For Jessie Livingston, every landed back flip or vault — something she once took for granted — is now a moment to savor.
"It feels so nice," she said. "When I can land a beam routine it just feels so inspiring. I'm not all the way back, but I feel like I've regained some of my skills."
It was approximately 16 months ago that Livingston, going through a routine she had done countless times, suffered the fractured back that very nearly ended her gymnastics career.
But now, thanks to more than a year of physical therapy, hard work and quite a bit of ice, the 4-foot-11 Livingston has returned to the sport she loves, and is starring for Andover High.
"Jessie is an amazing athlete and an amazing person," said Golden Warriors coach Kristen Vadala. "Of all the injuries I have ever seen, hers is probably the most serious and I have never heard her complain. She is extremely dedicated."
A competitive gymnast since her childhood, Livingston was working out with her club team in Sept., 2010 when the then-high school freshman's world was rocked.
"I was doing a move on the bars when I hyperextended my back," she said. "But I thought I could just work through it so I kept practicing for the next couple days, which probably made it worse."
Finally, as the pain in her back grew worse, Livingston realized she needed to see a doctor.
"At first they couldn't find anything on the x-ray," she said. "So I had to have an MRI and bone scans and CAT scans.
"They found a hairline fracture in my of a vertebrae and that I had done damage to my growth plates."
Even after a career filled with injuries, the news was jarring for the entire Livingston family.
"She was 14 when it happened," said mother Grace Livingston. "You think she's going to walk perfectly her whole life and she's never going to have a broken back. That's never going to happen, then it does."
After having also suffered injuries such as a pair of broken ankles and a fractured knee during her career, Livingston considered walking away from gymnastics entirely.
"It definitely crossed my mind a few times," said Livingston. "I had to think about what would happen to me if I went back."
But, after five months away from the sport, Livingston began her return slowly late in Andover High's season. Despite being very limited, she was still able to place fourth in the bars at Division 1 North sectionals.
"I was still in a back brace at first," she said. "But once I started in gymnastics again I started to think to myself, 'I can do this.'"
After spending much of the offseason rehabbing, along with Acupuncture and massages, Livingston has begun to regain her form this season for the Golden Warriors.
The sophomore has won the all-around in all but one Andover meet this season, placing second in the season-opener, and has added five victories in both the bars and beam.
"Jessie's injury was very serious," said Andover assistant Tracy Vadala. "For her to come back from an injury like that and win is so impressive, and she never complains. But she has had to take everything that puts pressure on her back and do it differently now."
Livingston admits she still faces struggles working to regain her abilities.
"It still hurts every day," she said. "I'm still limited. I still can't bend backwards. But I have a high pain threshold. I might take time off after high school."
Her mother, for one, wishes she would complain a little more.
"One thing that is good and bad about Jessie is her pain tolerance is so high," said Grace. "It makes me nervous that I think she lies. I ask her, on a scale of 1-10 how the pain is. She will say it's a 4 when it's really an 8. But we keep an eye on her, the (Vadalas) are great and she loves gymnastics. We took her out of the sport for a while and she jumped back in."
