MeiLin McDonald, 17,suffered a severe concussion during a basketball game as a child.
The injury caused her eyes to become permanently dilated and left her unable to focus. McDonald’s physician suggested surgery to explore the possibility of inner-ear damage. Unfortunately, complications during surgery made her symptoms much worse and left her unable to walk.
When she came to CrossFit Wilsonville, McDonald was in a wheelchair. The coaches were in awe of McDonald’s story and were ready to began helping her on the journey to recovery.
The first task was simply to walk 8 feet. Once McDonald mastered that, the goal was to do it faster.
Now, McDonald has new goals: “I would love to do a triathlon,” she says.
She has some advice for anyone dealing with a debilitating injury:
“There’s always hope. Keep fighting. It may suck, but as soon as you say you’re done, everything ends and you don’t get to see the impact you have on people.”
12
