Imagine wearing a neck brace the first weeks of high school. Freshman Grace Alfaro had torticollis, a condition where the muscles on one side of your neck tighten so you can’t move your head. The first weeks of school she used a neck brace for neck support.

“I got torticollis. My neck was slanted and I couldn’t lift it up. It still hurts,” said Grace.

Grace was diagnosed with torticollis in September. When she had torticollis, it was so bad that she couldn’t write or move her neck. Some days she couldn’t get up to go to school.

“I was absent for school for a really long time because I couldn’t move [my neck] and get up. So I was behind on a bunch of school work for a while,” said Grace.

Grace hopes to attend Cal Poly or UCSD after graduation. Unfortunately, her schoolwork was negatively affected by her absences and she’s less hopeful. Her parents always expected Grace to get things done and keep her grades up, but last semester she struggled to get assignments done due to her busy schedule.

“I have to do something. I can’t just sit around on my butt all day, but I can’t do too much, so soccer is like the perfect amount for me. I like running around and it gets your aggression out,” said Grace.

Grace plays defense on the freshman girls’ soccer team with friends from soccer over 10 years ago. However, playing with a neck injury has complicated her playing.

“I haven’t been able to head the ball. I mean, I did it in the game because it was an emergency and my coach makes me. Otherwise, I can’t play.”

Grace has shown great improvement since school’s start and is hopeful moving forward in into the soccer season.