Back to Cheer for her Senior Year: Kaitlyn’s Success Story

By, Allison R. Weder

“I was at a cheer competition, and we were warming up to go on and perform. When I did a toe touch, I honestly hit it perfectly, but when I came down, it kind of felt like a buckle and I heard a pop sound.” 16-year-old Kaitlyn Balliet knew something was wrong, but she still went on to perform that day. She loves to cheer and did not want to let her team down. After the competition, she went to the hospital. Vanessa, Kaitlyn’s mother, remembers when they heard the news. “She was in an immobilizer and some crutches but when she had the MRI, that’s when it kind of became real.” Kaitlyn had torn her ACL and meniscus. She would need surgery to repair the tears. “I cried for a few minutes, but it is my last year to cheer since I’m a senior, so it was really important to me to go back.”

Kaitlyn had surgery four months after she injured her knee. Her doctor prescribed physical therapy after the procedure. Vanessa knew right where to go. She had gone through PT for a rotator cuff injury at Phoenix Physical Therapy in Pine Grove, Pennsylvania. Kaitlyn was happy with the decision. “When I met Kenny and Mandy, it was a really good experience. They’re very nice, and that’s what made me want to go.”

Clinic Director, Mandy Bixler, PT, DPT and Kenny Ross, PT, DPT made Kaitlyn, and her family feel right at home. “I walked in, and it felt like the room lit up when she looked at me. She had a big smile. She was like, ‘Do you need a drink? Are you Mom and Dad? It’s nice to meet you guys. I’ll bring you guys back into this room, and we’ll get started.’” Feeling at ease, Kaitlyn followed Mandy to a private room. She unwrapped Kaitlyn’s leg, to evaluate her condition and form a plan for her rehabilitation. Kaitlyn was eager to start. “Honestly, I thought they would just be meeting me on the first day, but things started right away because I asked (Mandy) how soon can she get me back to cheer. She said, ‘I can get you started on your recovery right this second!’ I loved that.”

In the beginning, the exercises focused on healing the incision and gently mobilizing Kaitlyn’s knee. Kaitlyn was impressed with Mandy’s commitment to keeping things clean. “She first washed her hands, and said, ‘I’m going to wash my hands twice, so you know they’re very, very clean.’ Then, she had me lay on the bed and she propped my leg up with a foam roller so she could take my brace and ice wrap off. Then she put a pair of gloves on, and she started massaging around where the incision was, looking at my sutures, making sure everything looked okay. Then she had me flex and unflex my ankle so that I was getting more blood circulation in my leg.”

The next few sessions included pedaling the stationary bike, completing mini squats, and slowly putting pressure on her recovering leg. “The first five days, it was really, really painful. But I was a warrior. I didn’t use the medicine that they gave me a lot. There were times where I was scared of therapy, like when they wanted me to start hopping on the one foot I had surgery on.” But Mandy understood the fear, and knew what was best for Kaitlyn’s recovery. Kaitlyn was happy to know Mandy knew how she felt. “Mandy told us she was a cheerleader in high school, and she actually tore her ACL and had the same surgery! We had to explain everything to Kenny, though. We explained what certain things were, like a toe touch or the different moves that you have to do.” Vanessa was grateful Kenny took the time to learn about Kaitlyn’s goals. “By the time (Kaitlyn) was done with therapy, he understood. He understood and he was doing the moves too.”

Kaitlyn’s doctor had specific objectives for her to complete. Mandy and Kenny kept her on track, sticking to his protocols by giving her at home exercises, some of which Kaitlyn was eager to do after her in-clinic therapy sessions. “I was like, Mom, since I’m already in pain, I want to start doing some of my exercises.” Vanessa admired her determination to recover. “Mandy had printed out some basic things that she could do at home to help her progress. There were squats and putting the handle of the dog leash around her foot, pulling it towards you. The doctor said, he wanted her to do certain things by week one and certain things by week two.”

Week two included Kaitlyn trying to walk again. Kaitlyn recalls that day. “It didn’t go very well at first because I was still really nervous to put my pressure back on my leg. But then one day, my dad was holding my hands and helping me walk and a few days later I didn’t need his help anymore!” Kaitlyn and her family began to see real results.

As Kaitlyn’s progress continued, the Balliet family began to feel like they found a second family at Phoenix Physical Therapy – Pine Grove. Vanessa even felt comfortable traveling while Kaitlyn continued therapy. “My husband and I had a vacation planned prior to her tearing her ACL. It was going to be the first time in 20 years we were going on vacation together without kids. Mandy said, ‘Don’t worry. Everybody here is going to make sure she’s doing what she needs to do.’ And Kaitlyn and Kenny developed this brother, sister relationship. You know, like your brother annoys you, so you hide his stuff.”

It took months for Kaitlyn to begin feeling like she could cheer again. The extra recovery time was due to her battle with Lyme Disease and a quad muscle that would not “wake-up” after her surgery. Quad activation failure is the inability to squeeze or tighten the muscle above the knee. It is not uncommon after ACL surgery or total joint replacement. Vanessa took Kaitlyn to see her doctor. “I asked if there something else we can do. He explained sometimes it just takes a little bit longer for some while others don’t ever get that feeling back.” The news was troubling, but Mandy never gave up on Kaitlyn and instead pushed her to stay strong and really focus. Mandy used tough talk with Kaitlyn hoping it would inspire her to work just a bit harder. Kaitlyn understood. “I said every day, okay, I’m going to start with the stairs and I’m going to do my toe raises. Then I’m going to do the bands. Then, I’ll do the treadmill. Then, I’ll do my balance beam. Then I’ll do my jumps. I’ll do the bike. I’ll go to the bed, and I’ll do all my stuff on the bed. And then if she had something new, I did that after.” Vanessa and her husband, Chris, was there to support her at home too. “With her at-home exercises, she was actually doing physical therapy six days a week.”

The hard work paid off. Kaitlyn’s quad woke up and her recovery continued. She is back to cheer for her senior year and telling others about how physical therapy helped her. “I’m telling you right now, if I wouldn’t have done physical therapy and did not do what my doctor said, I wouldn’t be standing here talking to you guys. I wouldn’t be able to be in there cheering with my team. I think physical therapy was the best option for me. It’s a great option for anybody so you can go back to doing what you love.” Mandy credits Kaitlyn’s willpower for her success as well. “Kaitlyn kept a positive attitude throughout her progression in PT. She kept her eye on the goal of returning to cheer for her senior year of high school and her determination paid off!”

Kaitlyn plans to go to college to become a hospice nurse. She is also currently training to be an EMT and plans to use her income from that to pay for her education. Vanessa is proud of all her daughter’s accomplishments and is grateful for the Phoenix PT – Pinegrove team for their role in her recovery. “They care about the patient. You’re not a number there. It wasn’t like she was rushed. Everybody got the time that they needed.”

Vanessa tells us Mandy and Kenny were even able to see Kaitlyn cheer. They attended the final game of her senior year.