The Injured Athletes Club

" I've had to learn how to ask for help. I am grateful for my independence. I'm grateful for the fact that if I want something, I go get it. And my work ethic—I work in sales and my success of being an athlete, I owe it to that. But at the end of the day, there is that understanding of there's a difference between giving up and surrendering."
 
Chelsey Klein is a lifelong athlete—and no stranger to injury, which ended both her pursuit of gymnastics as a child and her collegiate volleyball career. But during the summer of 2020, during the height of the pandemic, she faced a trauma she never would have imagined.
 
When she was hiking on Mt. Shasta with her boyfriend, the unthinkable happened. He fell, then she did, and it took hours and a series of small miracles to get her off the mountain alive. Her loss was immense and her injuries significant, but on the other side, she's found strength through grace and meaning in sharing her story—which she does in this week's episode and in her memoir.
 
Resources/links:
Chelsey's new book Beyond the Edge: A Survivor's Tale

 
A huge thank you to LEVER Movement, the exclusive sponsor of season 9 of The Injured Athletes Club podcast! They're the creators of the LEVER system, a portable, lightweight device that attaches to a treadmill to reduce your body weight. Use the code INJURED20 to get 20% off your purchase here. 
 
You can subscribe to The Injured Athletes Club on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts, and if you like what you hear, please leave us a rating or a review in Apple podcasts. That helps other injured athletes find the show.
 
To access more resources for injured athletes:
Buy Rebound: Train Your Mind to Bounce Back Stronger from Sports Injuries —now available as an audiobook!
Buy Injured Athletes Club merchandise, including hoodies, stickers, patches, journals, mugs, hats, and gift cards
Access webinar videos, mental rehab e-courses, and more great resources for injured athletes while supporting our work
Join The Injured Athletes Club mailing list, for news and updates
Join The Injured Athletes Club Facebook group, for support and camaraderie
Like The Injured Athletes Club Podcast Facebook page, for the latest episodes
Email us at [email protected] with questions, guest suggestions, or other feedback
DISCLAIMER: This content is for educational & informational use only and & does not constitute medical advice. Do not disregard, avoid or delay obtaining medical or health related advice from your health-care professional because of something you may have heard in an episode of this podcast. You should not rely on this information as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please consult with a qualified medical professional for proper evaluation & treatment. Guests who speak on this podcast express their own opinions, experiences, and conclusions, and The Injured Athletes Club podcast hosts nor any company providing financial support endorses or opposes any particular treatment option discussed in the episodes of this podcast and are not responsible for any actions or inactions of listeners based on the information presented. The use of any information provided is solely at your own risk.

" I'm feeling like my injury has really held me back in life. My first two years of college, I was trying to survive school while recovering from a car accident. I've needed every extension and have had many surgeries after that, which have affected my schooling and life in general. Now I'm ready to transfer from my community college to a university, and I don't have all the right classes for the degree I'm going into. I feel like this injury has just ruined me, and I'm not sure what to do."
—Rylie
 
Injuries can be devastating at any stage and time. But in some cases, they deeply affect other areas of life in ways that can feel deeply unfair. In this week's listener Q&A, Coach Carrie first of all expresses deep sympathy and empathy to Rylie and other athletes who find themselves in such a long-term, difficult recovery period.
 
As challenging as these situations can be, Carrie suggests some ways to shine a light into the darkness. Most important, she says, is to try not to time-travel to the past or into the future—instead, calmly bring your focus back to what's in your control right now. From there, you can consider the actions you can take today to bring about the tomorrow you hope for. 
Resources/links:
Past episodes
Other things we mention
A huge thank you to LEVER Movement, the exclusive sponsor of season 9 of The Injured Athletes Club podcast! They're the creators of the LEVER system, a portable, lightweight device that attaches to a treadmill to reduce your body weight. Use the code INJURED20 to get 20% off your purchase here. 
 
You can subscribe to The Injured Athletes Club on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts, and if you like what you hear, please leave us a rating or a review in Apple podcasts. That helps other injured athletes find the show.
 
To access more resources for injured athletes:
Buy Rebound: Train Your Mind to Bounce Back Stronger from Sports Injuries —now available as an audiobook!
Buy Injured Athletes Club merchandise, including hoodies, stickers, patches, journals, mugs, hats, and gift cards
Access webinar videos, mental rehab e-courses, and more great resources for injured athletes while supporting our work
Join The Injured Athletes Club mailing list, for news and updates
Join The Injured Athletes Club Facebook group, for support and camaraderie
Like The Injured Athletes Club Podcast Facebook page, for the latest episodes
Email us at [email protected] with questions, guest suggestions, or other feedback
 DISCLAIMER: This content is for educational & informational use only and & does not constitute medical advice. Do not disregard, avoid or delay obtaining medical or health related advice from your health-care professional because of something you may have heard in an episode of this podcast. You should not rely on this information as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please consult with a qualified medical professional for proper evaluation & treatment. Guests who speak on this podcast express their own opinions, experiences, and conclusions, and The Injured Athletes Club podcast hosts nor any company providing financial support endorses or opposes any particular treatment option discussed in the episodes of this podcast and are not responsible for any actions or inactions of listeners based on the information presented. The use of any information provided is solely at your own risk.

