Just six months ago, Joel Legg was in hospital recovering from a motorcycle accident. He managed his mental health using skills he learnt in therapy, with mood management linked to faster injury rehabilitation.
Sports psychologists say better mood can improve the body's ability to heal from physical injuries.Joel Legg faced a gruelling mental test after a motorcycle accident, but the 18-year-old had tools to manage his emotional wellbeing that he learned in therapy after his best friend died in 2022.
Now, just six months since he was battered and bruised in hospital, the keen water skier can feel free again on the Murray River with his mates and family.Joel grew up in South Australia's Murraylands in the small town of Cadell, learning to shred it up on the mighty Murray at five years old."I was watching the other paddock and by the time I looked forward he had stopped and I hit him once," he said.
"I felt huge relief straight away. Just talking about your feelings instead of keeping them bottled up," he said. "He was really disappointed and felt fatigued with the journey he found himself on," Joel's mum, Barb Legg, said."To motivate and be proud of how far he'd come in his recovery, to move forward with his goal at the forefront of his mind."