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Piedmont Success Story: Steph Youngblood

Steph Youngblood was a softball and soccer player at Jones County High School.

As a freshman, she injured her knee during soccer season. She continued to play even after the injury. By her sophomore season of softball, her knee was very bothersome and painful. She decided to come into Piedmont Ortho before her junior year.

Steph saw Kimberlyn Wilson, a Piedmont physical therapist, for an evaluation. She also met with Dr. Dan Grahl for a consultation. Steph was suffering from patellar tendonitis, a common overuse injury, caused by repeated stress on her patellar tendon.

Her decision after was to sit out and see if her knee would heal with time. She spent the next seven months with no action, which she described as a “big mental challenge.”

Finally, it was time for softball season of her junior year. She received a cortisone shot in her knee to help with the pain. She decided to play through it.

After her junior season, she returned to Piedmont for more physical therapy. She even tried to continue to play. However, she made the decision to have surgery as she still wasn’t back to 100 percent.

Steph saw Dr. Grahl in November 2021 for surgery. Dr. Grahl cleaned up scar tissue in her knee and then repaired a partial tear in her patellar tendon.

“The staff at Piedmont is great,” Steph said. “They are very loving and very supportive. They really listen to you, which helps during rehab. It’s a large mental challenge to not be active. They are more than physical therapists because they really connect with you.”

Steph’s road to getting back to the softball field has been mentally and physically challenging.

Six months later, Steph is rehabbing at Piedmont. She passed her fourth functional test and is well on her way back to being 100 percent on the softball field.

In August, Steph will move to St. Augustine, Florida, to enroll at Flagler College, where she will play softball. And, she’s interested in becoming an athletic trainer after working through her own injury.

Our providers at Piedmont Ortho can work with you to provide a treatment plan that has a success story like Steph’s. Click here to schedule your appointment today to be seen for an evaluation or even a consultation with one of our orthopedic surgeons.

posted 05/12/2022 in Sports Medicine

Tags: orthopedic surgery

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