Deciding not to return to the sport that injured you can be a brave call too. Walking away on purpose isn’t quitting.

Leaving something after an injury gets read as giving up, often by you before anybody else says a word. The decision in front of you is a real one with real information in it: what your body can take now, what the risk looks like next time, what else you want these years for. A choice made deliberately, with the facts in hand, is not the same as disappearing.

If you are weighing this, keep the medical question and the identity question separate and get help with each. Ask a doctor about the body, and ask yourself what you would do with those hours. Nobody needs your answer today.