Patient Story of: Laur Demartino

My relationship with Hospital for Special Surgery began in 2017, when I tore my ACL playing soccer. I had played sports my entire life and grew up doing musical theater and dance, so experiencing a serious injury for the first time left me feeling lost about my future and my ability to stay active.

I tore my ACL in August 2017 and had surgery on July 3, 2019. Answorth Allen, MD, performed my ACL reconstruction at HSS, and I could not have asked for a better experience. With my extreme fear of blood and doctors, I probably wasn't the easiest patient, but Dr. Allen made a situation that terrified me feel manageable. I had an incredibly fast recovery and continued my rehabilitation through physical therapy at HSS.

I remember Dr. Allen telling me to be mindful of running after my surgery. At the time, that didn't concern me much because I wasn't a runner. I probably hadn't run a mile since playing soccer in high school.

A few years later, that completely changed. Looking for something physical and exciting that would push me outside my comfort zone, I signed up for the TCS Toronto Waterfront Half Marathon. Going from essentially not running to training for 13.1 miles was a huge adjustment, and I often thought about my ACL. But my knee held up, and the injury I once worried would limit me no longer defined what my body was capable of.

A few months later, I committed to New York Road Runners' 9+1 program: completing nine qualifying races and one volunteer opportunity to earn guaranteed entry into the following year's TCS New York City Marathon. My goal was the 2027 marathon.

During the first six months of 2026, I completed eight races. Just days before race number nine, I fell down the stairs at the gym and severely sprained my ankle. To say I was devastated is an understatement.

I remember driving myself to the hospital that night and thinking that all I wanted to do was call HSS. They had gotten me through an injury that once made me question my future in sports, and when I found myself injured again, HSS was where I immediately trusted to help me figure out what came next.

I also couldn't stop thinking: I want to run the New York City Marathon in 2027. To make that possible, I still had one more finish line to cross.

I was placed in a medical boot and cleared to walk in it. Just days after spraining my ankle, I showed up for my ninth race, walked all four miles in my boot and crossed the finish line – completing the racing portion of my 9+1 journey and keeping my marathon dream alive.

Then came the work of actually getting back to running. I returned to HSS and began physical therapy with Pawel Wawrzyniak, who has been incredible throughout my recovery. Together, we've worked to take me from a walking boot to an ankle brace and toward running again, with exercises both at physical therapy and at home that have helped me feel stronger and stronger.

Then, I finally heard the words I'd been waiting for: I'm cleared to run again. That meant so much more than being able to lace up my running shoes. I had spent this year working toward the Boston Half Marathon this November, and for a while, I didn't know if that would still be possible. I'm incredibly grateful that I will be able to run it. It might not look exactly how I imagined, but I've learned that the path to a finish line doesn't have to look the way you expected for crossing it to mean something.

Through my ACL tear, my ankle injury and everything in between, I've tried to live by a phrase that has become a huge part of my life: Another Best Day Ever.

To me, Another Best Day Ever doesn't mean every day is perfect. Some of my "best days" have involved injuries, medical boots, physical therapy, setbacks and fear. It means believing there is still something worth appreciating, learning from or hoping for in every day, even when it looks nothing like you planned.

This recovery has also taught me what it means to run on hope. Sometimes hope has looked like running 13.1 miles. Sometimes it has looked like walking four miles in a medical boot. And sometimes it has simply meant showing up to physical therapy and trusting that those small steps would eventually get me back to what I love.

HSS has been part of my story through two very different chapters of my life. They helped me get back on my feet after I tore my ACL, when I wasn't even a runner yet. Years later, they're helping me get back to running as I chase one of the biggest goals I've ever set for myself. The next chapter is that half marathon finish line in November. After that, I'll keep running on hope all the way to the 2027 New York City Marathon.