Recovering from ACL Surgery: A Lifelong Athlete's Journey

Hi all :) I’m about 9.5 months post ACL-reconstruction surgery. I know this group is for torn meniscus but because there is no group for ACL yet and I think the recovery from meniscus tears/other knee surgeries is similar in some ways to ACL recovery, I thought it’d be best to share my thoughts here. The recovery process from ACL surgery has easily been the hardest journey - physically and mentally - of my life. I’m in my 20s and a lifelong athlete (taekwondo for almost 20 years) and martial arts has been a core part of my life and my identity for as long as I can remember. Not having my sport as an outlet, in addition to seeing my body change in strength and physical appearance (muscle atrophy is REAL), has felt soul crushing in so many ways. I’ve realized how much of my self worth and sense of self was (is) tied to my identity as an athlete. For any other athletes out there, have you had similar experiences related to injury/your sport? For any one out there recovering from ACL or other major surgeries, do you have any advice for learn to trust yourself/your body again, and building your self worth/confidence up again post injury/after a major injury?