A person who suffers from a traumatic spinal cord injury is likely going to have several aspects of their life impacted. Still, it’s imperative that anyone who has this type of injury remain as active as they can. It isn’t always easy, but there are considerable benefits of exercising that can help a person who has this type of injury.
Even people who didn’t exercise before their injury can benefit from being as active as possible afterwards. For some, the key is finding things they can do that they enjoy. Remembering the many benefits might be helpful motivation.
Mental benefits
The mental benefits of exercise are considerable. Individuals who have a life-altering injury are likely going to have some mental health impacts. The adjustment to the new way of doing things can be hard to cope with. If you’re in this position, you might miss the way that your life was before. That can weigh heavily on your emotional state.
Getting active and moving around can help to improve your mood. Once you start doing activities that you enjoy, you may find yourself looking forward to doing them again. This can help to give you a more positive outlook on your life.
Physical impacts
Just because you have limitations due to the spinal cord injury doesn’t mean that you can’t benefit from regular exercise. Christopher Reeve was paralyzed and still opted to follow an exercise program. One doctor who supervised his activities noted that the vigorous training might have help to awaken nerve pathways that were dormant due to the injury.
Exercise can help you to gain muscle strength. It can also help the cardiovascular and digestive systems to function optimally, which is beneficial if you’re dealing with the negative impacts of a spinal cord injury.
In some cases, getting active after a spinal cord injury takes considerable work. Adaptive equipment and other supplies, as well as finding someone who can assist you, can be costly. You might choose to seek compensation from the party whose negligence led to the injury. This could help you get the financial backing you need to live a full life even though you’ve suffered such a serious injury.
