. I have to tell you that it was not easy to deal with an injury like that just because I went from being so active to nothing at all. I thought my career was over. But luckily, I was able to comeback despite all the odds. I had all of the negative emotions, but I found that if you have the right mind set, you can turn the negatives into positives. I think every thing happens for a reason. Even bad things. I did a lot of thinking about my life and what would happen if I was never going to be able to gymnastics. A lot of soul searching. If I didn't get hurt I would probably never have gotten into the field that I am getting into. I am now in a Masters program for Sport Psychology. I learned a lot from the experience. Everyone has a different way of dealing with an injury, such as an ACL injury. All in all, as hard as it may seem, a positive mindset is the way to go! Good luck!

-- Jennifer Roitman (jrot11@hotmail.com), September 07, 1999.