13-YO Diagnosed With Cerebral Palsy After Brain Injury Helps Others With Similar Disabilities | “Simply Go For It”

13-year-old Reagan Bischoff, who lives in Potomac Falls was just 2 months old when she underwent brain surgery. Shortly after that, she was diagnosed with cerebral palsy and partial paralysis on the left side of her body after the surgery. The condition affects muscle control, coordination, tone, reflex, posture, and balance. Although some things are harder to do as a result of the condition, she's not letting it stop here. While she has full use of her right hand, her left hand sometimes struggles in doing tasks.

The 8th grader has now mastered drying her long hair, cutting an apple, buttoning jeans, slicing bread, or doing push-ups—things she couldn't do as easily earlier. She shares how she does it on her YouTube channel, Throw Leftie (a reference to her resourcefulness on the lacrosse field) where thousands of people have watched her videos. “There were a lot of things that I had a hard time doing when I was little,” she told Northern Virginia Magazine. “I figured if I started a YouTube channel, I could help a lot of people that have something as difficult as I do.”

The young teen is keen on chasing her dreams and won't let anything stop her. "Living with cerebral palsy is a big difference from living without it," Reagan told TODAY co-host Craig Melvin. "You won't be able to do certain things, like cut fruit or button jeans. I always had a hard time doing those things, until I found certain tools. I never say I can't do it. I say, 'How can we figure this out?'" she said.

Danielle Bischoff, Reagan's mom, couldn't be more proud of her young daughter's strength and determination. "Reagan really works hard," she beamed. "There's a lot of things that we throw her way. We don't ever let her say no." She's even found success on the lacrosse field.

"At school, I get asked, 'What is wrong with your hand? Why do you have this?'" Reagan explained. "It sometimes is uncomfortable, when people are looking at me a lot. So I actually named my channel 'Throw Leftie' because my coaches were always yelling at me 'throw leftie, throw leftie' and I couldn’t," she added. But one day she decided to figure it out and now she's on a mission to inspire other young people who have similar disabilities. Her message to them? "Simply go for it."

The sporty youngster even received an award from Brain Injury Services, a nonprofit that provides services to people with brain injuries in Northern Virginia. She was named one of PEOPLE's "Girls Changing The World" in 2022.

References:

https://www.today.com/parents/teens/teen-cerebral-palsy-inspires-throw-leftie-youtube-rcna65475

https://people.com/human-interest/girls-changing-the-world-2022/

Representative Cover Image Source: Getty Images | Photo By frankiefotografie