Emotional Scars Increase Odds Of Sports Injury

As the school year begins, Dr. Nikesh Seth and the team at Integrated Pain Consultants are seeing an influx of sports-related injuries. It’s important that athletes prioritize their health and safety, but sometimes this goes beyond sports physicals. Research out of Linköping University shows that female athletes who have been physically or sexually abused have a higher chance of suffering sports-related injuries.

The researchers note that it makes little difference when the abuse took place. The lingering emotional scars seem to play a direct role in the vulnerability of female athletes. The study considered “active top-flight athletes” who were abused at some point during their life. According to the Athletics Research Center in Sweden, the study is the first of its kind.

More Research is Needed

As the first study, and one very limited to only women who were abused within Swedish athletics, there’s still a lot of further research necessary. However, it’s an important reminder that the body is a holistic machine. According to one of the lead researchers, Professor Toomas Timpka, “We wanted to investigate whether abuse is connected to the high degree of overuse injuries that we see in competitive athletics.” In total, 197 women participated and 11 percent had been sexually abused in her lifetime while 18 percent had been physically abused.

Those who had been physically abused were 12 times more likely to be injured while playing sports. Those who had been sexually abused had an 8 times higher risk of sports injury. “Many aspects of the correlation are also seen in self-injurious behavior,” says Professor Timpka. While both women and men often blame themselves for the abuse, women appear to carry the trauma internally more so than men—which seems to lead to long-term injuries.

Contact Integrated Pain Consultants For A Detailed Pain Management Evaluation Today

Professor Timpka hopes that the research will encourage innovative thinking and multidisciplinary research in the sports medicine field. At Integrated Pain Consultants, taking a comprehensive view of the client has always been a priority. Learn more about treatment options regardless of injury by scheduling a consultation today – (480) 626-2552.