Last night I watched my son try to make a play on the football, stick his foot in the turf, and suddenly go down writhing in pain. It was a non-contact injury that, upon first look, appears to be related to the patellar tendon (often associated with Osgood-schlaters). I of course thought it was another kid with an ACL injury–because it runs in the family. Instead it may be patellar, or LCL, or something else. The swelling followed. As I stood beside him on the medical table I watched him trying to hold in the pain and the emotional pain of seeing his season crash to an end. He struggled this season, and now it feels like this moment may be the end for him entirely. He could (should) miss his track season if this is a tear or a break, which severely tests his chances to get an athletic scholarship to go along with the academic one his grades should afford him. This is life changing –at least in the short term but perhaps even longer depending how it all turns out.
So, now what?
We are in the wait and see mode. He gets the dreaded MRI next week, and from there we will get a diagnosis and move into the treatment phase. Who knows how long it will be until recovery.