ATHLETE INTERVIEWS

Kendall Duncan

Kendall Duncan has been dealing with knee injuries throughout her 4-year high school career. She started playing basketball at the age of 5 and fell in love with the game and has been playing ever since. For her entire life, her dream has been to play women's college basketball - however her knee had other plans. She recently had her 3rd knee surgery and ACL reconstruction, but is still fighting the fight!

1) Can you share your ACL story?

I first tore my knee up playing basketball freshman year of high school. I tore my meniscus, cracked femur, shattered knee cap, and had horrible bone bruises. That led me into having 2 major knee surgeries. I was out for 13 months for recovery. So I missed my freshman & sophomore year of playing basketball. I was good to go by my junior year. Although I tweaked my knee in a game that season, but didn’t do anything about it. My knee eventually got worse throughout the summer & wasn’t feeling it’s best by the time senior year rolled in. I was elevated with a partially torn ACL. My doc said I could play the season through the pain or have surgery to go ahead & fix it.

Of course I chose to I play my entire senior b-ball season with a torn ACL in a knee brace and I dominated, leading my team to state playoffs. It was definitely challenging, mentally and physically, I would be aggravated with my knee not being able to do certain stuff in practice & living in pain the entire season because as the season progressed, my leg was getting worse. I stuck it out being the strong willed, determined athlete I am. I actually had the best season despite the leg, we had a great season along with my family, team, and coaches supporting me the whole way. I finally had ACL reconstruction one month after the season. My ACL by then was absolutely shredded.

I’m now 10 weeks post op & I’m hanging in here during the hardest recovery ever since my knee has been through so much in 3 knee surgeries. People think I’m crazy for going through of all this and still wanting to play the game of basketball. I’ve proved a lot of people wrong, I do this and continue to rehab because who I am and for the love of the game. I still have people who look at me and are stunned that of what I did my senior year playing through the pain with a torn ACL, I did it because I was strong enough and for the game.

2) What was the hardest part of the experience?

Hardest part to me is being able to stay strong and think positive when you feel like your world is falling apart. You have to be able to stay motivated through these recoveries. The question of “Why Me?” is always constant on my mind, like why did this happen in the first place to me. The mental side of this injury is definitely harder than physical sometimes.

There are times where I want to give up because I’ve been through so much and I’m getting sick of it. But I have to stop myself because there’s no way I will ever give up, I just have to get through the hard parts. Also, my entire life I have been wanting to play college basketball, I only played 2 years of high school basketball due to my knee, but I trained & played hard to make sure to make up for it. I had the chance to play and opportunities from some small schools, but I knew after my senior season, I had to get my leg fixed and put my basketball shoes up for a while. I think that’s the hardest part I’m struggling with now is if I’ll play basketball again. I have days now where I don’t want to do anything and just have hard “mental days”, where it is hard to think positive about everything because all I want to do is be better and free of pain, but it takes time.

3) How did you stay motivated throughout the process?

I think that being an athlete that has gone through so much, reminds me that I can do anything I put my mind too. I know that God has a plan despite everything that has happened to me. It has been tough, this last surgery has been the worst recovery so far. It gets mind boggling when your on your 3rd recovery & all you want to do is be that athlete you once were and get back on that court.

I always tell myself that I can do anything because I’m a strong woman and I have to get through this to get back to my active life. People act like they know what I’ve been through, but they don’t because you have to go through it in order to understand.

4) What tips/advice would you share with other athletes on the road to recovery?

Advice I would give is that just know it will get hard and challenging to the point where you might want to give up but do not. It’s not worth it. You’re an athlete, you can do anything you put your mind too. It’s a long recovery, but you just have to stay on top of your rehab and think positive. I know injuries are not fun at all. I’ve been dealing with one for 4 years and counting now. There the worst things ever in my eyes for athletes.