" Whatever you're feeling, whether it be anger, hatred, sadness, disappointment—it's okay. You're allowed to feel those things. That is valid. But just know that this situation— yes, NF is a lifelong diagnosis, and not having a cure, it does change your life trajectory a little bit. But it doesn't dictate how you have to live your life."
 
Leanna Scaglione was just 16 years old when what the aspiring ballerina thought was an injury from dancing turned into something she never could have imagined—surgery to remove a spinal tumor that left her temporarily unable to walk. Soon afterward, she was diagnosed with neurofibromatosis type 2, which is now called NF2-related schwannomatosis.
 
This lifelong condition causes non-cancerous tumors to form throughout the body. For Leanna, that's meant brain surgery to remove a tumor that resulted in facial paralysis; several clinical trials of medications that have helped, but also have brought unpredictable symptoms; and now, the need for another surgery on her spine.
 
After her first surgery, Leanna not only walked again, she danced. And during the pandemic, she began to run. Eventually, she built up to the marathon, which she ran with the Children's Tumor Foundation's NF Endurance Team—she talks in this episode about the inspiring moment she realized that was a possibility. 
 
Leanna just completed the Tokyo Marathon, which brings her one race closer to her goal of becoming the first athlete with NF2 to run all the Abbott World Marathon Majors. She runs because it gives her joy, agency, and community; it's how she refuses to let NF2 control her life, shows others what's possible with a chronic illness, and carries forward both her athletic identity and her family's legacy of endurance.
 
Resources/links:
Leanna's Instagram
The Children's Tumor Foundation
 
A huge thank you to LEVER Movement, the exclusive sponsor of season 9 of The Injured Athletes Club podcast! They're the creators of the LEVER system, a portable, lightweight device that attaches to a treadmill to reduce your body weight. Use the code INJURED20 to get 20% off your purchase here. 
 
You can subscribe to The Injured Athletes Club on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts, and if you like what you hear, please leave us a rating or a review in Apple podcasts. That helps other injured athletes find the show.
 
To access more resources for injured athletes:
Buy Rebound: Train Your Mind to Bounce Back Stronger from Sports Injuries —now available as an audiobook!
Buy Injured Athletes Club merchandise, including hoodies, stickers, patches, journals, mugs, hats, and gift cards
Access webinar videos, mental rehab e-courses, and more great resources for injured athletes while supporting our work
Join The Injured Athletes Club mailing list, for news and updates
Join The Injured Athletes Club Facebook group, for support and camaraderie
Like The Injured Athletes Club Podcast Facebook page, for the latest episodes
Email us at [email protected] with questions, guest suggestions, or other feedback
 
DISCLAIMER: This content is for educational & informational use only and & does not constitute medical advice. Do not disregard, avoid or delay obtaining medical or health related advice from your health-care professional because of something you may have heard in an episode of this podcast. You should not rely on this information as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please consult with a qualified medical professional for proper evaluation & treatment. Guests who speak on this podcast express their own opinions, experiences, and conclusions, and The Injured Athletes Club podcast hosts nor any company providing financial support endorses or opposes any particular treatment option discussed in the episodes of this podcast and are not responsible for any actions or inactions of listeners based on the information presented. The use of any information provided is solely at your own risk.

"How do you navigate phantom pains and constant re-injury fears after recovering from a bone stress injury?"
—Marija
 
Fear is one of the brain's ways of protecting the body when it's injured. But often, our anxiety lingers long after it's useful. Our bodies and minds don't always recover at the same rate, Coach Carrie explains in this week's listener Q&A (that's why deliberately working on your mental skills is so important!).
 
Phantom pains and fears of re-injury are totally normal after a bone stress injury, she points out. To reset your nervous system and ease excessive fears, she recommends focusing on breathing. 
 
You can also coach yourself through in the second person, telling yourself you're safe and strong. Or, you might try experimenting with naming your injury, creating a bit of psychological distance that turns an anxiety-provoking moment into a thoughtful conversation with your body. 
 
Resources/links:
Sign up for our mailing list to get the free mp3s, including diaphragmatic breathing

 
A huge thank you to LEVER Movement, the exclusive sponsor of season 9 of The Injured Athletes Club podcast! They're the creators of the LEVER system, a portable, lightweight device that attaches to a treadmill to reduce your body weight. Use the code INJURED20 to get 20% off your purchase here. 
 
