Every athlete experiences a setback during his or her career. That’s just part of sports.
But with every setback, there’s also a chance to comeback.
Liberty Mutual Insurance sat down with U.S. Ski Team’s Abby Ghent (Edwards, CO) to get her thoughts on making a strong comeback from a setback.
In our exclusive Take 5 interview, Abby shared her recent challenges and lessons stemming from a dislocated elbow in October 2013.
Abby told us this was the first major injury she’s had on the slopes, and it took U.S. Ski Team doctors a full five hours to “finally put it back in place.”
Abby admits that when the injury first happened, she thought, “NO! Not now!” Soon after, however, Abby told herself, “It’s just my arm. My legs, knees and head are fine.” A few days later, Abby had gathered enough information and instructions from U.S. Ski Team doctors, physical therapists and coaches to know exactly what she needed to do to “get back on snow as fast as I could.”
The timing of the injury is what frustrated Abby the most. It kept her out of World Cup competition for the entire season, and prevented her from qualifying for the U.S. Ski Team’s contingent to Sochi, Russia for the 2014 Winter Olympics. Abby called it a “huge mental struggle” watching her teammates train and compete without her, and added that “the lost opportunities weighed heavily on me.”
Abby was soon able to turn her setback into a comeback. A big key to that was focusing on what she could control, especially the details of her prescribed rehab. She celebrated “the little successes, like being able to put my hair into a pony-tail on my own.” Abby developed a renewed appreciation for both training and skiing, and made sure to put everything into proper perspective.
“It’s been a tough season,” said Abby. But she reminds her self, “I just have to wear a bright pink elbow brace. I reminded myself constantly that without struggle, there is no progress. It’s the strength to do it again that matters.”
Abby feels that listening to doctors, therapists and coaches, along with focusing on training, is vital in turning a setback into a comeback. She advises our young athletes who are dealing with setbacks of their own to “listen to the people that are educated in healing. Focus on your training. Everything you’ve done is still there, you just need to find it again.”
To read the full Take 5 interview with Abby, visit ResponsibleSports.com. Come back next month for another exclusive Take 5 interview!
At Liberty Mutual Insurance, we constantly look for ways to celebrate the countless acts of responsibility shown by people every day. We created Responsible Sports, powered by Positive Coaching Alliance, as part of this belief to help ensure that our kids experience the best that sports have to offer in environments that promote and display responsibility. We believe kids can learn valuable life lessons when coaches and parents come together to support winning on and off the field. Join the Responsible Sports movement!
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