Matty James says he is prepared to battle through the pain barrier for the remainder of Wrexham's run-in after re-living some "bad memories" during his recovery from injury.
The central midfielder was sidelined for two months due to a toe injury sustained in his side's 2-0 loss to Millwall on 7 February.
But, after being dealt a setback during his spell on the sidelines, the 34-year-old made his long-awaited return to action against Southampton last time out.
"It's been a bit of a downer for me because my injuries over my career have been pretty bad," he said.
"I think that, when I get one, it brings a lot of bad memories back for me.
"I'm really pleased to be back out there and hopefully now I can stay fit for the rest of the season and try and help the team the best I can whenever the gaffer selects me."
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The midfielder missed the entirety of Leicester City's stunning 2015-16 Premier League title-winning campaign due to a cruciate knee ligament injury.
Prior to his latest injury, James had been among Wrexham's best performers this season.
But the former Manchester United youth player says his previous spells on the sidelines helped him remain in a positive frame of mind over the past two months.
"I've not had many injuries in the last couple of years and that was the first one that I've had here, so that was a bit tough," he said.
"It was at a time of the season where I was playing well and enjoying my football and I think it's hard to take, but it was out of my control.
"That's one thing that I remembered back with some of my injuries is that there's nothing I can do, the body will heal when it's ready."
Despite his lengthy period out of action, James' foot issue has still not fully healed, although he vowed to push through the pain barrier as the Red Dragons continue to push for a Championship play-off spot.
"Now, it's not perfect, but I'm in a position where I'm able to function and help the team as best I can," he explained.
"I was trying to return, trying not to return, then trying to return. I think it's hard when the stage of the season that we were at, I was trying to push it and trying to get the balance right.
"It's still grumbling a bit now, but I think I'm in a position now where I can train, I can play and just grin and bear it a little bit.
"I'm ready to do that, we've got five games remaining and we'll see where it takes us."
Wrexham dropped out of the top six as a result of their 5-1 loss to Southampton at Stok Cae Ras last time out.
They now sit two points behind the Saints – who have a game in hand – before their return to action against Birmingham City at St Andrew's on Sunday (12:00 BST).
"Five games is a long time. We go into Sunday, hopefully we get the three points and it might look a little bit better," James added.
"It's a gruelling league and it's a very, very competitive league. So I think for us to still be in with a shout (of reaching the play-offs) is very, very good.
"It's something similar to last year, we dropped out of the top two with a few games to go. There's so many things that can happen and so many games of football left for us."
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