5 Lessons From 2 Years Of Recovering From A Serious Injury

Caution: I’m writing this at 9 PM. I shouldn’t…but I do. So…expect typos. A lot of typos.

“What the heck are you waffling about? You’re perfectly fine,” says the nurse (with the tone you’d use to speak with a 5-year-old kid) while lifting my left arm sideways.

Indeed, now I am fine. But only a few seconds ago?

I thought I was going to die.

For context…

I was in the middle of a taekwondo fight. I was losing for almost half the round, but was finally getting the hang of it and started throwing some nice shots…

Until, suddenly, I felt a sharp pain in my shoulder.

Heck, not just in the shoulder - it felt more like someone would pull out my shoulder blade at full speed along with a few ribs, and moved it somewhere where it’s not supposed to be.

I couldn’t move my arm.

I couldn’t straighten my back.

I was paralyzed…

This was the first day I ever dislocated my shoulder.

It was October 2021, and at this point, I had no idea what kind of hell was waiting for me.

In today’s letter, I’d love to share the story of this incredibly painful experience…and yet at the same time, the story of persistence, ownership, and turning obstacles to your advantage, that helped me recover and do things I thought I’d never be able to do again.

But because I’m a nerd…

I’ll also use the opportunity to distill 5 major lessons I’ve learned throughout this time (applicable to all life, business andcareer).

Let’s dive in ↓

After the first dislocation, I had no idea what the hell was up.

I’ve been doing this sport for 6 years, and had many injuries before.

I thought it was nothing.

Despite how convinced I was that I was okay, my mom forced me to take a short break.

When I started training back again after one week, everything felt normal again.

I started preparing for the National Championship that was ahead of me. I went on a super intense training camp. Did tons of sparring with great opponents.

For some reason, my shoulder was able to handle all of that…

But after stepping on the mat in competition 1 month later…

Things crumbled again.

It was in total of 4 times that day, although these were only minor dislocations, unlike the first one.

(It was a National Championship and I had to win this one).

I went to see a doctor, who, as expected, gave me pretty plain prescription:

Wear the sling for 3 weeks.

Go to rehab for 4 weeks.

And…

Quit taekwondo. It’s not good for you. It will happen again if you keep doing it.

I was willing to respect the first two.

But the last one?

Not a shot. Taekwondo was everything for me. I was obsessed with the sport ever since I was 8. It was my lifestyle. It was my life philosophy.

And no matter how hard you would try…

Nothing could take away the burning desire I had to keep pursuing this passion of mine.

This brings me to the first lesson:

#1: Map Is Not The Territory

One thing I realized soon enough:

What the doctor said wasn’t some kind of objective, universally accepted truth.

It was just his opinion. His personal belief, is shaped by the things he’s seen, done, and experienced throughout his own life.

How foolish would be to let someone else’s life experiences shape my own?

That’s why I became stubborn about creating my reality. My belief system.

And it was the best decision ever.

The appointment with this orthopedist took place in November 2021, so until early January 2022, I was out.

But surprisingly enough…

The 6 weeks of recovery wasn’t enough.

Apparently, it was a serious issue that needed much more diligent treatment.

But I didn’t know that. Neither I nor my parents had known the true seriousness of the situation. We simply followed the blueprint the doctor gave us, but now, looking back, it’s becoming more and more apparent he had no idea what is he doing.

Long story short:

February 4th 2022, the shoulder popped out again (hopefully the last time for now).

And this time, it was even worse.

It was yet another full dislocation - but as opposed to the first one, it didn’t pop back immediately. It took about good 10 minutes to place it back.

This was the first time I truly realized I’m in big trouble.

I thought it was the end.

The end of everything. I felt hopeless. Frustrated. The intensity of both physical and mental pain was insane. All I wanted was to wake up, and realize that it was only a nightmare, nothing more.

Well…

It wasn’t.

But my parents didn’t want to give up. And honestly? I didn’t want to either.

So we tried another doctor.

“Do MRI, and we’ll see what I can do with it. Till then…sling for 3 weeks.”

Not the best news, but it was clear that he’s at least willing to look for more solutions.

The next appointment was in March - and it turned out that my shoulder was highly unstable because a certain ligament that holds everything together has been torn.

The doctor’s suggestion was to do an arthroscopic surgery.

It was neither the cheapest nor the safest option.

