How to Protect Your Mental Health After Getting Seriously Injured

Physical injuries are part and parcel of the lives of sportspeople and athletes, and even moderately active people. Severe injuries can take you a significant time to recover fully. Such recovery periods may extend to weeks and maybe even to months. At times, though relatively rare, surgical intervention may be needed, making the recovery process necessarily long.

People who usually lead a considerable active life have a hard coping with the changed circumstances during recovery. Their inability to carry out their favorite exercises and sports may make them feel depressed or lonely or anxious or a combination of all such symptoms. However, suppose you observe the tips we mention in the following paragraphs. In that case, you will be in a better position in terms of mental health and be able to adjust to your temporary physical limitations better:

●    Ensure That You Drink Only Health Foods and Drinks

The absence of exercise in your recovery period translates to minor calorie burn. It means that while the body will continue to intake fat and other food types, it won’t burn up quite as fast. So, weight gain is only expected during periods when you are recovering from a severe injury. However, the point is that while the injury itself is something beyond your control, your diet is something you can regulate.

During injury recovery, you must abstain from unhealthy foods and drinks like beverages with alcohol. These sodas consist of a large number of calories. Remember to adopt a healthy attitude that is conducive to good mental health. As if mental and physical health were not enough, you need to worry about your financial stability as well. Financial worries are another cause of mental distress. Still, luckily for Australian residents, significant shoulder injury compensation payouts Australia take care of the same. Even while injured, feel good about yourself and your body and appearance. It can work like a charm to ward off mental health issues like anxiety and depression and help you stay positive.

●    Lead an Active Social Life

It is quite common to find a particular group of people making their social lives revolve around their exercises, sports, or other types of physical activities. Such groups can be of various types and include:

• Lifting weights with friends at gyms
• Running along with a group
• Play games like softball and basketball with their co-workers
• Attending yoga classes regularly

Due to injuries, all such opportunities for social interaction come to a sudden standstill. And the resultant loneliness can have a devastating effect on the person in question and manifest itself as depression. Social therapy is essential for sports injuries. So, while your torn ligament or broken bone might necessarily confine you to your home, remember technology. Use tech not just to keep yourself amused with Netflix but also to interact with friends and acquaintances through video and voice calls and, of course, hang out on social media. Feel free to invite them over to your house for a shared evening spent watching movies and enjoying dinner together.

●    Maintain a Record of Your Thoughts in a Journal

It is uncomfortable to open up about the depression and anxiety resulting from your injury’s lifestyle changes. Keeping such feelings pent up within yourself can not only be harmful but disastrous for your mental health as well. Under such circumstances, maintaining journals are instrumental. A large number of depressed people seek psychological counseling or therapy to get relief. Journaling can serve not only as a supplement to such therapy forms but, at times, might function as a replacement as well. Medical experts are well aware of the great uses of journaling in getting rid of pent-up negative energies that accumulate in the day.

●    Opt For Rehabilitation Therapies

It is indeed a fact that after sustaining a severe injury, the number of physically strenuous activities that you can do indeed becomes limited significantly. But even in such cases, rehabilitation offers a ray of hope to people who are undergoing injury recovery. Rehab has a significant role in letting the body regain its muscles’ core strength. It has particular use in healing the injured and adjoining areas or those who have recently undergone surgery. Besides their fantastic physiological benefits, rehab therapies serve to enhance the state of your mental health as well.

However, you need to keep your motivation high and take the difficulties posed by rehab therapies as a challenge and meet it with steely determination. Ensuring such a motivational tactic will help prevent people from being complacent and listless.

Finally, keep in mind that the lack of exercise options and the resultant effect on mental health is temporary. Be rest assured that your physical activity capabilities will swing back to normal levels in due time. Such assurance is not only genuine but will also serve to boost your morale as well. The tips here are just some of the more prominent and influential ways you can prevent depression and the formation of unhealthy habits resulting from your injury.