Graduating from high school, I had five World Championship titles in western equestrian speed events on a horse I trained myself, and I had a full track & field college scholarship as a sprinter. But everything changed after being paralyzed and having permanent vision damage from a rare autoimmune disease. I was 18.
I was first immersed in wheelchair athletics at Oklahoma State University where I played wheelchair basketball and got my B.S. in Chemical Engineering. I was set on becoming a Paralympian. Unfortunately, my neurological disease was progressive, so I had to keep changing sports to adapt to new impairments. I have also played rugby and trained in paracycling, becoming the first quadriplegic female to win a national championship and the first quadriplegic female world champion in 2011.