I’ve lived through a comeback to playing basketball after 13 months of rehab from my first 2 surgeries and it was the best feeling ever. The struggle and the adversity is all so worth it. No athlete is truly tested until they’ve endured an injury and come out on the other side stronger than ever. The comeback is always stronger and better than your setback. You have to be at your strongest when you feel at your weakest. Remember to celebrate your small victories as well! :)

5) Do you think these experiences have changed you as a person?

Definitely has changed me as a person. These obstacles and journey has made me so much stronger and realize that things never go the way you planned, but it’s the way you respond and look at the situation. You can either let it take over you by not doing anything, or take control and go through the storm to get to the top again. I’ve been through a lot the past few years, and I know that I’m not the same person as I was when I first got injured. It has also made me appreciate things in life more. I never knew how easy and quick the game could be taken from me. I was an all star basketball player and never knew this would happen to me. I appreciate things more in life now and don’t take anything for granted.

Cameron Brosnihan

Cameron Brosnihan is one of the youngest athletes to tear his ACL. Remarkably, he tore his ACL at the age of 9 playing football, and then made a successful comeback, leading his team to win the Eastern Championship! 

About me: I am almost 11 now. I am athletic and smart. My favorite things are football and math.  

1) Can you share your ACL story? 

I was playing football and was at safety and I was blitzing. I took a step to try and hit the quarterback but while my foot was planted I got hit from behind and it twisted and I fell hard. My ACL snapped. 

3) How did you stay motivated throughout the process? 

I wanted to go back to football for the next season.

2) What was the hardest part of the experience?

Physical Therapy was the hardest part. It can be boring and long. 

4) What advice would you give to other athletes on the road to recovery?

Don’t give up and keep on trying!

5) Do you think this experience changed you as a person?

Yes, it makes me think that I can do anything and I also have a different perspective of people in wheelchairs and on crutches.

 Read Cameron's inspiring ACL story told from the perspective of his mother

Tasha Baber

Tasha Baber is a 33-year old power-lifter who loves exercise and has lost over 80 lbs in the past two years. She does Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competitively, but tore her ACL as a result of a very unfortunate trampoline accident. 

1) Can you share your ACL story?

It's not even a good story, which almost makes it worse. For someone who does Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, I engage in a ton of "risky" behavior frequently. My ACL tear happened while I was at a trampoline park, but not while I was doing anything fun. I was standing watching my 6 year old play when a teenager came flying off the trampoline. He kicked me in the side of my knee and must have hit the angle just right because I went straight down. I knew it was bad when my first thought was "I need a doctor." In the end it would take three different doctors before I convinced one to give me an MRI. Initially my torn ACL was misdiagnosed as a sprained MCL. Apparently the muscles in my leg was holding my knee stable.

2) What was the hardest part of the experience?

For me, the surgery was the scariest part. I handle pain well and I don't mind hard work, but I hate being out of control. Don't be ashamed or embarrassed to tell the anesthesiologist or the nurses if you are scared....I sure let them know!!! I needed some help once I came home, and asking for help can be difficult...but again, it is worth it and nothing to be ashamed about. Being away from my MMA gym was hard and losing weights on my lifts was hard, but in a different way. I can make up those goals and get back and become better. I don't mind backsliding a little as a result of surgery and I don't mind working hard to regain that ground.

3) How did you stay motivated throughout the process? I had to let go of goals I had before surgery and sort of reset. If you accept your injured state as your new baseline, then you can set goals that are realistic to where you are. It was hard to go from training to compete in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu to working on getting my knee to bend enough to be able to pedal a stationary bike, but that goal was just as (maybe more) valuable.

4) What advice would you give to other athletes on the road to recovery?

1) DO NOT DO WHAT I DID and eat EVERYTHING in sight. I gained almost 30 lbs from weeks 0-8 and then had to spend weeks 9-16 taking those pounds back off. Either meal prep pre-op, or stock up on protein bars and powder, or something....anything but eating a 3 lbs bag of Swedish Fish your first week home and then just going downhill from there.

