Excerpt from a paper on depression and athletic injury

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The following is an excerpt from a paper titled: Psychological Response to Injury,

Recovery, and Social Support: A Survey

of Athletes at an NCAA Division I

University

Written by Courtney A. Klenk

University of Rhode Island

Several researchers have investigated possible causes to the injured athletes’ emotional

response to injury. Being an athlete requires commitment, determination, and, most importantly, a passion. An athlete’s sport dictates their life and is a component of their personal identity.

In the article “Mind over Matter” (Ross, 2006), Dr. Aimee Kimball testifies, “A lot of times the sport is so important to the athletes, it is like they are losing a significant part of themselves.”

“Getting injured is a traumatic experience for athletes; what they have devoted so much time and energy to, can be suddenly, without warning, taken away” (Crossman, 1997, 334).

Additionally, participating in athletics has many benefits. Deutsch (1985) recognizes that participation provides a “means of developing physical mastery, positive self-concept, autonomy, and self control.” When the positive reinforcements of sport and the individual’s association with the athletic role abruptly cease with the onset of injury, an athlete may question their identity and experience a sense of loss. Are they still an athlete if they are unable to practice and compete?

And if they are no longer an athlete, then who are they? Because of the loss of health, loss of a sense of purpose, and loss of self-identity, some researchers (Gordon 1986; Pederson 1986; Emotions of Injured Athletes 4, 1987 as cited in Smith, 1990) “have suggested that injured athletes progress through a grief cycle similar to that experienced by the terminally ill.”