Athletic Training: A World of Adventure by Mark Stephens

I love being an athletic trainer!  Why?  One word: adventure.  This career, certainly in the traditional setting, is never dull, never the same, always changing.  Every season brings new athletes, a few new coaches, new opponents, new game strategies and new injuries.  No injury is the same because the athletes are different.  This alone keeps you thinking, keeps you fresh.

In my short time of being an athletic trainer, I have gotten to experience traveling, TONS of games, hundreds of athletes and hundreds of coaches.  I have worked with injured 12 year old athletes who are as young as 12 years old, and others who are close to 30.  I have provided athletic training services to at least 17 different sports from beginning levels to collegiate championship levels and beyond.  Each of these sports and teams remain in the memory banks for highs of winning, lows of losing, difficulties conquered and goals reached.  Each event is an adventure.

As I age, it becomes too easy to dwell on the negative and fail to see the adventure and enjoyment that surrounds our profession every day.  I can recall going to AT conferences and listening to the older ATs complain about playoffs and long seasons and long days, working with athletes, parents, coaches, etc.  I made a resolution to do everything I could not to become “that guy”, that sour man who hates life.  One of the ways that I have found that combats that sour disposition from sinking in is to cherish the adventure within the profession.  To be honest though, I still sometimes find myself sinking into that sour outlook, but when I focus on the adventure and true enjoyment of what we do, I find the sourness fades.

There are many adventures that athletic training has taken me on.  It’s been ride, some of highs and some lows. However, it may be your biggest adventure you take in life. And, I can tell you from first-hand experience, if you are not careful and pay attention, it will go by in a blink. Cherish the memories you’ve made and work to make new ones you are to remember in the future.