Edel Thornton on dealing with serious injury: Every time I pushed myself I used to get frustrated

From the joy of leading Gurranabraher Credit Union Brunell to their first National Cup last January, Ireland captain Edel Thornton's life was turned upside down a week later when she suffered a serious knee injury against Portlaoise.

When any sports person suffers a serious injury it can be a lonely time in their lives. Typical of Thornton's strength and leadership skills she went straight into rehab mode.

"When my injury happened my first thoughts were that it might not be that bad as I was able to put some weight on it after the game.

"However, after a few days when I couldn’t straighten my leg I became worried and when I gave Dearbhla my MRI scans alarm bells rang in my head when she brought in her husband Dirk to go through the extent of the injury to me. Then both of them set out a plan for me and I had my surgery a few weeks later in Santry Dublin and that was the start of my rehab program.

The one thing that sticks in my mind when I got injured is the way both referees handled the situation as they showed great humanity and respect for the players on both teams and indeed myself. 

"Firstly they told everyone to relax and calm down as the situation was bigger than a game of basketball and then they checked with all the players on both teams to see if they were ok mentally to resume the game, because some of the girls were very upset and in shock."

MOTIVATION

After surgery, the first few weeks were very hard. It wasn’t just the pain in my knee she was struggling with, watching the girls playing was even harder for her mentally. Especially as Brunell were in the mix to add the Super League crown to the cup.

I didn’t really want to go to games because the competitive side of me wanted to play and it was then reality set really in that I had a long road ahead of me before I could play again.

"I was really taken aback by support from everyone involved in basketball, especially my Irish and Brunell teammates and coaches. Recovering from a serious injury can be a lonely place and only for my network of family, friends and teammates it certainly helped me through some tough and challenging days."

She began to set little goals and when she reached them it gave her the motivation to move along.

"Dearbhla always kept me grounded to ensure that I wasn’t overdoing things. I kept to their program rigidity and the one thing that I had to learn is to listen to my body. Every time I try to push myself I used to get frustrated that I wasn’t able to do things that my brain was telling me, however, I had to learn what my body was screaming at me and take a step back."

She's doing some gym work now, along with running and shooting drills.

"I’m still a bit away from full fitness. My last test at Santry didn’t go as well as I planned, but that just really told me to be patient and continue to follow my recovery program. My next test is in the end of November and I’m not putting any pressure on myself of setting a date to play. 

RESET

"Right now it is more of a mental thing with me when I do any running or stretching exercises, as I’m over-thinking everything, but I suppose that is natural when you are recovering from a serious injury.

"One thing is for sure when I do get the all clear to go back playing by the doctors and my physios, if my body is telling me everything is not ok I won’t be rushing back until I am comfortable both mentally and physically.

"Finally while I was recovering from my injury I couldn’t work, so I had to press the reset button with my life.

"I have now started a new job as a behaviour specialist with the Children Disability Network Team and it's a job that I get great satisfaction from."