TCO NEWS

Should the possibility of a sports Injury prevent us from participating in athletics?

From the view point of a parent, coach and medical provider:

In the news lately we have been hearing a lot about sports-related injuries, concussions being at the forefront of those discussions. There are many other injuries that can affect athletes such as ACL tears, meniscus tears, fractures, labral tears and sprains and strains. Each of these injuries will affect the athlete to a different degree. No matter the severity of the injury there will be some affect both short-term and long-term to the player.

From a parents prospective I love seeing my son learn life skills through athletics. He is building confidence in himself, learning to overcome adversity and how to work. He may not be a natural when it comes to playing sports but he is willing to work hard to improve his game.   As a father, I love seeing him learn how to work hard. When something comes easy to an individual they usually don’t have to work hard and so they never learn the value of work. He is seeing the benefits of hard work.

As a coach I love to see the passion some players have for their sport of choice. Each of the players have their own goals that they want to achieve. As a coach I get the opportunity to help them work towards these goals.

As a medical provider I get to work with them to overcome the obstacle of injury in order to get back on track to achieving their goals.

Anyone who has participated in athletics knows there are adversities that sometimes put a bump or blockade in front of us, hindering us from reaching our goals. Injuries being one of the major obstacles that athletes will face.

I recognize my bias but the benefits of sports just might outweigh the risk. The following may help you maintain the benefits of Athletics while decreasing the risk.

• Prepare yourself mentally for your sport of choice.
• Prepare yourself physically prior to the season. Start weeks before the season to prepare yourself for the physical demands of the sport by strengthening, conditioning, and stretching to prevent a sports injury.
• Prepare yourself physically during the season. As the season gets busy we sometimes forget to stay physically fit during the season and this is when injuries can take place.
• Take the appropriate time to recover. When a sports injury is sustained don’t try to rush back to your sport without taking the appropriate amount of time to recover. Injuries require a period of healing and we can’t just automatically speed up the recovery process.
• Parents give your children a break throughout the year to recover from the demands of their sport. I see athletes that sustain fatigue injuries because they play a sport or multiple sports all year round without giving their body the needed time to recover.
• Use proper safety equipment.
• Adhere to the recommendations provided by their medical provider.
• Maintain a healthy diet.
• Maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Avoid substances that will increase the risk of injury and hinder the recovery process.

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Joseph Webb, PA-C
Board Certified Physician Assistant