Life & Therapy

Recently, I watched the movie “Murderball” which is an excellent documentary about a powerful, tough, and inspiring group of quadriplegic rugby players.  There is much that is worth seeing in this film, so I highly recommend it.  Today, I am focused on one quote in particular, by team member Andy Cohn, while describing the period of rehabilitation one goes through after becoming paralyzed.  He says that many people experience a stage of denial, grasping onto the idea that they will walk again, and not wanting to accept the reality of their loss.  The denial and grasping become an obstacle to rehabilitation, which is a long, hard road by itself: “Your mind becomes a bigger disability than the physical stuff,” says Cohn. 

This quote can be applied to so much in life.  When we don’t want to accept the truth about any situation that we are in, we become stuck.  Our mind paralyzes us by trying to change what can’t be changed: a mistake from the past that we regret, a loss of something or someone precious, a physical limitation such as infertility.  As long as we are caught in the holding pattern of trying to deny the reality that we are faced with, we can’t mourn.  If we can’t mourn, we can’t move on and see what we can do with what is left.  If you find yourself fighting some painful truth in this way, watching Murderball may be just the thing to give you some perspective.