This checklist is for anyone navigating injury or surgery (athlete or not) in hopes that knowing what helped me during my difficult time makes your hardship a teensy bit easier.
My story: I had hypermobile knees (they bent backwards) AND participated in high impact sports. Long story short: the two did not mix well. I tore my left ACL in the snowboarding terrain park in 2011, and my right ACL jumping down from a wall at the Spartan Race.
My knees did surprisingly well without the ACL's (my physical therapists were baffled by this), but eventually I tore the meniscus on my left knee too. I consulted with a surgeon who felt he could repair the meniscus, but he wanted me to fix the ACL at the same time (fixing the ACL meant a twice-as-long recovery but a better likelihood of success). I felt that if I was going to take all that time to rehab one, I should probably just fix the other at the same time. So, that's what I did (or tried) and it took three surgeries to get me where I am.
As an avid snowboarder, dancer, and acrobat, I went through deep waves of depression during this time. I am now 419 days post-op and still healing. Here is my advice and checklist for fellow injured athletes.
I also highly recommend this article on "Surviving Being Grounded: The Psychological Impact of Injury in Circus." Get well soon friends.
Article by Mindy Cochran. Mindy is a practitioner, teacher, and performer of aerial silks, aerial hammock, and aerial hoop; as well as a health columnist for Montana Woman Magazine. Her column shares expertise for elevating health & wellness which she has acquired through her certifications as a personal trainer, nutrition coach, and life coach. To connect with Mindy on Instagram, please visit: www.instagram.com/aerial.mindy; or visit her Linktree here.
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