2) Take it easy, kind of. I wanted to push and push and get back to things. My PT did an amazing job of pushing me while keeping my graft safe. You will get back to your life faster if you take the early days a little slower. Do your PT exercises as much as you can, obviously, but make sure you have a PT you trust who understands your goals. I was able to explain to my PT the movements that were important to BJJ and that I needed back and she was able to tailor my protocol to make sure I met those goals. Make sure your PT is familiar and uses a good return to sports testing protocol for graduation from PT.

3) Do interview a few surgeons. Ask them what population they work with. Ask them about grafts, tunnel placement, retear rates, ask them WHATEVER you want. Read research....real research, not what someone posts online (but read that too.) Focus on YOUR sport and YOUR body. The "gold standard" for a football player and the "gold standard" for you may not be the same. But....once you've chosen your doctor, trust them. You picked them for a reason.

5) Do you think these experiences changed you as a person?

I suppose. I still get a little angry when people say "I'm so glad this happened to me, I learned how strong I really am." I'd already fought and won against obesity and anxiety (well, anxiety and I will always fight, but the gym helps me with that). I already knew I was strong. But I guess it did show me that my love of BJJ and fitness wasn't a phase or a fad. It showed me I love my sports and I can't wait to compete again. It also showed me I have some pretty amazing people in my life; my gym teammates, coaches and personal trainer, my friends and especially my husband who went above and beyond consistently during my recovery. So while I hope I'm in the group of people who only tear their ACL once, I also know if it happens again I can handle it just fine.

Holly Aiston

Holly Aiston is a 21 year old Exercise physiology student, and hopes to one day open her own clinic and help others with knee and other injuries. She is a sports fanatic, and especially loves AFL football! 

1) Can you share your ACL story?

So I tore my ACL when I was 16 - I was playing basketball in phys ed at school! My dad actually didn’t believe me when I told him that something was wrong! So it took me about a month to get him to allow me to have an MRI - we got it back and I had completely torn my ACL partially torn my PCL, fractured my femur and I had some pretty crazy bore bruising! Dad didn’t want to get me surgery because he didn’t want to pay for it, so a few months later my mum took me to see a public specialist to get me on a wait list. I waited 9 months to have my knee operated on. Within this time I continued to play volleyball for my school which was great but I wasn’t able to be active playing other sports that I would usually play. I fell into some depression and developed an eating disorder, as a way to control the way I was feeling. Anyways, once I had surgery I got back to volleyball 4 months post-op and started playing netball again a year after. Last year (aged 20), I played my first year of Australian rules football and I truly fell in love with the game! I’ve grown up watching it, my brother was named after a player but as a girl I never got to play. In my preliminary final last year, I collapsed, the exact same way I did with my first incident. I knew instantly that I had torn my ACL again and walked myself off to the bench. I luckily got myself private health insurance at the start of the year in case anything like this was to happen again! I had surgery 2 weeks later, I am now 9 months post op to the day! I have struggled from time to time with this knee but have gone back to volleyball for the season and will get back to football next year.

2) What was the hardest part of the experience?

I think the hardest part was not being able to play sports that you love, that allow you to have an outlet and also then not having the same connection with all the friends you play with socially it is hard too!

3) How did you stay motivated throughout the process?

I have kept thinking about how good it’s going to be to get back out on the field and play again. I’ve also kept motivated by knowing that I’m making myself stronger both mentally and physically with every day I keep moving forwards

4) What advice would you give to other athletes on the road to recovery?

Positivity is 100% the key, you will have good days and bad and on the bad ones you need to be around people who can create positivity when you are struggling. I have an amazing family that looked after me when I struggled and I try and create as much positivity around a crappy situation, I try and use it as an incentive to improve myself beyond what I was before my injury!

5) Do you think these experiences changed you as a person?

I really do, my injuries have broken my heart but they have helped me become more resilient and have shaped my life. Although these experiences have been really tough, I believe that they have helped define who I am today. I am a much more resilient person and I am also studying to be an exercise physiologist where I hope to one day set up my own rehab centre to help those with knee and all injuries have a positive space to heal! It’s been a rollercoaster! Although it has sucked in many ways I am grateful for the experience! 

