Professional athletes’ livelihood is dependent upon their physical well-being. If they are not well enough to play, there is a good risk that they might be dropped from a team or lose out on wages. For this reason, it seems unsurprising that athletes seem to fix back pain effortlessly. The problem is, back pain cannot be fixed so simply.
The Illusion
Think of a regular person who is not a professional athlete. If he or she receives a back injury, is jumping into a back repair surgery the first step they should take? For most people, the answer is no.
An average injured person is going to go through the standard outlets, using at home methods and seeing a doctor if they need to.
Meanwhile, pro athletes seem to immediately jump into repair surgery instead of waiting to see if their back recovers on its own.
Don’t Jump into Surgery
The major reason to not jump right into surgery for a back injury is that it is unnecessary. Instead of opting for a major repair, you can see a chiropractor. I went to BC Back Clinic and they helped me to recover without surgery. These conservative options are less invasive, less costly, but they do take longer to achieve.
The surprise is that the outcome between a surgical repair and just taking the time to heal is about the same. But without the surgery, you will not have gone through anaesthesia or any unnecessary procedures.
Why Athletes Opt for Surgery
It might seem extreme that athletes immediately go for surgery. But consider this: most athletes are only professionals for a brief period of their lives. They will eventually age out or become injured to the point that they cannot reasonably play any longer. For this reason, they will do all that they can to at least appear in complete shape.
Being a pro athlete is not an easy job. It requires your entire body to be in tip-top shape all of the time without exception. They will jump into surgery because they cannot be out for the months it might take to conservatively recover from an injury.
The Right Choice for you
Remember that you cannot compare your own physical state to that of professional athletes. Their bodies are not only conditioned differently, but are meant to function as a type of machine. Opting for a conservative road to recovery, rather than going in for major surgery, is a better option for many people. That said, in some cases you might need to go for surgery, but that is up to your physician and yourself.
The illusion that pro athletes present that they fix their back injuries can be dangerous for others who think that surgery is the first and easy option. Surgery should never be the go-to option if there are better, less invasive routes to try first and surgery is never easy. There is still a physical toll and amount of pain that it can cause in the end. If you are not a pro athlete, do not plan to recover like they appear to.
