Hi everyone. Welcome to the Fourth episode of Student Athlete Listening Project, or SALP for short. SALP is a storytelling and listening initiative that focuses on the kind of compassionate listening that creates safe spaces where student-athletes can share their injury experiences, build empathy, and strengthen human connection. I’m Sophia Nguyen, your host.

In order to understand more about the effects of sport injuries on student-athletes, we’ll be hearing from Ms. Cynthia Griffing, head athletic trainer of the Kinkaid school

Hi everyone. Welcome to the third episode of Student Athlete Listening Project, or SALP for short. SALP is a storytelling and listening initiative that focuses on the kind of compassionate listening that creates safe spaces where student-athletes can share their injury experiences, build empathy, and strengthen human connection. I’m Sophia Nguyen, your host.

In order to understand more about the effects of sport injuries on student-athletes, we’ll be hearing from an orthopedic surgeon this time. I’m here speaking with Dr. Paul Shupe about what he has observed in the student-athlete population. Dr. Shupe is a board-certified and fellowship-trained orthopedic surgeon specializing in sports medicine with an emphasis on diagnosing and treating knee, shoulder, elbow, and other sports-related injuries and disorders. He is also a head team physician for the NCAA University of Houston Cougars, the Memorial High School Mustangs, and the George Ranch High School Longhorns. He serves locally as the vice chair of orthopedic surgery at Memorial Hermann Memorial City Medical Center and nationally on committees for the American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine.

Hi everyone. Welcome to the second episode of the Student Athlete Listening Project, or SALP for short. SALP is a storytelling and listening initiative that focuses on the kind of compassionate listening that creates safe spaces where student-athletes can share their injury experiences, build empathy, and strengthen human connection. I’m Sophia Nguyen, your host, and today, I want to begin with my own story.

Sophia: Hi everyone. Welcome to the first episode of Student Athlete Listening Project, or SALP for short. SALP is a storytelling and listening initiative that focuses on the kind of compassionate listening that creates safe spaces where student-athletes can share their injury experiences, build empathy, and strengthen human connection. I’m Sophia Nguyen, your host. Today, I would like to talk about mental health consequences of sport injuries in student-athletes. Sport injuries in student-athletes often lead to depression, anxiety, loss of identity and self-worth. So, today, we’re here to destigmatize mental health in student-athlete sport injuries.

In order to understand more about the effects of sport injuries on mental health, I would like to introduce you to Sanjay Senthilvelan, a co-founder of Student Athlete Listening Project. Sanjay is a pre-med student at Rice University in Houston, Texas, where he studies cell biology and genetics, chemistry, and global health. Through his work as an EMT, his research in Malawi, and his role at Camp Kesem—where he supports children whose parents have cancer—he has learned how illness and injury can shape a family’s daily life, emotions, and sense of stability. Hearing these stories and witnessing the strength of the families he works with has taught him how deeply health challenges can affect young people, both physically and emotionally.

Sports injuries are common among high school and college student-athletes, and they can dramatically affect teens’ physical and mental well-being. Due to forced inactivity and routine disruption, injuries can have a detrimental impact on academic performance, social interactions, and mental health for student-athletes, causing lowered self-esteem, anxiety, depression, and sometimes even identity crises.

I’m Sophia Nguyen. Welcome to my podcast Student Athlete Listening Project, or SALP for short. SALP is a storytelling and listening initiative that focuses on the kind of compassionate listening that creates safe spaces where student-athletes can share their injury experiences, build empathy, and strengthen human connection.

When I was 11 years old, I underwent an intensive spinal fusion surgery after an incident during ballet practice. I recovered well after a lengthy physical therapy. At the age of 15, I dislocated my right shoulder twice—once on a ski trip and another time at volleyball practice. I underwent right shoulder surgery before the beginning of my freshman year in high school. As someone who is extremely active, the year of rest and recovery following the surgery was excruciating. However, during this difficult time, I built strong connections with my medical teams, including my orthopedic surgeon, my physical therapists, and the other patients who had similar stories to mine.

These experiences helped me become a more empathetic and warmhearted person. I learned firsthand that some pain and hardships aren’t visible from the outside. I founded SALP to share my own medical experience with others and explore the power of storytelling and listening to inspire and support other student athletes. I believe that sharing sports injury stories can bring comfort and healing to the storytellers and offer insight and hope to the listeners. If you or a loved one has a story they’re dying to share, please send us an email to salproject2026@gmail.com. Thank you for sharing and listening.