More than a Game: Chatten’s Field Hockey Journey
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by Kelsey Chatten
Life-long player and coach Kelsey Chatten dedicated so much of her life to the sport of field hockey. After a near-fatal car crash made everyday life a challenge, Kesley was given a fresh start with the help of a dedicated medical team. Now, she’s giving back to the sport that has given her so much, this time with a whistle in hand.
My field hockey journey started in 2006 when I was a seventh grader eager to try something new. Up until then, soccer was my fall sport – I had played goalkeeper and defense since I was five years old. When I put a field hockey stick in my hand for the first time, I fell in love. Who knew that a decision I’d make at 12 years old would change the course of the rest of my life.
Outside of school, I played field hockey any chance I could - whether it was pick-up, summer league, or just playing in my backyard. I’d played other sports, but field hockey was different. Any time I played, I was able to block out the rest of the world. It was my safe place – an outlet away from life’s trials and tribulations.
One of the most pivotal points in my playing career was when I started high school, where I played under Coach Briles. I’d never had a coach encourage or push me more than she did. Coach Briles recognized the passion and unrelenting drive I had to be the best player that I could be. My senior year, she gave me the opportunity to lead as team captain alongside two of my fellow teammates. I got to encourage my teammates to be the best that they could be, regardless of the outcome. The lessons that Coach Briles taught me on the field were directly translated into my everyday life, and I cannot thank her enough for her unrelenting passion for instilling excellence in her players.
I had never considered continuing my playing career in college, but during my senior year, Coach Briles told me to put myself out there, believing in my abilities to rise to the occasion to play for a Division III program. After doing my research, sending in my applications, and making contact with several programs, I was recruited to play at my top school, where I could major in my desired program of chemistry.
Unfortunately, my collegiate career was cut short after my freshman season due to an injury caused by a congenital defect which impacted my ability to run, pivot, and jump. The end of my playing career was one of the most devastating parts of my life, and it was completely out of my control. It took a lot of self-reflection and personal growth, but I never lost my love and passion for the game. My playing career was over, but since I was on the path of becoming a teacher, I knew that my thirst could be carried over into my next chapter – as a coach.
I started my profession as a high school chemistry teacher in January 2017 and began my field hockey coaching career shortly thereafter in the fall. It was therapeutic for me to be on the field again. Through my coaching career, I was not only able to share my love and passion for the sport, but I was also able to empower young female athletes to be strong, capable, and resilient individuals. I served as the junior varsity coach at my school for six seasons, and those are times that I will never take for granted. What was most important for me was the ability to still be involved in the sport, all while supporting the athletes.
While coaching, I reached out to an orthopedic surgeon for another opinion on my diagnosed congenital defect. When I was first diagnosed in college, I was told there was nothing that they could do for me other than a full fusion of the ankle joint, which would leave me with extremely limited range of motion. I had decided against such a radical option and decided to live with the pain for years. Then, I met Dr. Lai, who after seeing my records and looking at my scans, told me that my case was operable and that he could potentially correct the defect without a fusion. So, I went through with the surgery in June 2019, recovered fully, and could finally run and play again.
Then, in December 2019, I was in a near-fatal car accident, which resulted in a distal radius fracture in my right wrist, among various other injuries. Over time, I started to experience severe pain, weakness, and loss of grip strength in my right arm and hand, making everyday tasks challenging. I received several different diagnoses and treatments, and after months of occupational therapy, did not see any improvement, but started having nerve pain shooting through my elbow and down through my fingers.
After more tests, I was diagnosed with ulnar nerve entrapment and had corrective surgery in December 2021. After three more months of occupational therapy, my progress plateaued, and I did not get any better. From there, the pain started creeping into my upper arm, shoulder and neck. We did more tests and tagged in specialists, but nothing was “diagnostically” wrong with me. I was released from my doctor’s care and went almost a year without maintenance for my pain, even though it was increasing in intensity. It got to the point where I had a significant tremor, had lost a significant amount of grip strength, and could not raise my arm over my head without assistance. I was in pain every day but had no answers as to why. While this left me disappointed and angry, I was not willing to give up searching for answers. In the meantime, I tried to continue living my life and managing my pain the best I could.
After coaching, I was encouraged to look into umpiring. Since I had experience playing and coaching, I was told that I had a unique understanding of the game that would help me be an effective official. I reached out to my local umpire chapter in the spring of 2023 and was put into touch with our second-year cadet trainer, Victa.
