With stress building up, junior Madisyn Rollf turns to crack her bones, relaxing her tense mind. Her habit of bone cracking allowed her to find that she can crack 14 different bone joints throughout her body.
At the age of four, Rollf noticed her dad cracking his knuckles and decided to copy him. Soon after, cracking her knuckles and other bones became a persistent habit.
“I’ve picked up the habit from my dad when I was around four or five,” Rollf said. “I saw him cracking his knuckles and just decided to copy him. Ever since then, I’ve found many more places to crack. I can now crack my ankles, both knees, both hips, both elbows, three different knuckles on my fingers, my neck, my back, and my jaw.”
During cheer practice, Rollf randomly popped out her hip bone, catching the attention of her teammates. Even though they were shocked, they found her ability enticing and even tried copying her.
“They were all shocked,” Rollf said. “They thought it was weird, but cool that I could do something like that and tried to do it too.”
Although Rollf enjoys cracking her bones, many of her family members are not fond of the sound.
“I was at the store with my mom one day, and was just doing a few random cheer practices,” Rollf said. “I was standing on my right leg a little too much, and when I leaned to my left, my hip bone just popped out. My mom doesn’t like the sound of bones cracking, so she started freaking out in the line. It’s a memorable moment for me because it was so unintended and surprised both my mom and me in different ways.”
Rollf believes that although her ability impresses her peers, it doesn’t quite make her stand out. Nonetheless, her talent continues to be something she is proud of.
“A stranger on the street wouldn’t notice that I can crack 14 bones in my body,” Rollf said. “It’s only when I point it out that I seem more unique than others. But, my ability is very useful to me, so I’m proud of the number of bones I can crack.”
Not afraid of the long-term effects of bone-cracking, Rollf continues turning to her ability to relieve her stress.
“Honestly, I don’t think it’s bad for you because there’s research that shows cracking joints doesn’t have any bad effects in the long run,” Rollf said. “I wouldn’t say it’s a good thing either because it can become dangerous if you crack a joint the wrong way in your neck for example. But, cracking my bones feels good and relieves stress for me, so I’m not concerned about the long-term effects. I just enjoy the feeling of cracking my bones, and the sounds are satisfying to hear.”
