Edina Musa: Motherhood didn't take away my dreams, it gave me new strength

Edina Musa returned to the court not as someone who abandoned her dreams upon becoming a mother, but as an athlete who found new determination in parenthood. A former national team player, now a coach and fitness instructor, she combined discipline and a realistic approach to find balance between training, family and rehabilitation — even before a sixth knee surgery following the injury at the end of the season.

The injury occurred during the final match between Struga and Gevgelija, after which she decided to return to the Gevgelija team and help secure promotion to the First Women's League — a mission that was ultimately achieved.

Rehabilitation, habits and mental focus

Instead of lamenting after the operation, Edina published a video in which she exercises. She says she wanted to send a message that challenges do not stop the champion, but motivate them. Rehabilitation, she explains, is also a psychological challenge and requires patience and gradual progress.

About the moment she learned she would become a mother she says: "Honestly, maybe at some point I wondered whether I would be able to compete at the same level again. But the desire to have a child was too great and I was prepared, if necessary, to put some things on pause." As a professional fitness instructor, she advises women to listen to their bodies during pregnancy and after childbirth, but also to avoid limiting beliefs that can block them from within.

Asked what was hardest when returning, Musa answers that there were both physical and mental challenges: physically, it took time to get back into shape; mentally, it was difficult to accept that she could not immediately lift the weights and do all the training she wanted. She also describes the feelings when she leaves her child, Maksim, at home to go to training — a feeling with which many mothers identify.

The key support, according to her, was family: her husband, who is also a former basketball player, understands her passion well and was a huge support, and she also received help from her parents. Musa sends a message to mothers who fear that motherhood will take away their dreams — do not be afraid, take care of yourselves and ask for help when you need it, because a fulfilled mother is also a better mother for her child.

Photo: Private archive of Edina Musa