Not Cheerleader - I'm a Trainer!

My dad coached football from the time I was in third grade until long after I had kids of my own.  In the early days, I was the water girl - running in during the time outs and helping lug equipment back and forth to practice.

As I grew older, I tried my hand at being a cheerleader.  All it took was one game where the other girls didn't know if we were on offence or defense, and I had decided this was not for me.

When I got to high school, I still went to practice.  During two a days, I stood back with all the parents and watched practice. Iron Mike McGinley came over to me after practice and asked if I'd like to be the trainer for the varsity team.  I went home and talked it over with my dad.  A resounding yes followed and so began my path as an athletic trainer.

I went through 6 weeks of classes - went to every practice for all 4 seasons I was at Cathedral - then added in basketball for my junior and senior years.   I lettered in football for 4 years and in basketball for 2.  I wrapped a zillion ankles and wrists and butterflied cuts and iced down all sorts of parts.  It was remarkable and rewarding and made me want to be an orthopedist when I got through college.  I enrolled in IU in the athletic training program, made the cut and was well on my way to finishing my clinical hours.  How that changed is a whole other story.

The point is, there is a big difference between the cheerleaders on the sidelines and the coaching staff.  While both may be female, as a trainer, my job is not to distract the players from their focus on the game, but to allow them to get healthy- get taped up - get hydrated - and get back in the game as quickly as possible.  Our goals are the same, the player and the trainer - to win the game through optimal performance.  Their win is my win, even if I never put my hands on the ball.  During the game, we are all business - talking about the defense, talking about game strategy and who is healthy enough to substitute.  When the game is won, and the time is appropriate for relaxing - then it is okay for me to be a distraction. I learned to be patient, to wait for the right time, to help my players keep their focus- it wasn't unusual for me to even have a conversation with particular girlfriends to tell them to wait until after the game to talk to their man. 

I will not be a cheerleader - chanting rote hymns over and over again without realizing that we are now on offense again.  It is important to know what is going on in the game - very imporant, in fact. The difference is in the ability to be helpful versus being a beautiful distraction.  I would choose helpful more often than not. It is the same way in life - when you care about someone, the ability to be supportive, to help them reach their goal, to stand quietly behind them and tape them up behind the scenes - allows both of you to succeed.