“You’ve torn your ACL.” No words any athletic wants to hear. Especially a junior in high school who is going to play on in college. A few things that first came to mind when the news hit me. Will I keep my scholarship? How do I come back from such an injury? Will I be able to progress in my career and achieve the goals I have set for myself?
These were all things that I had no control over until I had the surgery. I knew I was going to miss my senior year of high school; and I knew that I would be sitting out my final club season as well. I felt as if I wasn't just letting down myself but my teammates as well. When an athlete goes through an injury the only thing on their mind should be, how can I get better? What can I do to make myself come out stronger than I was before? With the help of my parents, coaches, and friends that is exactly what I did. I had a double cadaver replacement in my knee right before my senior year of high school. Nine months of intensive rehab later and I was almost as good as new. Taking that year off is nothing that I could have predicted but there were multiple things that I learned from it.
When any athlete goes through an injury they learn to appreciate the game at a much different level. The whole point of having surgery is so that we can keep playing the game that we love. All of a sudden this switch goes off and nothing else matters as much as getting your body in the best shape ever so that you can get back out on the court.
It is this mindset that I want all athletes to have without going through an injury. The best way to avoid having surgery is by keeping your body in shape throughout the year. This means doing your cardio, strength conditioning and eating healthy.
Coming back from my knee injury wasn't easy, but it was worth it. If there are any athletes reading this post going through an injury right now, I want you to know that you are not alone, and that you will make it through it. You will come out stronger and more determined than before.
At some point in an athletes career they will experience some sort of injury and it is the positive mindset they must have to get them through it. Also the realization that things are never as bad as they seem and that pain is temporary was a consistent reminder that helped me get through my injury, and continue my goal of playing in college.
I dub this article the post tryout autopsy. The hard part is over you think -- you made it through tryouts with the drills and the physical tests, all while acting as if it was just another day at the office. You take off the sweaty knee pads, walk out of tryouts and wait… wait… wait to see what team you made. Maybe you check every day even though results are not supposed to be for another five days, but just in case you check. And then finally the link is up...