Many Miles Later...

Boom! The gun went off, and I began running in the lead pack. The entire armory was packed, and you could hear all the background chatter and excitement. It was the two-mile race, and after mile one, I began to slow down unexpectedly, as I felt a stabbing pain in my abdomen. Knowing I couldn’t quit, I finished the race. As I crossed the finish line, EMTs rushed over to me as I collapsed on the track, wincing in pain. At this moment, I felt as though a machete was stabbing my upper abdomen, and the agony would not subside. Running is usually the thing that gets my endorphins going, which makes me feel alive and happy, but this time was different.If I could go back in time, I wouldn’t have run that day. . I would not have dashed off the line when the official shot the start gun had I known that one race could take away my happiness. I remember it like it was yesterday.

After that day, I had to sit on the sidelines and watch while my teammates competed in winter and spring track. The morning of July 10th in downtown Millburn was another significant date in my medical journey. It was my mom’s first day of summer vacation, and we decided to go for pedicures. Once mine was finished, I sat down to get a ten-minute back massage. After five minutes, I felt dizzy and nauseous. The last thing I remember is a spot on my back being touched, and it sent a shock of pain all the way around to my abdomen. Everything went black, and I passed out, slamming my head on the floor. I took a trip by ambulance to the emergency room, where it was determined that I had a minor concussion, yet, still no answer as to what was wrong with my abdomen. At this point, my family and I started what we called “The Process”. This entailed a summer full of doctor’s appointments in which every day was a new type of test. I had a CT Angiogram, an endoscopy to rule out any stomach issues, an echocardiogram to rule out my heart, plus multiple MRI’s of my chest and pelvis. Every test came back negative, which was both mentally draining and extremely frustrating. All I wanted was to be able to run again. The most disappointing conversation was with a doctor who told me to “find another talent” since the pain only comes when I am running. I burst into tears and told him I would not give up on something I was so passionate about, worked tirelessly on, and was great at. Running in college had been a long-term goal of mine.

At the end of my sophomore year, I began prolotherapy injections to help keep my rib in place. After going through a year of these injections, I was finally able to make it through 3 miles with minimal pain. During this time of injections, I was introduced to team unified, which is a program where special education students and regular education students get to come together, practice, and compete in basketball together. Whether it was attending pep rallies, birthday parties, or just sitting with these kids at lunch, I fell in love with working with special education students. Through the Unified program, I was also introduced to Millburn’s PAIRS Club, which allowed me to spend 2.5 hours a week with severely disabled students at the ECLC (Education, Careers, and Lifelong Community). I was gratified to play a role in mentoring these students, who taught me that even the simplest things in life have great value. Doing something as simple as an art project or playing music to dance to can make someone smile. Approaching my senior year, I decided that I wanted to become a special education teacher. I knew that I not only had the patience to succeed as a teacher, but the passion to be a special education teacher.

Having realized that I wanted to teach special education led me to the University of Delaware and amazing programs. I don’t know that I would be the person I am today without having gone through my injury. I became captain of my cross country team my senior year and was the second-fastest runner. I got into Delaware, enrolled as a student, and am now a part of the Club XC team and have never been happier.