My Brain Injury and Educational Challenge by Ethan

My Brain Injury and Educational Challenge by Ethan - April 2019 Scholarship Essay

I remember my mom asking me if there's anything I needed from the store. "Can you get me those, those, you know, those fruits that are red with the green on top?" My mom came back from the store with strawberries.

It was the start of my junior year when it happened. It was State Cup, the culmination of a hard worked soccer season, the cup that determines the state championship. About 10 minutes into the game, I was tripped and then it went....dark. I was unconscious for a few minutes and then awoke to memory loss, confusion, and a rockin' headache.

I was rushed to the hospital and diagnosed with a grade 3 concussion. It took months of recovery to get over the light sensitivity, noise and headaches that were debilitating. All during this time, I was in school. This was my most challenging educational period in my life. For one, it's an important year for ACT's, which I bombed because I took it one week after my diagnosis. Another reason it was my most challenging educational time is because it is a year where you work on scholarships and start doing campus tours, I did none. I was told by my doctor to sit in the basement and do very little schoolwork. My mom took me out of elective classes and I had to get a tutor for my core classes. This was a trying time, it was isolating being away from my school friends and from activities that normally help relieve pressure from school.

Through it all, I learned hard work and focus can bring about great results and miracles. I was able to still keep a 3.9 gpa through the year. Just like when I couldn't remember what a strawberry was, I can do enough to bring about the results to get the strawberry. I'm proud of all I accomplished academically despite my brain injury that has symptoms that still persist today.