Kenny ’s story: Determined to play again

Photo credit: Keith Bedford, Boston Globe Dear young athlete, Don’t let anyone tell you that you’ll never be able to play sports again. Don’t let them take away what you love to do. If I had given up sports, I wouldn’t have my dream job today. Let me share my story. When I was an adolescent growing up in Sharon, Massachusetts, I was very active. To say I was “hyper” would be an understatement. My mom used to tell me to run around the house when I was annoying my brother and sister. I played every sport including basketball, baseball, touch football, and street hockey. I played soccer year-round, including indoor soccer in the winter. I loved running up and down the pitch, being on a team, and either scoring or setting up a teammate for a goal. I was one of the smaller boys on the field, but soccer didn’t care how tall I was. When I was 11, I broke my right femur near the knee trying to score a goal. I was taken to the Sports Medicine Division at Boston Children’s Hospital and examined by Dr. Lyle Micheli. He diagnosed the injury, fitted me with a cast, and in a couple of months I rejoined my team. A few years later, during a junior varsity soccer match my freshman year of high school, an opponent collided with me. The force was so severe that it drove my kidney into my spine where it shattered. I nearly bled to death, but the doctors at Goddard Memorial Hospital saved my life. Recovering in the hospital bed, I remember my pediatrician telling me my soc...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - Category: Pediatrics Authors: Tags: Our Patients’ Stories Division of Sports Medicine Dr. Lyle Micheli Source Type: news