Indiana Fever star Kelsey Mitchell is out of the hospital after an injury scare and explained what happened to her during Game 3 of the WNBA semifinals in a lengthy social media post released Wednesday, Oct. 1.
Mitchell announced she suffered from a rare muscle condition called rhabdomyolysis that is usually the result of overexertion, according to medical experts. The 29-year-old Mitchell initially collapsed during the third quarter of the Fever’s season-ending loss to the Aces and had to be helped off the court before being transported to a medical facility.
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Mitchell wrote she went through “a sense of numbness/paralyzing feeling with no movement from my lower extremities for up to 5 to 7 seconds” during the incident, but that she was already “walking and moving at a slow pace” again.
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“My muscles stopped producing positive blood to my bloodstream, my body locked up from a physical standpoint and from there fatigue and cramping settled in,” Mitchell added. “I panicked because I began to think the worse when I felt like I couldn’t move my legs. It was an out of body experience for me and I thank God for covering me at a time like that.”
Mitchell was released late Tuesday night from a Las Vegas-area hospital after receiving fluids for what was initially described as extreme cramping by Fever officials. Indiana Coach Stephanie White specified in her postgame comments that Mitchell experienced “a lot of lower body cramping.” Mitchell is expected to make a full recovery, with her social media post noting, “I will be fine very soon.”
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Indiana managed to rally back from a nine-point deficit and force overtime against Las Vegas without Mitchell, who emerged as a WNBA MVP finalist this season in the aftermath of Caitlin Clark’s extended injury absence. Mitchell had 15 points when she left Game 5 and averaged 20.2 points and 3.4 assists for the Fever during the regular season.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kelsey Mitchell injury update: Fever star reveals rare diagnosis
