When an athlete experiences pain that hinders their performance, trainers and medical staff seek to determine if he is hurt or if he is injured. If he is hurt, he can often walk it off, bandage it up, support it somehow and remain in the game. If he is injured, there is a structural issue of some kind that needs medical attention and that requires leaving the game.
This provides a great model for assessing your emotional, mental and relational health as well. Are you hurt or are you injured? If you are hurt, you can address the pain, find immediate pain relief, adjust your performance level until the pain goes away, and remain in the game.
If you are injured, there is a structural issue that needs focused attention, repair, and recovery. You have to leave the game for a time to receive focused attention and make the necessary repairs. When injuries go untreated, they can create lifelong and even life-shortening consequences.
Some people have a tendency to believe they are never injured, only hurt. They treat deep wounds, broken hearts, depression, etc as only hurt and try to play through the pain. They don’t believe they need attention, repair, and recovery - they think they just need to shake it off.
Others experience a deep bruise or a small cut and think they need triage focused treatment for an extended period of time; that they are incapable of remaining in the game and must disengage for lengthy treatment.
How can I know if I am hurt or injured? Here are a few thoughts:
Does this pain location seem to keep recurring? Is this a repeat hurt? If so, there may be structural weakness that needs focused attention to become hurt-resistant and durable. Scar tissue is tougher than regular tissue, but if healing doesn’t occur, the scar tissue never fully forms before being torn open again.
Does the hurt from “A” cause me to behave differently with “B, C, and D”? In other words, how much of my life is affected by the pain? Am I treating the pain area delicately, or is my entire self affected such that everything is viewed as a pain source or a risky and dangerous zone? Do I view every man, woman, boss, or failure as a potential threat that I am obsessed about protecting myself from?
Has my pain become life-controlling and dominating?
What is my pain tolerance level? Some have higher pain tolerances and some lower. Review the past and consult a friend - do I have a high, low, or average pain tolerance? How can I increases my pain tolerance?
Can I describe both necessary treatments/pain relief AND ways to grow my pain tolerance? Can I be both pain-attentive and personally stronger at the same time? How can I grow my personal strength?
When in doubt, talk it out with someone you trust or even a professional. The goal is to never play injured so that you risk long-term damage, and never quit the game just when you are only hurt for life has many hurts and the world needs you!