This week, senior Sabrina Locke is being recognized for having a dead person in her leg. Congrats, Sabrina!

Last year, the dancer tore her MPFL when she dislocated her knee. Thinking it would heal on its own, Locke brushed it off and went to physical therapy for about 8 months before taking further action.

After noticing the lack of effects from physical therapy this past summer, Locke got an MRI and went to see a surgeon who told her the unpleasant news: they couldn’t repair her MPFL, but they could replace it through a grueling cadaver surgery, which would substitute the ligament in her knee for someone else’s.

“At first I was really grossed out by it, but now I don’t really care, even though it is a little creepy,” Locke said.

She doesn’t know who the deceased was, but she does know that he or she was under 40 years old when they died, since an older person’s ligament wouldn’t do much for the reconstruction of the MPFL.

Locke stayed at the hospital for three days after her surgery over Christmas break, and missed almost a month of school following it, reflecting, “I could hardly do anything on my own for about a week and a half… my parents had to help me with almost everything.”

Having danced for 15 years, Locke quit ballet a few months prior to the surgery to eliminate the risk of any further damage to her knee; however, her surgeon said once she recovers she will be able to dance again, specifically at Slippery Rock University this fall.

“My advice for other dancers and athletes is to not think you know everything about your injuries. Go see a doctor and do what they tell you, and you’ll be able to play your sport or dance pain-free sooner than if you put off going and doing something about it,” Sabrina concluded.