Life After Senior Day
As a student-athlete, I’ve spent over ten years waking up every day thinking about how to be better, more conditioned, stronger, and a better leader. And then one random Saturday in October, it was over. Just like that. It’s a strange feeling to dedicate most of your life to one thing, only to hear, “That’s it, great job,” and have it all come to a stop. It’s hard to process what comes next, or how to fill the space where practices, lifts, and competition used to be.
I played field hockey for four years at Arcadia, and each year taught me something new about myself. I learned how to take care of my body through recovery, nutrition, and strength training. I learned what it truly means to be a teammate. I learned how important it is to make the most of every opportunity. But most importantly, I learned that mindset is everything. For four years, I woke up focused on becoming a better student-athlete. Now, as a senior about to graduate, I realize how much of my identity was tied to my sport, and without it, I feel a little lost.
I know I’m not alone in this. A lot of athletes feel the same way. When your sport has always filled your free time, you don’t always have other hobbies to fall back on. So, over the past few months, since my last game, I’ve been trying to figure out who I am without field hockey. Because exercise has always been such a big part of my life, I even signed up for a half-marathon. Why? Honestly, I’m not even sure. I had never run more than five miles before, but I needed something, some kind of challenge to fill the void.
So I ran it. All 13.1 miles. And it was hard. I struggled, I smiled, and I cried at different points along the way. There were moments where my legs felt like they were going to give out, where every step felt heavier than the last, and I questioned why I signed up in the first place. But there were also moments where I felt strong, where the crowd’s energy pushed me forward, and where I proved to myself that I could keep going even when I didn’t think I could. At the finish line, I got a medal and a t-shirt, but more importantly, I gained a new kind of confidence. Even though the exact feeling I was chasing wasn’t fully there, I realized I’m still capable of setting goals, pushing my limits, and finding purpose in new challenges.
If you’re feeling that same emptiness after your last game, you’re not alone. My advice is to explore, try things you’ve never done before, take classes you wouldn’t normally consider, and step outside of what’s comfortable. It’s intimidating to move on from something that once defined you, especially when you’ve spent years being part of a team. But in that uncertainty, you’ll discover new parts of yourself, your grit, your resilience, your ability to grow in ways you never expected.
