No matter the gratitude of the injury, being sidelined from a sport you love can be extremely difficult for any athlete. Along with this, an ACL tear is one of the most devastating injuries for any athlete. We sat down with previously sidelined athletes to hear more about their experience with an ACL injury, and what advice they have for others going through similar injuries.
Athlete Spotlight
We created a google form and sent it to a few athletes we know personally who have experienced some sort of injury. Here is a snip it of what was on the form:
We want to know about your experience! Include anything you believe others should know or could benefit from. We will be using your words to make a story on our Athlete Stories page of our website. We understand that being injured is as tough physically as it is mentally, so we greatly appreciate you sharing your experience.
Big thank you to the featured young women who took the time to give very thoughtful answers.
We want to know about your experience! Include anything you believe others should know or could benefit from. We will be using your words to make a story on our Athlete Stories page of our website. We understand that being injured is as tough physically as it is mentally, so we greatly appreciate you sharing your experience.
Big thank you to the featured young women who took the time to give very thoughtful answers.
Haley Davis
Haley Davis is a recently graduated Severn alum who plays D1 field hockey at Holy Cross College. Haley started playing field hockey in third grade. Haley has had a total of three knee injuries. In her first injury, Haley tore her right ACL as well as her meniscus. In her second injury, Haley tore her left ACL and her left meniscus in a third injury and her right meniscus once again in a fourth injury. When asked about the injury Haley says, "Both times I tore my ACL, I was playing lacrosse and I was playing defense. I was changing direction and felt a big pop." Although Haley is no longer in the recovery process she has had a total of four knee injuries total. Haley says it is all about motivation when you are recovering, "You have to keep yourself motivated instead of relying on your 'next game' or 'next practice' because for you, you don't have those."
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Haley also emphasized the importance of connecting with other athletes with similar experiences, "One key moment that stuck with me especially after my second ACL surgery was a phone call I had with a Penn State Lacrosse Player who had the same timeline of injuries as me and had heard about me and knew what I would be going through mentally...She told me that good athletes will come out of this injury the same as they were before, mentally and physically, but great athletes will learn and grow mentally and physically from this huge challenge and make it what makes them great. So basically I took that and ran with it and I've thought about that ever since."
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Phrase used to describe her personal knee journey:
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One piece of advice to others:
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Kaylee Bates
Kaylee Bates is a 4 sport athlete and has had her fair share of injuries. This year Kaylee is a graduating senior at South River high school, committed to attend the University of Delaware in 2021! She has played lacrosse, basketball, and soccer since kindergarten. She also started playing volleyball in her junior year of highschool. Unfortunately, Kaylee has dealt with 4 knee injuries-- 3 ACL tears and severe medial meniscal damage. We asked Kaylee to recall the moment she tore her first ACL, "I was playing club lacrosse in a summer tournament and was wearing my trusty cleats. The goalie had just saved the ball and cleared it to me on defense, I turned towards the side line and ran up the field. An opposing player then ran towards me and up checked my shoulder, knocking me off balance. I instinctively planted my right foot to remain in bounds and with that my knee buckled out." Athletes can experience an ACL tear from contact, such as Kaylee, or athletes can plant and pivot their leg in the wrong way. Both can result in a complete ACL tear. Every time she tore her ACL she underwent revision surgery, in addition to the grueling recovery process, consisting of 9-10 months of physical therapy.
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We asked Kaylee to describe her emotions and moments that stuck with her throughout the recovery process, "Throughout my first recovery process I was very determined and set on healing and being able to play again. The next two times after that my mindset kind of changed a little. Tearing your ACL 3 times and having to repeat the grueling recovery process every single time really hurt me. It's a lot more than people think. I was waking up and going to pt (physical therapy) before school at about 5:30 because I was still insisting on being the managers for my sports". Most people don't understand that an ACL knee injury is more than a physical challenge to overcome, but more of a mental battle. Kaylee is an amazingly strong individual who overcame the toughest injury with positivity and maturity.
We asked Kaylee what her overall outlook is toward her injuries and what was one value she gained looking back in the entirety of the process, "Looking back on everything that I have been through in regards to my knee I would say that I am proud of myself. Throughout the process as much as I was so frustrated with everything I remained calm and proud of myself. I had to keep reminding myself that this is not normal Kaylee. No one should have to go through this at all yet alone 3 times and I keep reminding myself that I should be proud. My body is so strong and my mind is even stronger". |
Phrase used to describe her personal knee journey:
Everything happens for a reason |
One piece of advice to others:
Take your time and do it right. Also do not expect other people to understand what you're growing through just trust and take care of your body. Listen to it. |
Arielle Hillock
Arielle Hillock is a Severn School Senior who will be attending Columbia University Dual BA, Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. Arielle has played goalie for field hockey and lacrosse since elementary/middle school. Emma, Regan, and I have all played with Arielle on both the lacrosse and field hockey field since freshman year. Arielle's Junior year of high school, she tore her ACL in her left leg. During a scrimmage against South River, she was in goal, made a jump to stop a goal and her knee gave out. "Very odd scenario as I had done that same jump 100 times before". ACL injuries in Goalies are very uncommon, so we believe Arielle had underlying issues regarding hip and ankle strength caused by past injuries. She had broken her left leg and ankle, which is the same leg as the ACL tear. She had her surgery June 11, 2020, so she is 11 months post-op and still working on getting stronger. We asked Arielle where she is currently in the recovery process and if she was facing any difficulties, "gaining back muscle in left leg, specifically quad. Having significant trouble gaining quad muscle. Very difficult to manage gym with sports practices school and other extracurriculars". Even though Arielle was cleared to play in Severn's spring lacrosse season, but her recovery process doesn't stop there.
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We asked Arielle to describe her emotions and moments that stuck with her throughout the recovery process, "Being sidelines while everyone else was able to play some games for a senior field hockey season was pretty painful...A more liberating and exciting moment was the first time after surgery that I was able to circle my leg around a stationary bike. My physical therapist was so happy for me and I was elated to finally feel like I could do something again". Going through an ACL injury, leaves the athlete wondering why me or why do I have to go through this? The mental battle is a daily occurrence, so every small win is huge for the recovering athlete.
Another question we asked Arielle was, what was or is your outlook towards the injury and what is one value you gained looking back on the entirety of the process, " In the beginning, I was pretty optimistic. I thought I would be back in 6 months to doing everything I loved. I had no idea that I would lose literally all of the muscle in my left leg...somehow nobody told me this and I feel very dumb admitting it! As the recovery went on, I felt more discouraged and wondered if I would ever fully heal. [one value she gained is] The ability to be content with myself and not need to feel like I need to be the star athlete on the field and need to be involved in everything. Sometimes it's okay to take a break and be a supporting teammate (it can often be more fulfilling)". |
Phrase used to describe her personal knee journey:
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One piece of advice to others:
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