What activities did you do before your injury?
I hurt my back several years ago and, while it's healed now, at the time, I wasn't able to do normal activity. Before I hurt my back, I exercised regularly, went bike riding with my husband (he was my fiance back when I hurt my back), as well as camping and hiking.
What was it like to need to scale your activities back?
After I hurt my back, it was painful even to move. It was frustrating to be stuck in the bed (actually, I stayed on the floor because it was more comfortable) when I'm used to being so active. I worried that I would lose muscle and fitness and I was also worried about gaining weight, since I couldn't exercise. My husband was supportive but, after awhile, it was hard for him to remain sympathetic, since we couldn't do many active things together.
Tips and Tricks
- Do what you can to explain how you feel and that your injury isn't something you have control over
- Find things you can do together. My husband and I would play cards, watch movies and just talk while I was waiting for my back to heal
- Don't get upset when they want to get out and do the things you can't. It's easy to feel hurt by that, but if they can enjoy life, they'll be more supportive of you.
