The road to recovery is a long, painful and challenging journey. Athletes from FHC are opening up about all they have done to push through the harshness of a sports-related injury. 

Head Athletic Trainer CJ Strawser explains the impact that having an injury has on a young teen’s mind, especially a teen that is an athlete.

“Depending on how you perceive yourself, it can be as severe as losing your sense of identity,” CJ said. “When you measure yourself by your ability to perform athletically, you are left with a lot of things to figure out, like, ‘who am I without sports?'”

Athletes who are injured have a harder time growing as a person and athlete when they have to sit on the bench and wait to heal. Freshman Joel Ford had surgery on his arm and unfortunately will not be able to participate in the 2022 baseball season. With the recovery time being so long, Joel is going to do everything he can to make sure he can play in the 2023 season. 

“I play baseball; I hurt myself throwing a baseball. I tore a ligament in my arm,” Joel said. “I cannot do much because I am in a cast. It sucks that I can not play baseball, but the recovery is four to six months. I plan on getting right back into playing.”

Injuries are a difficult thing for anyone to go through, but it especially takes a toll on the athlete. Letting the injury define them makes the process much more difficult.

“If they understand who they are and are willing to work hard, most of the time they will come back better than they were before,” CJ said. “But, if they let their injury define them and they don’t work, they will often struggle more with their comeback.”

Being injured is a hard road, especially when as an athlete. Missing the season is something that no athlete could even imagine. Ellis Le talks about how the injury is impacting him and how he is working through missing his season. He is a freshman at FHC who is hoping to play lacrosse this year but unfortunately tore his LCL skiing. The injury has taken a toll on his ability to prepare for the season. 

“I tore my LCL and it really took a toll on me because I can’t exercise and be ready for the upcoming season. I hope to get back to playing my sport before the end of the season,” Ellis said. “I miss playing.”

Overall, it is hard to describe the toll that being hurt can have on the mind and body.

“Athletes are changed both physically and mentally from an injury. It happens every time, but the way they change is often dictated by the attitude and work rate of the person, ” CJ said.