Susan Berlin, a former nationally ranked tennis player, credits Dr. Jonathan Baskin at Atlantic Brain and Spine for helping her stand tall again after years of debilitating back pain.
How Spine Surgery Helped a Tennis Player Get Back on the Court
Susan Berlin was ready to get back in the game. Once a nationally ranked singles tennis player and UCLA cheerleader, Susan’s active life was sidelined by a motor vehicle accident that left her incapacitated by back pain and struggling to complete even simple daily errands.
Out of the Game
During the next year and a half, Susan saw multiple doctors who were unable to improve her circumstance with oral medications, spinal injections, nerve blocks, and physical therapy. “I felt like the Hunchback of Notre Dame,” she joked, though there was nothing funny about her condition.
When a neurologist friend recommended she see Dr. Jonathan Baskin, an expert in minimally invasive spine surgery, she made the appointment. Even though Atlantic Brain and Spine (ABS) was an hour and a half away from her house, she hoped she’d found someone who could help her rally.
The moment she stepped through the door, Susan knew she was in the right place.
An Ace at Atlantic Brain and Spine
Dr. Baskin and his medical assistant Rebecca Nicol were the perfect doubles team: thorough, knowledgeable, and reassuring. Susan’s request was direct: “I want my active life back.”
After reviewing images of her spine that revealed a combination of lumbar herniated discs, vertebral malalignment, scoliosis, and stenosis, a surgical treatment plan was formulated that would decompress her irritated nerves and restore stability to her spinal column.
The procedure would be performed using minimally invasive techniques that would be less disruptive to her normal anatomy, incur significantly less blood loss and risk of complication than conventional surgical approaches, and help her bounce back from surgery faster than the average experience.
In September 2024, Susan underwent a minimally invasive surgery at Morristown Medical Center. Dr. Baskin decompressed her spinal nerves through laminectomy and microdiscectomy procedures. He then stabilized her spine through interbody fusion and the placement of fixation screws and rods.
The day after surgery, Susan stood up straight for the first time in over a year and a half. She advanced her activity with physical therapists at Morristown Hospital over the next few days, before moving on to an additional week of inpatient rehabilitation therapy at the Kessler Institute.
“The staff at Morristown and Kessler were incredible. I didn’t have help at home, so Dr. Baskin made sure I was able to land in the best possible situation to optimize my recovery,” Susan said.
By the time she was discharged from Kessler, Susan was walking upright and unaided. She was even able to practice hitting a few tennis balls in the physical therapy exercise room, something that would have been unimaginable to her two weeks earlier.
Susan continued with outpatient physical therapy, then joined a gym when she felt ready. Any time she had questions or concerns, she knew she could contact Dr. Baskin’s office and Rebecca would quickly get back to her. “She’s efficient, smart, and knows what she’s talking about,” said Susan. “Rebecca is a great assistant.”
Game, Set, Match
Back in action: After undergoing minimally invasive spine surgery with Dr. Jonathan Baskin, Susan is back on the court and ready to play again.
At her two-month appointment, Dr. Baskin handed Susan a gift: a can of tennis balls. She was cleared to play again.
Today, the ball is back in Susan’s court when it comes to her health. She’s returning to her old activities and feeling better than ever – taking on challenges with the same grit and determination that once put her at the top of the rankings.
“While I’m still working to get back to full force, I’m determined to live life and enjoy every minute now that my back feels well again,” she said.
She wanted her active life back. Spine surgery got her back in the game.
After a car accident left former nationally ranked tennis player Susan Berlin unable to stand upright without debilitating back pain, Jonathan Baskin, MD, helped her return to the court.
Susan Berlin was used to moving. A former nationally ranked singles tennis player and UCLA cheerleader, being active wasn’t simply something she did—it was part of who she was.
Then a motor vehicle accident changed what everyday life looked like. Back pain became so severe that even simple errands were difficult, and Susan could no longer stand upright normally.