To say that training under Victa’s guidance and support made me fall in love with the sport again is an understatement. Every time I took the field, I knew she’d be there to give me constructive criticism. I followed her to every game she officiated that spring and summer to prepare for the fall high school season. My local umpire chapter welcomed me with open arms, and I was lucky enough to be given game assignments that challenged me to become a better official. Fifty-five regulation games later, my first high school season as an umpire came to a close.
Still desperate for answers and a diagnosis for my pain and symptoms, I met Dr. Zlotlow at Hospital for Special Surgery in August 2023. Dr. Zlotlow listened closely to my concerns and assured me that he would help or connect me to other resources that could. He ran a myriad of tests and suggested I see Dr. Cyril in physiatry to assess my symptoms. Dr. Cyril also listened closely to my concerns and reassured me that we would get to the bottom of my symptoms. We tried a sympathetic nerve block in my cervical spine, which my body did not respond to. After much discussion, Dr. Cyril suggested that I meet Dr. Gungor in anesthesiology and interventional pain management.
From the moment I met Dr. Gungor in February 2024, I knew that he would not stop until we found an explanation for my symptoms. I was diagnosed with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) Type I of the right upper extremity, which is rare and permanent. During that visit, we also made a game plan of what treatments we could try to manage my condition. Dr. Gungor suggested we try another sympathetic nerve block to see if we would have a different result. Unfortunately, we did not see any positive results, and this left us with one option – which we referred to as the "nuclear option" – a spinal cord stimulator (SCS). Dr. Gungor explained the process of getting a permanent implant, the risks, the potential outcomes, and his hopefulness that this option would finally bring me some relief. This plan gave me hope looking forward, and in the meantime, I continued along with my umpiring journey.
With a season of high school officiating under my wing, I was encouraged to explore umpiring at USA Field Hockey events. The summer of 2024, I was given the opportunity to officiate at the U-14 National Club Championship (NCC) and U-14 Junior Nexus Championship (NXC). Getting to work with officials from around the country and get feedback from experienced umpire managers was amazing. I knew after those two events that USA Field Hockey was going to become a big part of my life and umpiring journey.
In August 2024, I had my SCS trial device implanted. As soon as my device was turned on, my pain and tremor were mostly gone. I remember crying tears of joy that something had finally worked after five years of searching for answers. Two months later, at the end of my second high school season in which I officiated 70 regulation games, I finally had surgery to implant my permanent SCS device. The goal of this procedure was to reduce my pain by at least 50%, and we had no idea that it would be as successful as it has been.
I had my surgery on October 29, 2024, and was back on the field umpiring at the Sunshine Showcase almost pain free on January 25, 2025. Due to the success of my surgery, I am happy to say that I have found my way back onto the pitch not only as an official, but as a player again. I have been able to get back to everyday activities that I once found to be exhausting and painful, and my mental health has vastly improved. I am forever grateful for Dr. Gungor's persistence, determination and kindness.
Getting to my diagnosis and treatment took a huge toll on me mentally, physically and emotionally. It took more than four years to get an accurate diagnosis, and almost five to find an effective treatment. I spent many days wondering if being in that level of pain was how I was going to live the rest of my life. I am so grateful to have had such an amazing team at the Hospital for Special Surgery and at Boston Scientific. Having my SCS comes with its own interesting challenges, like making sure that my battery is always charged, being unable to go through metal detectors, and having my programming constantly monitored and updated, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything. The surgery gave me my life back.
Spring 2025 was filled with umpiring. I was given opportunities to officiate Junior Premier Outdoor League (JPOL) and Regional Club Championships (RCC), which kept me very busy. When I received my assignments to officiate at both U-14 and U-16 NXC this year, I was filled with gratitude, since the year before had been such an amazing learning experience as a young umpire. This year’s NXC events did not disappoint. After two days of intense competition among talented, young athletes, I was given the privilege to officiate the U-14 NXC gold medal match. I was shocked and humbled to be trusted with umpiring such an important game. After six days of NXC, I went home feeling confident in my abilities as an umpire, and proud of the growth I’ve made.
This season, I am looking forward to utilizing the skills that I have developed during the spring and summer events and to continue growing as an umpire. I can’t wait to share things that I have learned with my umpire colleagues in my local chapter, and to hopefully help to train new umpires joining us this season.
Being involved with USA Field Hockey as an umpire has truly changed my life. I am forever indebted to all the individuals who have helped me get this far in my journey and cannot wait to see what the future holds. Those who know me, know that field hockey is more than just a game to me, and it is so important for me to give athletes the best, most fair, and safest environment to play this beautiful sport that I love so much. I cannot wait to see what this year has in store for me.