Amy Baker

Amy Baker is passionate about soccer, and has battled through 4 ACL reconstructions.

1) Can you share the story of how you tore your ACL multiple times?

I remember the first time as clear as day, little did I know it was the start of the hardest journey I’ve possibly ever had to deal with. The first time I completely ruptured my ACL was a game against a local team. I remember receiving the ball and had already gone to make my next movement into space when a player from the opposing team completely took me out with an horrendous challenge. The second time was unfortunate, I was 2 minutes into my first game back when I slipped in some mud on the pitch, I knew straight away I’d tore my ACL on my other knee as soon as I went down. The third and fourth happened 2 games back after recovering from my previous reconstructions. I jumped to head he ball and landed really bad on my leading leg - again, I knew the pain by now really well and was absolutely devastated.

2) What was the hardest part of the experience?

My surgeon telling me I’d never play again. I got to a stage where getting out of bed was difficult, socializing was difficult and even speaking/watching football became a really struggle. It made me hit rock bottom and I did go through a stage where I struggled with every day life. It has a bigger effect on me than most people knew about. Probably only my mum was aware.

3) How did you stay motivated throughout the process?

I kept thinking after each reconstruction there is no way it will happen again if I do my rehab right, I’ve never known anyone to be this unlucky. I just had to keep nailing rehab and working hard really, I would never have imagined it would have happened 4 times - it’s unbelievable really.

4) What advice would you give to other athletes on the road to recovery?

Never give up. It’s an easy cheesy line to say but that has been the key for me. I’m currently still working back from my last op in February and I’m feeling really good and positive. I know my own body and my knees now and this is the best they have felt. I’m hopefully looking to start back training in August and fingers crossed I’ll get the luck and the break I deserve after what has been 5 years of hell.

5) Do you think these experiences changed you as a person? 

Most definitely. I was never a player who turned up for training and matches and didn’t give 110%. I was the player who no matter how many miles I had to walk to get to training or no matter what happened I would never miss a session. Football has been my life since I started playing since the age of 6 and I’m not prepared to give up yet. It has definitely made me more mature, I know sometimes no matter how hard you work, it doesn’t always work out. Patience is key. If I could turn back time I wish none of this ever happened however it has and has taught me some valuable lessons along the way at a young age which I will carry with me for the rest of my life.

JP Herrera

JP Herrera is currently a pilot - prior to getting into aviation, he spent 5 years as a lieutenant in the army. He has been playing soccer since the age of 3.

1) Can you share your ACL story?

I was playing soccer (on a turf field) - I just had a good and successful season (league promotion, cup trophy) and during my first post-season match I hyper-extended my left knee trying to cut a pass. The ER doctor told me it was just a patella subluxation and that I would be back in 30 days. It actually took me 90 days, and the first turn I took, I heard the pop and experienced the worst pain in my entire life. It's like a whole movie of your sports life starts going through your mind, and you see it all going away from you. It can be scary for people whose life is vastly based on playing sports.

2) What was the hardest part of the experience?

The period between the ACL injury and the surgery - the uncertainty of when/if I was getting the surgery, and being sent back and forth to general physicians and orthopedic doctors. The first week post-operation was tough; relying on other people (regardless of how much they love you) to help with the most basic hygiene tasks can be totally dejecting and depressing.

3) How did you stay motivated throughout the process?

Perceiving the whole process as just another challenge in life that several people have overcome, rather than the one limitation that would forever change everything my life was built upon (sports).

4) What tips/advice would you share with other athletes on the road to recovery?

• Do not dwell on the problem or injury
• Choose to focus only on what you have control over, which is the recovery
• Ensure your metabolism is working at its highest capacity
• Make sure you provide your body with every tool required to heal the graft as soon as possible
• Steadily push your rehab up to discomfort, but never to the pain limit.

5) Do you think these experiences have changed you as a person?

Absolutely. It implacably reminds us of how fragile our bodies, lifestyles and confidence are. And every time our parameters are lowered, we tend to feel blessed with the little things in life. It puts things in a whole new perspective.