By Olivia A. Stokes

It was a sunny, cold afternoon in January 2020, when I was in the seventh grade, right before COVID hit. My friends and I were playing catch during recess, laughing the way only kids can— carefree, bright, and full of possibilities.

I reached up to grab the football, but it slipped through my hands. In an instant, happiness turned into excruciating pain. The point of the ball struck my left temple, knocking my glasses to the ground. At that moment, my lens shattered, and so did my world as I knew it.

The accident left me with a concussion, and suddenly the simplest tasks felt overwhelming. What followed were weeks of fog, constant headaches, loss of energy, and confusion that clouded my daily life. I struggled to focus on my schoolwork, and I could no longer pursue t

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