By Dylan McAdoo

There is an uprising in sports related injuries for adolescents and younger kids. There are about 30 million adolescents and children in the U.S. that play sports, out of that 30 million about 3.5 million get some type of injury per year. These injuries not only affect them physically but also mentally. There is all different type of sports related injuries. The most common injuries among these student athletes are strains and sprains but can go to the extent as career ending. According to Contemporary Pediatrics, “Any athlete who experiences a career-ending or season-ending injury is likely to feel significant loss and grief and develop depression, anxiety, or traumatic stress.”

The number of sports related injuries has gone up, this may be because of the number of adolescents and children playing sports. According to Current Sports Medicine Reports, “High school sport participation has increased dramatically in recent decades, growing from 4 million participants in the 1971 to 1972 school year to a nearly 8 million in 2018 to 2019 in the U.S.” Calvin Gabet, a senior that is home schooled but plays baseball at Ponte Vedra High School, said, “I think that my labrum and ankle injury that were sports related were probably because of over usage and not giving my body enough time to rest.” Gabet, also said, “It affected my mental health even though I’m a positive person. But it can be extremely frustrating when you just continue to suffer setback after setback that is entirely out of your control. The tough part is watching your teammates play knowing you can do nothing about it.”

Some of the issues could be that children and adolescents are playing sports with the same intensity and rules as grown adults play and that their bodies aren’t mature enough to be doing that. “Children and adolescents are at a special risk for injuries because most sports are not adapted to the motor skills of their specific age group.” According to Cleveland Clinic, a main reason adolescents mental health is affected is because when they play their sport it’s a way for them to cope with everything and that gets taken away from them when they get injured. Ben Miller, a junior at PVHS said, “Yes, I believe my injury is from over usage, especially being a two-sport athlete, I never get the time off.” Miller, also went on to say, “My mental health was definitely affected a little bit, especially when I feel good to go but I can’t participate.” The hardest part for adolescent student athletes is feeling like they are all healed but aren’t allowed to participate yet.

There has now more than ever been more research and evidence for why younger athletes have been getting injured. The younger the person is the less developed and mature their entire body is. According to Ortho Info, they believe that the reason adolescents keep getting injured at younger ages is because their body is still growing and the over usage of their bodies during that time. According to Ortho Info, “Growth is generally uneven: Bones grow first, which pulls tight muscles and tendons. This uneven growth pattern makes younger athletes more susceptible to muscle, tendon, and growth plate injuries.” Jack Brady, a junior at PVHS said, “I had my first sports related injury when I was 12 and it could have very well been because I play baseball year-round. I also think my mental health was affected a little bit mainly due to the reason I was around my friends less and couldn’t be active which I love.” Brady also said, “My injuries have really affected my recruiting process as I can’t get the exposure needed to play baseball in college.” The way the student athletes are affected mentally can be different, but it still makes the same impact.

There has been an increase in injuries in young student athletes, the reason for that is still not 100 percent known but there are theories on why. The healing time for these varies per injury, some years other days. No matter what the reason is, it’s still a huge effect on mental health in adolescent student athletes.