previous injuries cause pain?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/fe...etired-nfl-players-endure-a-lifetime-of-hurt/

One thing I read repeadedly in TMS books is that old injuries heal up and thats that. I've been doing TMS therapy for a year now and am doing more physically; yoga for 4 months, even some weight lifting. To be honest after thinking my body was weak my whole life (38 yrs old and fibromyalgia symptoms since teens) I have a mad desire to start getting really into martial arts, start playing rough contact sports on the weekend, brazillian jiu jitsu, you name it.
Then I read a lot about martial artists having more chronic pain and body issues than non martial artists, and this one really caught my eye; I'll paste it below; how the vast majority of ex NFL football players are in chronic pain. How can this be if TMS theory is true? I believe most of TMS theory about pain and it not being structural but check out this article; I wonder if normal wear and tear; even from martial arts or tennis or running are no big deal, but if it gets too extreme it really can be a future issue one pays for. I'd love some feedback.

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There were more than 30,000 injuries in the NFL in the 10-year period of 2002-11, including nearly 4,500 in 2011 alone, according to the league’s data. In any given season, there are roughly 2,000 players who suit up in an NFL uniform. In The Post survey, former players noted misgivings with the way NFL teams treated them when they got hurt.

Almost half of those surveyed (47 percent) said team doctors prioritized interests of the team over their health. Just 13 percent said they felt their health came first, while 36 percent said their health and team interests were prioritized equally. Nearly four in 10 players (38 percent) sought medical advice outside of team doctors and trainers during their careers, while nearly three in 10 (29 percent) said their teams discouraged them from seeking out those second opinions.

The NFL has undertaken wide-reaching measures to address player safety in recent years. It has formed half a dozen committees to examine rule and policy changes and invested in medical research on the impact of concussions, such as a $30 million grant to the National Institutes of Health. The league has changed rules to make kickoffs safer, protect defenseless receivers from jarring hits, bar the ballcarrier from leading with his helmet and require concussed players to be cleared by an independent neurologist before returning to action.

The league is also conducting an ongoing campaign to reform what executives say is a “culture” of playing through pain.

“That culture has existed and it needs to change,” said NFL Executive Vice President Jeff Pash. “That is a big part of what Commissioner [Roger] Goodell is trying to do. We’re trying to move toward a player safety culture. It’s going to take time, but I think we’re making progress, seeing them being more honest about their injuries.”

NFL executives and player advocates say there is a major stumbling block to trying to educate players in their prime to better protect themselves: The rewards of the NFL are much more tangible than any hypothetical injuries that, to them, loom far down the road.

“It’s like being awfully drunk at night and throwing up and swearing you will never let it happen again,” said Ralph Cindrich, a former NFL player who now serves as a player agent. “And the next morning you’re having a bloody mary at 9.”

There are financial incentives for playing through pain. Much of the money in a player’s contract is not guaranteed, so he doesn’t get paid if he suffers a season-ending blow. This can encourage players to ignore or hide injuries.

“It’s a very competitive business. There’s always somebody ready to step in if you can’t go,” said defensive end Tyoka Jackson, a District native who played from 1994 to 2006. “It really comes down to one question: Can you go? You try to make sure the answer is yes as much as possible.”

Nine in ten players surveyed by The Post reported playing while hurt during their careers, and 56 percent said they did so “frequently.” Nearly seven in 10 (68 percent) said they felt they had no choice in doing so.

“If you didn’t hurt while you were playing, then you weren’t playing,” Talley said.

Forty-nine percent of the former players surveyed said they wish they’d played while hurt less often.

Many said they were aware a football career entailed sacrifices that would impact their long-term health. In the 2006 offseason, the bone in Roman Oben’s left foot essentially split in half. He’d already won a Super Bowl and pocketed around $10 million over the course of his career. His wife and mother urged him to retire. Instead, Oben underwent two reconstructive procedures, as doctors fused the bone with a metal plate before wrapping it with a ligament from a cadaver.

“I knew then at 33, 34 years old, I was going to have trouble walking when I’m older,” he said. “I just knew it. . . . I made the decision. I said, ‘I don’t care. I deserve to work as hard as I can to improve the quality of life for my family. It’s my risk. I’m doing what I’m supposed to do.’ ”

Oben appeared in only six games in the two next seasons before retiring. He says today he has no regrets about his decision and the sacrifice he made.

The Post’s survey also revealed that the longer someone plays the game, the more likely he will be coping with its impact years later. Players who spent 10 or more years in the league were about twice as likely to have suffered five or more concussions, and more than twice as likely to have had five or more orthopedic surgeries. Although the vast majority of former players said they were “happy” to have played the game, those who played at least 10 years were about three times more likely to say they were “not happy.”

“You play until 35 or 36, you’re gonna pay for it,” said Oben, who spent 12 years in the league. “You’re not going to give up your house, the experiences you had, the financial security you were able to achieve – you’re not going to give that up. But all of it comes with a cost.”>>>>

 

The reason old injuries still hurt is because the original pain pathways in the brain are still programmed to feel pain. Much like the pain an amputee feels in a "ghost limb" that was amputated years before. I would imagine that trauma is the key here - the trauma of an accident, the trauma of an injury on the playing field, the trauma of a bullet wounds or explosion on the battlefield. I'd guess that a lot of old athletes begin to hurt when they begin to run downhill in middle age and have to accept their mortality. (Don't we all!). I would think that TMS plays a large role in recurrent pain from athletic injuries for that very reason.

 

great points Bruce and Mark thanks for the input!