Athletic Recovery as a Mental Health Process

By Emma McGrory 

Charlie Corwin, a lacrosse athlete at Dickinson College, suffered a pull in his groin last season, benching him for majority of the season.

“The toughest emotional moments were going through rehabilitation and feeling like [I] wasn’t making any improvements,” Corwin said. 

Corwin is one of the millions of collegiate and high school athletes who suffer injuries, keeping them off the field and court for days, or months, according to studies. For those injured athletes, there is a known psychological response to getting hurt that has the potential to prolong recovery, according to a study by Sports Health. 

One model developed by Jean M. Williams and Mark B. Anderson, from the University of Arizona, suggested that certain mental health conditions can lead to physiological responses that make tissue more vulnerable to injury. If athletes are experiencing these conditions during recovery, they may be inhibiting their ability to get better. 

Skylar Cohen, a lacrosse player at Yale University, said when she was recovering from a broken ankle that sidelined her for over a year, she worried at times about returning to the sport. 

Cohen said the injury made her more mentally tough, but “the whole process was

mentally exhausting.” She said during this time, her family and teammates were what got her through the tough days.

Erin Foley, a soccer player at Stonehill College, tore her hip flexor, quad, and slightly tore her mcl, forcing her to sit out most of the pre-season, and limited her abilities this fall. “When you can’t play anymore, you think about the fact you’re missing out,” said Foley.

         She said her recovery was difficult, partially because she was worried about if she would be able to return to playing,”. “There’s not a lot of time for outside thinking when you

are playing,” said Foley. 

         While Foley was able to play with her injuries to an extent, the stress of whether her

body would heal, or the injuries would stay, was very difficult. 

Alex Vecchioli, a soccer player at Stonehill College, tore his ACL shortly after a year-

long ankle recovery and said the news was devastating. He said the past two months of

his recovery was tough, and he worried of getting injured again. 

         “It felt like I had to move mountains just to make an amount of progress that

would’ve come much easier initially.” said Vecchioli.

         Grace Camera, a field hockey player at Fairfield University, also worried about reinjuries after she suffered a back injury and was sidelined this past season. Camera describes the recovery process at times as invisible. There were times she had to remind herself “recovery is not linear, and it takes time to see progress,” .

         Katie Vamosi, an athletic trainer at Stonehill College, said reinjury plays a vital role in the clinical decision-making process as A player progress through recovery. Vamosi said coaches and athletes don’t talk enough about the mental toll of injuries. 

         Vamosi said often, it is the athletic trainers who find themselves monitoring athletes physical and mental health, especially during the recovery process. “The impact of the injury itself, while learning how to navigate day to day life with an injury is a very heavy toll” said Vamosi. 

“Not training regularly or interacting with their teammates can lead to heavy feelings of isolation and conflicts with personal identity,” according to Vamosi.