You can subscribe to The Injured Athletes Club on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts, and if you like what you hear, please leave us a rating or a review in Apple podcasts. That helps other injured athletes find the show.
 
To access more resources for injured athletes:
Buy Rebound: Train Your Mind to Bounce Back Stronger from Sports Injuries —now available as an audiobook!
Buy Injured Athletes Club merchandise, including hoodies, stickers, patches, journals, mugs, hats, and gift cards
Access webinar videos, mental rehab e-courses, and more great resources for injured athletes while supporting our work
Join The Injured Athletes Club mailing list, for news and updates
Join The Injured Athletes Club Facebook group, for support and camaraderie
Like The Injured Athletes Club Podcast Facebook page, for the latest episodes
Email us at [email protected] with questions, guest suggestions, or other feedback

DISCLAIMER: This content is for educational & informational use only and & does not constitute medical advice. Do not disregard, avoid or delay obtaining medical or health related advice from your health-care professional because of something you may have heard in an episode of this podcast. You should not rely on this information as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please consult with a qualified medical professional for proper evaluation & treatment. Guests who speak on this podcast express their own opinions, experiences, and conclusions, and The Injured Athletes Club podcast hosts nor any company providing financial support endorses or opposes any particular treatment option discussed in the episodes of this podcast and are not responsible for any actions or inactions of listeners based on the information presented. The use of any information provided is solely at your own risk.

" Representation does matter. Because I've been to Zambia, Ethiopia, and Kenya with this same team, and when they see somebody who looks like them and is also walking on prosthetics … this child might be 18 and has never had a prosthetic. Now they're like, 'Oh, I have the motivation to not only try it, but know that I can live a normal life."
 
On Oct. 12, 2019, marathoner Eliud Kipchoge broke the two-hour barrier in the marathon distance. The next day, his compatriot Brigid Kosgei shattered the official women's marathon world record, running 2:14:04 in Chicago. Between the two, another historic athletic event occurred in Kona, Hawaii. Roderick Sewell, a Paralympic swimmer, finished the Ironman World Championship. In doing so, he became the first double above-the-knee amputee to cross the line of the grueling endurance challenge.
 
In some ways, he barely had any time to train, as he shares in this week's episode—he'd been invited to compete via the Challenged Athletes Foundation only three months prior. Although he was already an elite swimmer, he didn't have a bike, and his longest run was a half marathon (half the distance he'd run in Hawaii, 26.2 miles—after a 2.4-mile swim and 112-mile bike). 
 
But in other ways, it was a mission Roderick had been preparing for his whole life, from the time he was born without tibias and his mother made the difficult decision to have his legs amputated. He writes about their relationship and her sacrifices beautifully in his recent memoir, Iron Will. Through the book and our conversation, it's clear that his accomplishment in Kona is more than a personal victory. Along with the rest of his athletic career and his life, it's a gift back to her, as well as an example to others about what's possible.
 
Resources/links:
Roderick's Instagram
His book Iron Will: An Amputee's Journey to Athletic Excellence
No Legs, No Limits: The Roderick Sewell Story, a GameChange Original film about him
 
A huge thank you to LEVER Movement, the exclusive sponsor of season 9 of The Injured Athletes Club podcast! They're the creators of the LEVER system, a portable, lightweight device that attaches to a treadmill to reduce your body weight. Use the code INJURED20 to get 20% off your purchase here. 
 
You can subscribe to The Injured Athletes Club on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Audible, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts, and if you like what you hear, please leave us a rating or a review in Apple podcasts. That helps other injured athletes find the show.
 
To access more resources for injured athletes:
Buy Rebound: Train Your Mind to Bounce Back Stronger from Sports Injuries —now available as an audiobook!
Buy Injured Athletes Club merchandise, including hoodies, stickers, patches, journals, mugs, hats, and gift cards
Access webinar videos, mental rehab e-courses, and more great resources for injured athletes while supporting our work
Join The Injured Athletes Club mailing list, for news and updates
Join The Injured Athletes Club Facebook group, for support and camaraderie
Like The Injured Athletes Club Podcast Facebook page, for the latest episodes
Email us at [email protected] with questions, guest suggestions, or other feedback

DISCLAIMER: This content is for educational & informational use only and & does not constitute medical advice. Do not disregard, avoid or delay obtaining medical or health related advice from your health-care professional because of something you may have heard in an episode of this podcast. You should not rely on this information as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please consult with a qualified medical professional for proper evaluation & treatment. Guests who speak on this podcast express their own opinions, experiences, and conclusions, and The Injured Athletes Club podcast hosts nor any company providing financial support endorses or opposes any particular treatment option discussed in the episodes of this podcast and are not responsible for any actions or inactions of listeners based on the information presented. The use of any information provided is solely at your own risk.