For professional athletes, recovery has always been part of the job. But as regenerative medicine continues to evolve, more athletes are exploring treatments such as stem cell therapy as another option for managing the injuries and wear that come with competing at the highest level.
We caught up with Henricksen to talk about what led him there, what the experience was actually like, and how he feels today.
I originally had some compressed and torn discs in my back, and over the years, one of them kept getting worse and eventually developed into a bulging disc. For about five years, I tried epidural injections, PRP, and different treatments. They helped, but the relief always wore off after about 10 months. Eventually, I had enough. I realized I wasn’t really healing the injury, and that’s when we reached out to BioXcellerator about stem cell therapy.
I had tried a lot of PRP injections, cortisone, and epidurals, and I felt like I had pretty much tried everything. Once I started looking into stem cell therapy and the idea that it could potentially help my body heal instead of just temporarily managing the pain, it felt like a no-brainer to explore it.
We did a lot of research, and everywhere we looked, BioXcellerator kept coming up as one of the top places to go. The facility, medical team, and level of research behind what they were doing really stood out. They also have their own lab and cell bank right there at the clinic, so the cells are tested and processed on-site with a focus on quality and viability. The whole operation felt really put together, and I felt confident going there.
I had a little hesitation because I was traveling to Colombia for medical treatment and didn’t really know what to expect. But once I got there, the experience was excellent. Everything was thought out, from the driver picking us up to the hotel and getting to my appointments. Everything was really easy and organized.
Probably the overall level of care. Everything was super prompt and precise. If my appointment was at 7:00 in the morning and I got there at 6:55, at 7:00 I was talking to someone. Then I would move on to the next thing exactly when I was supposed to. The staff was great, the facility was impressive, and the whole operation was really dialed. I couldn’t say enough good things about the way they took care of me.
They were extremely attentive and thorough. They reviewed all of my MRIs in detail and could get new imaging on-site if needed. They really took the time to understand what was going on with my body and my injuries before treating me. The entire process was very thorough.
I didn’t know too much about it beforehand. I knew stem cell therapy had changed a lot of people’s lives, but going through it myself taught me a lot more about regenerative medicine and the idea of working with your body’s natural healing process. For me, that was really interesting, especially after years of treatments that would help for a while and then wear off.
I was prepared for it to go a lot less smoothly than it did. Once I was there, I was amazed by how well they took care of me and how smoothly everything went. Compared with the trauma and recovery that can come with surgery, my experience was pretty painless. The recovery felt different, too. Instead of getting a numbing agent or steroid and having temporary relief, I felt like I was getting stronger and stronger over the next few weeks and months. I could actually feel like my body was healing.
Before I went, my hip was out of control. I had sciatic nerve pain going down my leg, and my lower back was in so much pain that I could barely bend over. I couldn’t even put my socks on because I couldn’t hinge at the hip without severe pain. By the time I was heading home after about a week, I was already walking better, touching my toes, and moving around more. I actually tried to surf pretty quickly. That hurt a little, so it was probably too soon, but every week after that I kept getting better through the recovery process. I also feel healthier overall, and I feel like the treatment helped with some of my other injuries, not just my back. I’m still skating, surfing, and snowboarding and doing the things I love, and that’s huge for me.
I would say around week three. It was a gradual progression where I felt a little better each day and then hit different milestones each week. By weeks three and four, I really felt like it was working and that I was going to keep getting better. I could ride longer days on snow and start doing bigger tricks again without being in the same kind of pain.
Definitely. It showed me what’s out there and gave me a totally different perspective on recovery and what your body is capable of. As a professional snowboarder, you put your body through a lot, so finding ways to take care of it and keep doing what you love for as long as possible is huge.
I would say do your research and go for it. Based on my experience, it changed my whole perspective on recovery. For me, it was definitely life-changing. And I have to give a big thank-you to Kim Dresser for connecting me with BioXcellerator and helping make this opportunity happen, and to Monster Energy for all of their continued support throughout my career. Having people in my corner who support what I do means a lot.
