Athletic Injuries Psychology

Question 1

What is injury vs discomfort?

Answer 1

Discomfort is a feeling linked with injury though discomfort does not always mean a decrease in mobility. Acute discomfort or pain is usually, but not always, an indication of injury. It is not always true that pain or discomfort immediately accompanies injury.

An individual may be stiff and uncomfortable after a fall or excessive exercise yet that person may not be wounded or forced to stop from activities. Authorities may advise avoiding physical activity for 1-3 days after exercise injury

Question 2

What types of factors influence why athletes get injured with how well and how fast they recover?

Answer 2

Physical
Psychological
Personality
Stress

Question 3

What are the physical factors in injury?

Answer 3

Muscle imbalances
High-speed collisions
Overtraining
Physical fatigue

Importance physical preparation and fitness and lowering environmental dangers (humidity and unequal sized collision)

Question 4

What are the psychological factors of injury?

Answer 4

Emotional and behavioral issues 80% among athletes

Psychosocial factors (Social support, emotional, behavioral responses, stress, injury outlook) explained 18% of the time lost due to injury

Question 5

What are the personality factors in injury?

Answer 5

1st psychological factors linked to injury

Personality traits such as optimism, self-esteem, resilience, and trait anxiety have been shown to play a role in athletic injuries

More complicated due to personality factors tend to moderate the stress injury connection. Higher trait anxiety and life stress leads to higher injury risk

Question 6

What is the relationship between stress and injuries?

Answer 6

Athletes with greater life stress sustain more athletic injuries 85% of studies

Question 7

What are the two theories explaining how stress can lead to injury?

Answer 7

Attentional Disruption- stress lowers peripheral attention, high anxiety leads to distraction and irrelevant thinking

Increased muscle tension-interferes with regular coordination and raises injury risk

Question 8

What can coaches, and teachers do if an athlete is experiencing the two stress theories?

Answer 8

Stop training and begin stress management techniques

Keep an eye on the athlete’s behavior

Question 9

What are some common psychological reactions to sports injuries?

Answer 9

Disaster
Relief- a break from tedious sessions
Fall back on it if not doing well
Acceptable excuse to quit

Question 10

What is the grief process?

Answer 10

Denial
Anger
Bargaining
Depression
Acceptance

Question 11

What are the 3 phases of responses to injury?

Answer 11

Relevant Information Processing about Injury
Emotional Upheaval and Reactive Behavior
Positive Outlook and Coping

Question 12

What happens during the relevant information processing emotional phase?

Answer 12

Information related to the pain to the injury knowledge of the magnitude of the injury and queries about how the injury occurred and the individual realizes the negative consequences of inconveniences

Question 13

What happens during the emotional upheaval and reactive behavior emotional phase?

Answer 13

Emotional Agitation, fluctuating emotions, emotional depletion, isolation and separation, and feelings of shock, disbelief, denial or self pity

Question 14

What happens during the positive outlook and coping emotional phase?

Answer 14

Athlete accepts and deals with the injury, develops constructive coping strategies, maintains positive attitude, is hopeful, and is relieved to see improvement

Question 15

What are some other reactions from sports injuries?

Answer 15

Identity loss-huts self-concept

Fear and anxiety- if they will recover if they will be permanently replaced. Anxiety has more time to brew due to not training.

Lack of confidence- inability to prep and perform with their poor physical condition, low confidence can lead to low motivation and performance, increased injury risk if they overcompensate

Performance detriments- Due to low confidence and missing practice time. Athletes have difficulty adjusting expectations because they expect to be back in pre-injury shape

Group processes

It can have a positive or negative impact. Ex-football, can’t play for 2 months, interrupt flow of team communication and teamwork

Question 16

What are some signs of poor adjustment?

Answer 16

Most diplay unpleasant feelings but could cope well

Feelings of rage and uncertainty
Obsession of question of when they can play agin
Denial
Coming back too soon and getting reinjured
Excessive accomplishment boasting
Dwelling on minor physical complaints
Guilt for letting the team down
Withdrawal from close relationships
Rapid mood swings
Statements implying that they will never recover

Question 17

What improvements have been made in sports rehabilitation?

Answer 17

Active recovery
Less invasive surgeries
Weight training
New psychological techniques-specialists are taking a holistic approach to both the mind and the body

Question 18

What factors play a role in the psychology of recovery?

Answer 18

Attitude
Outlook
Stress
Stress control
stress support
positive self-talk
healing imagery
Goal setting
Beliefs

Question 19

What were the results of the study covering the psychology of recovery?

Answer 19

Athletes who had more set goals and positive self-talk recovered faster, along with healing imagery

Were compliant with their rehab treatment programs

Had a more optimistic attitude about their injury and life in general

Were motivated, committed, and determined

Question 20

What are some implications for Injury Treatment and Recovery?

Answer 20

90% of trainers stated that the psychological aspect is critical

Psychological strategies strategies for boosting healing and recovery shpuld be implemented in injury therapy

Holistic approach that integrates physical treatments with psychological methods to aid in recovery is recommended

Understanding the process of psychological rehab and recovery is the first step in providing a holistic approach to healing

Question 21

What are the three universal stages of injury and recovery?

Answer 21

Injury or illness phase
Rehab and recovery
Full activity and return phase

Question 22

How can trainers help athletes during each phase?

Answer 22

Injury or Illness phase- help athlete deal with the emotional upheaval that accompanies injury onset

Rehab and recovery- Help athlete sustain motivation and adhere to rehab protocols

Full activity return phase- full recovery is not complete until the athlete can return to normal functioing in his or her sport

Question 23

What happens emotionally during the injury or illness phase?

Answer 23

Stress source is the uncertainty that comes with the undiagnosed condition and the implications of any diagnosis, so the clinician should focus on helping the athlete understand the injury

Question 24

What happens emotionally during the rehab and recovery phase?

Answer 24

The clinician should focus on assisting the athlete in maintaining motivation and adhering to rehab protocols. Goal setting and good attitude is critical.

Question 25

Why is returning to normal more complex than originally thought?

Answer 25

The process takes a long time from 6 weeks to a year.

Question 26

What are some injury risk factors?

Answer 26

High trait anxiety
High life stress
No psychological and coping skills
Low social support
High avoidance coping

Stress management can help an athlete lose less time due to injury and get fewer injuries

Coaches, licensed sports trainers, and fitness professionals should collaborate to identify athletes who are at risk of injury.