The tennis court was out of reach. So were many of the ordinary activities she had once taken for granted.
“I felt like the Hunchback of Notre Dame.”Susan Berlin
For 18 months, Susan kept looking for something that would help.
Susan saw multiple doctors and tried treatment after treatment. Nothing gave her back the function she had lost.
For a year and a half, Susan remained unable to stand normally or return to the active life she knew.
Then a neurologist friend recommended Jonathan J. Baskin, MD, a spine surgeon with expertise in minimally invasive surgery. Atlantic Brain & Spine was an hour and a half from Susan’s home, but she was willing to make the trip.
Susan arrived with one very clear goal.
After a year and a half of adapting her life around pain, she wasn’t looking for another temporary fix. She wanted to understand whether there was a path back to the life she had before the accident.
Susan wasn’t asking to fix an MRI. She wanted her active life back.
When Susan met with Jonathan J. Baskin, MD, he reviewed the structural problems in her lumbar spine alongside what mattered most to her: standing upright again, moving without debilitating pain and eventually returning to the activities she loved.
Her spine had more than one problem contributing to the symptoms. Imaging and evaluation showed a combination of disc disease, narrowing around the nerves and structural instability that required more than a single-point solution.
Damaged discs were contributing to nerve compression and pain.
Narrowing reduced the space available for the affected nerves.
The alignment of Susan’s spine had been disrupted.
Spinal curvature added another element to the structural problem.
Susan’s surgery needed to do three things.
Dr. Baskin designed a minimally invasive surgical approach to relieve pressure on Susan’s nerves while restoring stability to the affected area of her lumbar spine.
Create room for the nerves.
Laminectomy and microdiscectomy were used to remove sources of compression around the affected neural structures.
Restore spinal stability.
Interbody fusion with screws and rods stabilized the affected portion of Susan’s spine.
Use a less disruptive approach.
Minimally invasive techniques helped limit disruption to surrounding muscles and tissue while accomplishing the necessary decompression and stabilization.
The next day, Susan stood up straight.
It was something most people would barely think about. For Susan, it marked the first time in more than a year and a half that she had been able to stand upright normally.
Surgery was only the beginning of Susan’s recovery, but the change gave her an early glimpse of the function she had been trying to regain.
Susan brought the same competitive energy to rehabilitation.
After surgery, Susan continued her recovery at Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation. Her mobility improved, she progressed to walking without assistance and she quickly began looking for ways to reconnect with tennis.
A basic movement that had been out of reach for more than 18 months returned immediately after surgery.
Susan progressed through rehabilitation and regained the ability to walk without assistance.
Susan was already hitting tennis balls in the rehabilitation exercise room as she worked toward a return to the court.
The real test, though, would come at her next appointment with Dr. Baskin. Susan wanted to know when she could stop practicing her swing in rehabilitation and actually get back on the court.
Dr. Baskin handed Susan a can of tennis balls.
Susan had already been testing the boundaries of recovery. During rehabilitation, she had found ways to start hitting tennis balls again as her strength and mobility returned.
At her two-month follow-up with Dr. Baskin, the message became official: she was cleared to get back on the court.
After 18 months of pain and a long road back, Susan finally had something she had been working toward from the beginning: a return to the game she loved.
Game. Set. Match.
Returning to tennis meant more to Susan than returning to a sport. It represented everything she had been trying to reclaim: standing upright, moving without debilitating pain and feeling like herself again.
The woman who had spent a year and a half bent forward in pain was back on the court.
“I’m determined to live my life and enjoy every minute of it. My back feels so good now.”Susan Berlin
Jonathan J. Baskin, MD
Dr. Baskin specializes in minimally invasive and complex spine surgery at Atlantic Brain & Spine. Susan’s treatment was designed around the problems causing her pain and instability— and the active life she wanted to regain.
Understand what’s causing it—and what your options are.
If back pain is limiting the activities that matter to you, Atlantic Brain & Spine can help you understand your diagnosis and the treatment options that may be appropriate.
