Common, but potentially catastrophic sports injuries dog players

Playing a sport of any kind – as an amateur or pro – exposes you to injuries that may end your career. Some types of injuries may seem harmless, but they are not.

Most athletes are familiar with concussions and may have even had several over the course of their playing careers. What they may not realize is that the more concussions a person has, the worse things become for his or her brain. Think Cassius Clay, these days more commonly known as Muhammad Ali, who took some serious head poundings that left him with brain damage over many years of professional boxing. The same thing can happen to an amateur or professional football player. I’ve seen quite a lot of these injuries while practicing as a New Mexico injury lawyer.

Many sports organizations have gone to the trouble of creating an injury prevention program, only to find that the players think it’s a total waste of their time. Why? Because they believe that nothing will happen to them. But things can and do happen when you’re playing hard contact sports. It’s part of the game. While some repetitive actions may make sense to the players, they get bored and disinterested in doing things like warm up activities, stretching, warming down and drinking water.

While it may sound innocuous, these sorts of precautions may very well avert some of the more serious injuries players face on the field, and keep them out of court trying to get compensation for their head injuries after filing a lawsuit with a New Mexico injury lawyer. In fact, studies have revealed that sports injury programs are able to reduce injuries by up to 80 percent. That’s a significant number, and if it means fewer players experience traumatic brain injury (concussions), then it’s accomplished what it set out to achieve.

Traumatic brain injury will permanently ruin your life and it makes even normal daily activities hard to perform. The injured brain just does not process information in the same way as one that has not been shaken up inside a hard skull numerous times. This can’t be emphasized enough – wear a regulation helmet and don’t skimp on the price. Your brain is far too important to lose your mind due to head trauma sustained in a game.

What else can you do to minimize other sports injuries? Warm ups. Warm muscles are flexible because the circulation to them has been increased. Sprains and strains are dramatically reduced because of this one simple precaution. While warming up, introduce stretching to extend back muscles, shoulder muscles and the hamstrings. During a good warm up session, you will want to make sure to drink a lot of water. You lose a whole lot of fluids not only during a practice, but during a game. Hydration is crucial to be able to be alert and quick on your feet.

If practice is over, don’t lounge around on the benches just yet. Typically after a workout, lactic acid is circulating in your muscles. To flush this out of your system, walk around for a few minutes and keep drinking water, otherwise you will stiffen up.

If you have been badly injured while playing a sport or football, in particular, speak to a New Mexico injury lawyer about your circumstances. If you purchased defective equipment, playing on an unsafe playing surface or your opponent was deliberately negligent when they sacked you on the field or cross-checked you on the ice, you may be able to claim compensation for your medical bills as a result of your injuries.

Scott Atkinson
was admitted to practice in New Mexico in 1989 and is a New Mexico personal injury lawyer and New Mexico wrongful death lawyer with the Atkinson Law Firm, LTD. Learn more at Attorneynewmexico.com or call 1.505.944.1050.

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