But it was the one with the most likelihood of me coming back to my sport…although even that was pretty low.

Me and my dad agreed on the surgery on May 9th.

Till then, I couldn’t do anything that involved excessive movement with the shoulder.

I knew the process was gonna be difficult.

After the surgery, I’d have to wear the bloody slimp for the next 6 weeks, and then go to rehab for months until I’ll be back at the gym.

I thought it was going to destroy my mental health in the worst way possible.

Luckily…

Weeks before the actual surgery, I happened to pick up a book that has saved me from many unwanted situations throughout my life:

The Obstacle Is The Way by Ryan Holiday. 

And as much as many people hate the stoic philosophy this book represents…

I felt like every single word was spoken directly to me.

Lesson #2: The Power Of Perception

If you want to turn every obstacle into an opportunity, it all starts with taking care of how you perceive the situation.

“Nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.”

That was the guiding principle for me at that time.

It’s when I realized that I could either sit there all day and complain…

Or treat the entire surgery and process following it as a way for me to come back stronger than ever (both physically, and mentally).

And this single shift in perception has turned something I thought was going to be one of the most miserable seasons of my life…into the hands-down best weeks I can remember.

The recovery process was surprisingly fun.

And there’s a reason for that:

I treated it all like a fun game.

A game where you start with your character at zero power, and slowly build up.

Here’s another lesson that followed:

Lesson #3: Take Ownership

Unpopular opinion:

Life is easier when you treat everything as your fault.

Or even better…

When you treat everything as your responsibility.

It might not have been my fault the situation I got in…

But I was the only one determining the outcome.

No one could truly save me.

Not the surgery.

Not any flashy rehab program.

Not tapes to stabilize the shoulder.

No.

Only me, my perception of the situation and attitude to recovery could.

And that’s why I took it damn seriously.

One person who played a vital role in my recovery was my physiotherapy assistant. Let’s call him Joe.

I was used to the fact that both orthopedians were always leaning more towards forbidding things for me, rather than trying to find a way to do them without facing the consequences.

Not Joe.

Whenever I’d tell him about a certain time when the shoulder or anything around it hurt, he’d never say “Avoid this”.

He’d say “Try it different the next time, until you find a way where it feels okay.”

I believe he’s a perfect example of someone George Mack would call a “high-agency” person:

He would always look for a way around. Or way through. But he would never look for way out. He would never try to solve the problem by escaping it altogether.

He always wanted to me step back to the mat.

And I’m cocksure that even if I came to him today, with the news that my shoulder popped out (please god no), he would still be quite optimistic.

Lesson #4: High-Agency Person

Search for a way.

Because there is a way.

Sometimes, it’s a straight line.

Sometimes it’s a bit curvy.

And sometimes it’s a rollercoaster that turns your gut upside down and makes you throw up.

But there is a way.

It took me 6 months since the surgery to grow strong enough so I could get back to my more or less normal training regimen.

On November 25th 2022, I returned to the gym after the long break.

The doctor explicitly said that if I’ll be able to do my sport for 1 year without any complications, the shoulder is stable.

And guess what?

It’s the 29th of November 2023 (at the time of writing this).

I’ve been training multiple times a week, and in the past few months, every single day.

And…

Nothing.

No dislocation.

I even won a National Championship (which at a certain point I thought was never gonna happen).

But it did.

And people always find it fascinating when I tell them the story of my injury, and how I came back after the years.

They’re always like “I don’t think I’d come back after all this shit.”

Well…

Lesson #5: Play The Long Game

When I look back, I myself can’t belief I truly persisted for 2 years.

Because honestly…it didn’t feel like that long.

Maybe because at first, I didn’t think it was gonna take me 2 years to recover.

Maybe I was too busy focusing on the things I have to do every single day to focus on how much time has passed.

But I guess the ultimate reason is…

Taekwondo is a long-term game for me. Truly. I can imagine myself doing it forever. Maybe not always on the professional level…but it’s a way of living. Being a fighter is a lifestyle that I thoroughly enjoy, and I wasn’t ready to give it up.

I’m the type of player who plays to stay, not to win (h/t: Simon Sinek).

Moral of the story:

Think in decades, act in days.

And…

Choose games where thinking in decades and acting in days is the easiest for you.

Alright, my friends, that is a wrap.

I hope you enjoyed this story.

If yes, do let me know by replying to this email.

Talk on Sunday,

Claudia