Athletics and injuries often go hand-in-hand. It is expected, at some point in an athlete’s career, that they will experience physical injuries ranging from a mild sprain to a life-threatening accident. With the variance of injuries comes differences in treatment methods: Some can be tackled with sessions of rehabilitation, while others can end a player’s season or entire career.
According to a study conducted in 2023 by the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons across 100 United States high schools, high school students suffered more than 5.2 million sport-related injuries between 2015 and 2019. 34 percent of these injuries prevented student athletes from participating in their sport for less than a week, 32% caused an inability to play for one to three weeks, and 20% resulted in students discontinuing the sport entirely.
In a field where peak physical condition is essential to staying ahead and performing well, being sidelined for any period of time can have a negative mental impact on athletes, especially those who are typically high-performing. They can start to doubt their abilities, overwork in order to catch up, or develop a fear of re-injury. The time to realize the injury’s severity differs from person to person. When senior Leilani Griffin hit the ground after being slide tackled in a soccer game, the pain radiating through her knee instantly told her that she’d be sitting out for the rest of the season.
Griffin later discovered that she tore her medial collateral ligament and bruised her meniscus. These injuries sent her to physical therapy only weeks before the high school season was slated to begin.
It was three months before Griffin could run and rejoin practice. As her mobility returned, she was able to participate in more intense activities, such as deadlifts and sprints. Still, activities like running a mile, which she could have easily completed pre-injury, were difficult. On her lowest days, she felt weary and dejected.
“It was pretty bad, because some of the days, it would hurt to do anything, or especially to just move,” she said. “I just felt like I couldn’t do anything.”
Since then, Griffin has returned to soccer and is leaving her injury days behind her. On the other hand, junior Toby Wong still waits for his injured wrist to completely heal. Wong, who plays volleyball, first hurt his wrist in a bike-related incident. While he hoped for it to naturally heal by wearing a brace for a couple of weeks, his condition did not improve. A magnetic resonance imaging scan revealed that he had torn his triangular fibrocartilage complex. With six weeks in a cast and several physical therapy sessions ahead, sports began to flicker out of his life.
“(The injury) definitely made volleyball a (smaller part) of my life,” he said. “I was pretty focused, and I would train a lot, and, now, a lot less of my time goes into volleyball.”
The thought of a missed opportunity lingered in Wong’s mind. He had been placed on the varsity team, but became injured right before the first game and missed the rest of the season for recovery. At first, he still attended practices, but he eventually realized that watching his teammates play only made him feel more alone. Moreover, he was frustrated with how suddenly his hobbies had been taken away from him.
“I just couldn’t do what I love,” he said. “I couldn’t cut hair, I couldn’t lift. I felt stupid because my cast was so ugly. I just felt dumb.”
For some athletes, neglecting physical issues becomes a second nature. According to statistics from At Your Own Risk, which is part of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association, 54% of student athletes self-reported playing while they were injured. Junior Emma Lipp’s determination to keep running, despite discomfort, resulted in shin splints — inflammation in the shinbone. She expressed regret for not paying attention to her body soon enough.
As the demand to perform well increased, Lipp put more effort into the sport. However, her injury worsened, and she was unable to fully participate during her track season. To work around these issues, she began prioritizing events and hoping that the rest period between them would be enough for her body to heal.
“It was just really painful, because I ran through (my injury) too much, so it just got worse and worse throughout the season,” she said. “I was able to push through it, but I had to cancel some of the meets.”
Even when advised to get checked out by a doctor, Lipp was worried that she wouldn’t be allowed to run anymore and kept the severity of her injury from coaches.
Athletic trainer Gagan Cheema suggested that a common reason for student athletes’ reluctance to speak up about their injuries lies in underestimating its severity or confusing injury with soreness.
“Many athletes who have already had either a very low-level injury or an acute injury think (that their injury) could just be a minor sprain or strain,” she said. “They think they can resolve (it) on their own or that it may go away in a few days after the soreness subsides,” she said.
Witnessing several students stopping by every week, she also recognizes that pressure can be another component for student athletes to avoid listening to their injuries and even rush back into a sport. Cheema noticed a pattern of “internal pressure” in several student athletes and often hears certain questions arise, such as: ‘Am I still going to have my playing time?’, ‘Am I going to be in the same shape that I was when I had to leave the sport?’ and ‘Will I be able to keep my position?’
Additionally, Cheema understands that athletics are an activity to look forward to and a vital outlet for many students.
“I think number one is they want to get back to doing something they love, right?” she said. “(Their sport might) help relieve some of the stress that they have during the day or keep them in physical shape and health. I feel that from their end.”
External pressures, such as that of coaches, teammates, and keeping their reputation, is also a reason for many students to play through their injuries.
“Some coaches expect you to go back right away, and they don’t want to take you out,” Griffin said. “Some other coaches are more easy about it, but then they’re like, ‘You should come back, I wish you were here.’ But it’s hard to do that.”
For Lipp, although coaches and teammates did not know the extent of her injury, her abilities were an asset to her team, and she was reluctant to let them down.
“I was usually a point scorer, and we needed the points to stay in the league,” she said. “So the coaches were like, ‘Oh yeah, you should keep running, right?’”
With years of experience, Cheema emphasizes an important part of physical therapy is aiding students with plans that support both mental and physical health. Talking about goals, recovery timelines, and rehabilitative processes are all part of the communication aimed at reassuring student athletes and finding them the help they need.
“We understand it’s hard to take away something that they’ve been doing so regularly, and that it was great for mental health, too,” she said. “So we try to provide support during that time, and as we can get them back into sports, we’re still there in case they need that.”
The Centers for Disease and Control Prevention estimates that over half of injuries can be avoided. Cheema hopes more student athletes reach out for resources in the early stages of their injury, even if uncertain about the extent of damage. She encourages dropping in, whether to make a safer plan to help with minor discomforts or to ask for mental health resources.
“You can always reach out to us,” she said. “There’s no injury too small, whether it’s soreness or an injury that you sustain that’s been ongoing. We have resources to provide for all of it. It’s always better to come and talk to us, or any provider who can help with that. We’re here to help.”
