"Life after Aaron Rodgers now begins:" Radio hosts field calls from concerned fans
GREEN BAY -- Green Bay Packers' QB Aaron Rodgers broke his collarbone during the Packers' matchup vs. the Minnesota Vikings Sunday, October 15th, and he could be out for the season. Rodgers' injury has caught the attention of mental health professionals, who offered some advice on a Monday after a Packers' loss, with many heartbroken over Rodgers' health. His injury will require surgery, Coach Mike McCarthy said Monday afternoon.
"Life after Aaron Rodgers now begins," Bill Michaels said on sports radio Monday. "It's not what any of us wanted to see any time soon if you are a Packers' fan."
Bill Michaels
When something doesn't go your way, one of the best things to do is to talk about it, whether with friends or people like Michaels who host talk radio shows.
"There's a lot of people taking a big gasp," Michaels said.
On Monday, Michaels helped Packers' fans from across the state come to terms with what happened Sunday at US Bank Stadium vs. the Vikings.
"The easiest way to describe it is the air went out of a balloon in the collective state of Packers' nation, so when Aaron Rodgers goes down, so do many of the hopes of going to a Super Bowl," Michaels said.
When it comes to football fans, who invest a lot into something they have no control over, grief over an injury can resonate.
Dr. John Ernst
"To many people, I've heard today there was a great shock to them," Dr. John Ernst, psychotherapist said.
He said Rodgers breaking his collarbone could be clinically unnerving for certain fans, and encouraged them to find healthy outlets for their feelings.
"I think people need to assess just how much of their personal emotion they are investing into something they cannot control. To work them through the stages of grief, which can first be disbelief and shock and feeling down about it."
Aaron Rodgers hurt vs. Vikings
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - OCTOBER 15: Aaron Rodgers #12 of the Green Bay Packers rides a cart into the locker room after being injured during the first quarter of the game against the Minnesota Vikings on October 15, 2017 at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, M
This isn't the first time Rodgers has been sidelined by a collarbone injury. In 2013, he fractured his collarbone in a Week 8 matchup vs. the Bears.
Experts say no matter how similar the injuries may seem, no two are ever the same.
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - OCTOBER 15: Aaron Rodgers #12 of the Green Bay Packers clenches his right knee after being hit during the first quarter of the game against the Minnesota Vikings on October 15, 2017 at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
"They're completely different animals to kind of look at, and that's what we really warn people about when they have a similar injury to a different side is that -- no two injuries are the same. No two shoulders are the same. It's...each one has to be looked at individually," Dr. Chad Beck, orthopedic trauma surgeon with Froedtert and the Medical College of Wisconsin.
In 2013, Rodgers returned after eight weeks. With surgery required, doctors estimate the recovery time could be months.