Conditions + Treatments
ACL Injury/Reconstruction
Meniscus Tear
My name is Madeline Clayton and I am a rising senior at Shelby County High School in Columbiana, AL.
I have played soccer since I was in 7th grade, it is one of my favorite activities along with track, cross country, and playing the clarinet. Once I got to high school I realized how much I love playing soccer and it quickly became my priority.
Everything had been going well up until my junior year of high school. Early that year I had been playing around at school and suddenly hurt my right knee. It had been a weird accident but I decided to go get it checked out and The physical therapist at our school, William J. Howell, referred me to Andrews Sports Medicine.
I met with Dr. Henderson, who was incredibly kind, and she decided that I was going to need an MRI. I was not thrilled about that, but I trusted Dr. Henderson and knew she was looking out for me. The MRI confirmed to her that I had torn my meniscus and I was going to need a repair performed surgically. This is when I got sent to Dr. Dugas.
Several of my family members had surgery from Dr. Dugas, so I knew he was the best, but I was still really nervous. I had never had this major of an injury before and it would be my first time getting surgery. I also had just gotten my driver's license and was upset that I would not be able to drive. Really, I was scared of all the unknown I had, like if I was going to be able to play soccer, or if this would affect me in my normal life.
Dr. Dugas immediately assured me that he was gonna take great care of me and that I would be able to play soccer in the spring and that I would be back to normal in no time. Sure enough the meniscus repair went well. I followed all the post-surgery instructions and went to physical therapy and my knee started to feel better than ever.
From that point everything went great, I was able to play soccer that spring and even got woman of the match for one of our games. At our last game of the season, I was about to score a goal when I planted my foot wrong and my left knee twisted and shifted. I was in immediate pain and was so sad that I was injured again. I went back to Dr. Henderson, she comforted and reassured me as she informed me that I had torn my ACL. So, I head back to Dr. Dugas for another knee surgery, but this time on my left knee and due to my ACL.
Dr. Dugas took the time to reassure me again and put me at ease. The surgery went well again, but this time I know it will be a tougher recovery journey. I am almost two months post-op right now and can already tell a huge difference, but Dr. Dugas told me that it would be around 9 months recovery total.
Having two surgeries in one year has been difficult, but I have just tried to keep in mind that this is just temporary and before I know it I'll be back to normal.
In the fall I will be starting my senior year. I don’t know exactly what my plans are yet, but I hope to work towards becoming a title attorney. Right now I am just looking forward to continuing my recovery so that I can enjoy my last season of soccer.
I am so thankful for everyone at Andrews Sports Medicine. Dr. Henderson was always so kind and went out of her way to comfort me, and Dr. Dugas treated me as if I was his own daughter. Every time I went to one of their clinics, I knew I was in great hands.
My name is Madeline Clayton, and I believe in Victory Over Injury!
