Jessica Wake on the fight back to the football field
Unique solutions in the absence of collective agreements create the conditions for elite football stars.
Sportbladet can tell you that the voluntary retirement pool attracted a player from the Australian national team to Vittsjö and that parenting scheduling was crucial when the national team veteran extended his career.
We also accompany a woman to the gym and talk to a blue-yellow star who experienced complications after her pregnancy.
Get to know the soccer moms.
Malmo. New mom Jessica Wake, 30, was hoping she’d be ready for the premiere.
But when matches in damallsvenskan are dense, Rosengårdsförsvararen is still far from being played.
– The body said no and we still don’t know exactly what it is. She says he is frustrated.
The sun rises on Jessica Wik as she sits on a gray plastic chair at the Malmö IP Amphitheater. It has been over six months since the 30-year-old became Lucas’ mother and is enjoying life as a mother. As a footballer, on the other hand, it’s even more difficult.
– It’s good but it took too long for my own taste and what we had hoped for before. Me and the club, says the qualified defender of the national team.
After a pregnancy without major issues and a good two months of postpartum rehab, there were hopes that she would be ready for the series premiere at the end of March.
– I remember sitting like this before and I thought we’d put it as a goal. Then if it passes, there will be no problems. It is quiet. It could be what it is, she says and continues:
– From now on when I still feel so far away and the matches are going on. Damn, it’s an internal stress. I try not to get too influenced by it but I do it anyway. I notice that it is an internal stress that I want to go back now.
In mid-February, the setback came.
“The body said no…”
When Jessica Wake Joker was in the acquisition games, she noticed that something was wrong.
– The body said no and we still don’t know exactly what it is. It’s from the tub somehow. When I was with me the most it started to radiate into my back and then I had to get off. Then I felt that was not possible. It’s a little pervasive, she says and continues:
– Those to whom I went to tell that these problems had arisen because I had given birth to a child. So we know it has something to do with it, but it’s hard to find a way to get rid of it, she says.
Since then, both Wik and . have become FC Rosengård Read on, but despite the fact that there are now women who have given birth and returned to the elite level, research in this area is deficient.
How the body reacts after childbirth is individual, but muscles and joints are loaded differently. The pelvis is more exposed as there is a lot of pressure on the muscles during pregnancy and labour.
– It would have been cool if someone had just said I totally felt that way and we did it and then it disappeared. But we haven’t found anyone so we’re testing ourselves. I hope I can help someone else later, but I wish I wasn’t in this situation.
Get support
The club has supported Wake since the day she told her she was pregnant. The thing that you think is very important.
for sports manager Therese Sjogran It was a matter of course. Even if they lack a right-back on the field.
– Of course it’s frustrating and hard to see because I know how much you want. This is the hard part about this. You never know how the body will react upon return. We are patient. There is no pressure. I know she wants it. This is the most important, says Sujojan.
In a few hours, there will be a lot of people in the stands. Then it’s another match for champion Rosengard, but now we’re just here.
The artificial turf shines in the sunlight and while Jessica Wake tells more and more frustration in her voice about a tough time, her teammates are charging to match.
When Wik can come back again, no one knows.
– I myself will be until I watch the next match all the time and maybe think. But I know for myself that it will take longer than that. I haven’t played a game in a year. Even if I go back to training, it will take time before I can play, she says.
My husband is trying to say, “Think like you’re leaving after summer.” So be mentally prepared and it will be an added advantage if you can participate before that time. I myself find it hard to think like that because it seems so far away.
“You hear me – I’m upset”
In recent years alone, more and more elite esports have given birth and then come back to the elite level. Hedgehog player Elaine Robinson is re-emerging just over three months after giving birth. Handball player Jamina Roberts is back after six weeks.
I know you shouldn’t compare yourself to others, but I know many who have been able to do so. I know that all bodies are different and so one should not think about it. But it becomes a little subconscious that you ‘why my body wouldn’t want to fix it when it could be done’.
In addition to the help she receives from the club, Wik goes to a specialist once a week. Someone outside the team doesn’t think about matches.
– Now when I end up in this situation, one only thinks: What could I have done differently? Even if I don’t feel any pain, do you think I’m still nervous? As good as I feel, maybe I’ve waited?
To try to pinpoint the problem, they try to make each exercise as isolated as possible.
Right now, the 30-year-old can fit in as long as she stands still and runs, but only forward. They still avoid changing direction.
– We think it has something to do with it. This is the step you want to take now. This is where we stand at the border and it’s hard to know when I can take it. You don’t want to test all the time either because you may never get anywhere.
When matches are dense in damallsvenskan and the cup final against Häcken is around the corner, it starts to get tough for Wik to sit on plastic chairs in the stadiums stands.
– Now we’ve gone back a lot. I’ve wished many times that now it should be long enough. I had to train and do everything. That none of the things we tested should have been helpful and of course getting better, but it’s still frustrating.
– You are listening to me. I am disturbed. It’s only because I want to play outside, but you have to be patient.
The 30-year-old looks longingly at the artificial turf. The teammates who will be playing the match are still at home. It’s a few hours left before they reach Malmö IP when Wik gets up from the stands and goes down to the locker room.
Another gym session is waiting for you. In search of return.
But tonight she has to just sit back on the gray plastic chairs and cheer.
– Since I feel nothing in everyday life, I feel like I might be in the field. Sometimes you get there to fuck her now I’m just driving. It might work this time. That’s when it’s good to have a specialist from outside the team.
