Ready, Set, Return
Returning to sport after injury isn't JUST a physical process. It’s a psychological one, too.
Each year, approximately 250,000 collegiate athletes experience sport-related injuries, highlighting a hidden cost of participating in collegiate sport (Kerr et al., 2015). Many of these athletes experience injuries severe enough to miss practice/training, competition, and some need to retire from sport completely.
Despite elaborate physical rehabilitation processes, many athletes find that mental readiness for return to sport lags behind physical clearance. Confidence may waver, fear of re-injury can persist, and the identity shifts accompanying injury don't disappear when rehab is over. In this blog, we dive into what it truly takes to build mental readiness after injury.
Drawing on research-backed insights and an ACT-informed approach, we'll explore key psychological components of recovery:
What does “psychological readiness” really mean?
The internal battle of injury recovery, such as fear of re-injury
Rebuilding confidence
Managing changes in identity
Importance of routines and managing details
Critical role of support systems
Necessity of training psychological readiness for return to sport
Whether you're an athlete, coach, sports medicine professional, or anyone else who cares about sport-related injury, this blog offers practical tools, science-backed insights, and fresh perspectives on one of the most overlooked parts of recovery: Psychological readiness for return to sport.
Welcome to Ready, Set, Return! We’re a group of professionals and researchers passionate about helping athletes be mentally ready to return to sport after injury.
We’re currently researching a self-directed program for collegiate student-athletes to help them build necessary psychological readiness. Learn more at www.readysetreturn.com. We’re recruiting participants through 2025.