After an injury, some athletes develop a fear of going out and performing the way that they are capable of. It goes without saying, all athletes that have sustained an injury have the fear that they may have to go through it again. According to studies the ‘fear factor’ is being recognized as a crucial component in delaying the recovery process. While frustration and depression which are natural responses are really common after sustaining an injury, the fear of not being able to trust your body or being able to continue your career comes into play a lot.

    Even if you have recovered completely, you may have a dip in your performance after coming back from an injury. However, there are many solutions to this matter. One of the most important solutions is to keep the athlete fully involved with their team and create achievable short-term goals along the way. This is really important because it helps the athlete feel like progress is being made. Lastly, it is really important to give the athlete the privilege to provide input on their rehabilitation plan.

    It can be extremely hard because even if the athlete has fully recovered they are still playing the sport that they got injured in initially. Memories of pain and discomfort are likely to cause some level of fear. Given the complexity of the athlete’s experience of injury, it doesn’t seem like a good idea to ignore fear as a possible component of reinjury.