This past week, I passed what was probably the biggest milestone of my collegiate career (second to graduating)- I finished my last day of physical therapy. Now, I know what you're thinking, ok good job Paris, but what's the big deal? Here's the deal: I spent so much time in physical therapy during college, I practically majored in it.
Most don't know my story, so here's a little bit of context. I was an athlete...a serious athlete. I played elite basketball since I was 10 years old with the dream of playing in the WNBA. My junior year of high school, I committed to play Division 1 basketball at Belmont University in Nashville- where our story begins.
Here's the crazy part, you will be hard pressed to find any shred of evidence proving that I ever spent any time on the court at Belmont. The reason? I spent three out of my four years on the sideline recovering from injury. To put that into perspective, I spent three out of my four college Christmas breaks in bed recuperating from reconstructive knee surgery. Of the 134 games that Belmont participated in during my 4 years, I was only on the court for 42 of them (and not necessarily for lack of talent).
My freshman, junior and senior years were plagued with ACL tears. To put it bluntly, I averaged a staggering .75 ACL tears per season (that has to be a record breaking statistic, right?!).
For those who aren't aware, an ACL, or Anterior Cruciate Ligament, is the very small and very crucial ligament on the inside of your knee that keeps your knee from shifting when you change direction. A.k.a: VERY important for basketball and equally difficult to repair.
ACL tears happen often in basketball due to the quick changes in direction, cutting at high speeds, and flying through the air. It is also one of the worst diagnoses you can receive as an athlete because it means your season is over. Surgery is the only way to repair ACL tears and the recovery time is six to nine months.
So, let's bring this back full circle. My freshman, junior, and senior years were filled with surgeries and rehab and physical therapy. I spent around 20 months, a.k.a. over half of my college career, in physical therapy and treatment. My trainers and doctors became as close and important to me as my teammates and coaches. Our successes and achievements as important as what happened on the court.
This past Christmas, during my most recent ACL recovery, I made the very difficult decision to retire from basketball. Not because I was tired of rehab; not because I was over playing basketball; not even because I was scared of tearing my ACL again (but with my staggering statistic, who could blame me?). It was because I knew all of this was happening for a reason. Something was telling me that there was something greater out there for me than basketball.
So for the past six months of physical therapy and treatment, I operated with a different mindset and motivation: finish strong.
As of June 28, 2019, I am officially done with physical therapy forever. Done recovering, done battling, and also done playing basketball.
Although physical therapy was an ongoing fight and battle to get back to full-strength, it was also a huge part of my life. I saw it as my character training as much as it was my knee training. It showed me just how strong I actually am. It showed me that I can endure so much more than I thought I could. The same is true for basketball. So yes, while I am VERY grateful that the pain and frustration of therapy is over, there is also a little bit of sadness. It has been all I've known for the past four years. My trainers and therapists became friends and family.
So, while June 28th marks the end of an era, it also marks the beginning of a spectacular new journey. A journey for which I am fully equipped thanks to my major in Overcoming Adversity and my minor in Resilience afforded to me by the most challenging and rewarding road I have ever traversed in my life. For that, I count myself incredibly blessed.
-Paris
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