Thirteen days after officially signing to run track and cross country for Winthrop University, Sidney Jenkins suffered a significant injury in her leg.
“I was at practice and I stepped weird, and all of a sudden I felt this shooting pain up my leg,” she said.
At the time, Jenkins was a senior at Dreher High School in Columbia, South Carolina. She received a prognosis she didn’t want to hear.
“I was told, ‘You have to have surgery or you’re not going to run again,’” she said.
Jenkins had torn the labrum in her hip, and the tear was caused by a bone impingement. She was told her recovery period would probably take 18 months to two years before she was feeling back to normal.
“I did physical therapy for probably a year, and about five or six months into that I started doing water therapy,” Jenkins said.
She explained that she was able to get back to running with the use of an underwater treadmill. Along with the treadmill, there were cameras underwater that projected onto tv screens outside of the water, which allowed Jenkins to see her legs in motion.
Jenkins had never endured an injury before, though she had been running since she was in the third grade. When she was younger, she attended a half marathon that her aunt ran in, which at the time she thought was “the coolest thing ever.” Still, it wasn’t until high school that she started running truly because she wanted to.
“My freshman year of high school, my aunt passed away from cancer,” Jenkins said. “She and I were very close, so that was kind of my way of coping with the loss, so I just focused on running.”
When Jenkins arrived at Winthrop in the fall of 2019, she was far enough into her rehabilitation to do fartlek-style exercises, running for short amounts of time with short breaks in between.
“So I finally started getting back into running and I was feeling good, and then I started to get really dizzy after I’d run, and then eventually it’d lead to me passing out sometimes while I was running.”
After a few months, Jenkins visited a doctor who discovered that she had a heart condition known as POTS, which stands for postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome.
“Basically my blood pressure drops and my heart rate skyrockets to try to make up for it, and then I pass out,” she said.
As if that weren’t enough to deal with, Jenkins was recently diagnosed with narcolepsy, making her feel extra tired – particularly after practices. However, she said with medication she is feeling much better.
Now in her second year at Winthrop, Jenkins is considered a redshirt freshman and is finally able to compete with her teammates. She described her first collegiate cross country race as a confidence booster, noting that she felt comfortable because she knew the course and had her family present to cheer her on.
“In high school I’d always set expectations for myself,” she said. “But I just went in with no expectations and the goal was just to finish and really just take it in.”
Jenkins said her teammates were a great support system during her recovery.
“When I was going through my stuff, it was really nice to have them – even during quarantine they would always check on me. And before I joined the team, they would always check on me and just see how I was doing.
“When I was finally able to race, that was a cool experience because they had been with me the whole time, and I think they were probably just as excited as I was,” she said.
Jenkins also said she enjoys running for Winthrop coach Ben Paxton, who has encouraged her ever since she called him and told him about her leg injury.
Jenkins said she was nervous of what Paxton might say when she told him about the injury, but his message to her that day was fully supportive: “You’re going to come back better and stronger than you’ve ever been.”
“He’s right,” Jenkins said. “I feel better and stronger than I’ve ever felt.”
Jenkins said she plans to continue running after college, and she’d also like to become a coach. She’s currently majoring in exercise science, and is considering getting a doctorate in physical therapy.
Photo courtesy of Winthrop Athletics
