Dr. Spyros Panos: Psychologically coping with sports injuries

Orthopedic surgeons, like Dr. Spyros Panos, help many athletes make headway with orthopedic problems like fractures, vascular injuries, and other musculoskeletal disorders. One way of making them bounce back after an injury is by helping them cope mentally. This blog seeks to understand the psychological impact of an injury. This way, rebounding will be easier and healing, faster.

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To understand the psychological consequence of an injury, it's critical to explore on some of the major functions of sports in an athlete’s life. CompetitivEdge.com says that there are three major functions of sports: providing sense of identity, providing main source of self-esteem, and helping deal with stress.

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What happens to an athlete when sports activities suddenly stop due to an injury? Orthopedics like Dr. Spyros Panos would agree that an athlete would feel a chain of overwhelming losses. While the athlete struggles with the effects of those losses, there will be rough times, especially when the injury is significant enough to keep him or her off the action for a long time, or worse, permanently. Here are some ways on how athletes can mentally teach themselves to heal:

1. Burying emotional pain is unhelpful. Feelings of hurt have to be set free.

2. Allowing oneself to deal with the situation on hand is important than just dealing with “what could have beens.”

3. No matter how hard-hitting the situation may be, having a positive attitude in moving forward helps. Attitude can reduce the emotional stress and helps speed up the healing process.

4. A support system is crucial in healing. The athlete’s family, teammates, or other support groups can intercede.

5. When things don’t go back to the way an athlete hopes them to be, he or she has to think of ways on how to reposition his or her sports skills and knowledge into other areas of life outside sports.

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Dr. Spyros Panos: First-aid treatment for sports injury

In this latest Dr. Spyros Panos blog, the importance of treating sports injuries immediately is emphasized. Readers are also educated about the proper administration of sports injury treatment.

Injuries are all too common in any sport. Because most sports involve physical contact, athletes’ damaging a ligament or bone becomes more likely. Thus, they should have proper knowledge of first-aid treatment for most sports injuries, such as soft tissue injuries.

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Elizabeth Quinn of About.com Guide assigns an acronym to remember for the primary treatment of soft tissue injuries – P.R.I.C.E.

P – rotection. When an athlete gets hurt, he or she should immediately stop any movement or activity. This will help protect body areas that may have been damaged by the impact.

R – est. Resting can give damaged tissues adequate time to heal.

“Dr. Spyros Panos is a highly respected orthopedic surgeon who has helped advance the lives of many athletes and individuals with orthopedic problems such as fractures, vascular injuries, and other musculoskeletal disorders.”

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I – ce. In order to manage pain and inflammation, Quinn advises intermittent icing 24 to 48 hours after a soft tissue injury occurs. In icing, it is advised that the person assisting the patient be careful in not putting the ice directly on the skin or leave it on too long, as this may cause frostbite. Using a thin towel to wrap in the ice would be an excellent protection.

C – ompression. To keep swelling to a minimum, the injured body part should be wrapped with an elastic bandage.

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E – levation. Elevating the injured part can also help in reducing the swelling.

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