Gulliver Prep senior Olivia Hassan graduated on time despite having to overcome three concussions. Because of the concussions, she had to take summer classes to finish her junior year.
She also missed school this school year going to the team of doctors at the University of Miami Concussion Clinic. That caused her to be put on probation.
“I got caught up with school pretty fast,” she says. “It was a pretty big struggle. I’m surprised I’m graduating.”
To boot, Hassan suffered from anxiety and depression from sophomore year until recently.
“I want to help people who are going through the same things as me, because I’ve been able to overcome it,” she says.
One of her coping strategies was rock climbing. She joined a group for kids who suffer from anxiety. Now she’s a mentor.
“That’s when I was inspired to create an event for GOALS,” she says. “Kids who are anxious share some characteristics with kids who are autistic.”
She put on a rock climbing event for the autistic kids who attend Get Out And Love Soccer (GOALS) events.
“It was so much fun,” she says. “A kid came up to me and said it was the best day of his life.”
Hassan’s been working with GOALS since it started. She was in eighth grade.
“The whole goal of GOALS is to engage with kids in the autism spectrum,” she says. “And to get them to have fun and to enhance their motor skills. I love helping people. I’m super empathic.”
Although Hassan’s played soccer since she was a child, she can’t play any longer because of the concussions. The concussion happened while playing soccer and lacrosse.
Her first concussion happened at 14. Her pediatrician referred her to Nicolaus Children’s Hospital for treatment.
The second concussion happened her junior year and took a year to recover from. Initially, the urgent care doctor said she didn’t have a concussion. So, she went on a trip to Orlando for a robotics competition and rode roller coasters with her classmates. The next weekend, she went skiing for spring break but felt sick and realized she had a concussion.
“I scheduled an appointment with Miami Children’s with my doctor there,” she says.
After doing some physical therapy there, they referred her to the UM Concussion Clinic. She was cleared in March and allowed to play lacrosse again. But was hit in the head just a month later. She said she could tell she had another concussion.
Now, she’s interested in neuroscience and watches TV shows and documentaries about that. She’s also interested in learning more about concussions and educating people about them. She says if someone has a broken arm, you can see the injury.
“With a concussion, you have no idea what they are dealing with and all the obstacles they have to overcome,” she says.
Outside of sports, Hassan is passionate about coral restoration and is working to grow coral to help the reefs.
“The coral reefs around the world are dying at a rapid rate,” she says.
She’s gone a couple of times to plant the coral that they grow.
“We have these structures, underwater trees made of PVC pipes,” she says. “You have to check on them to make sure there is no coral bleaching. We have a bunch in the Keys.”
She hopes to continue while in college. She’s attending the University of Denver for mechanical engineering and a minor in environmental science. Her goal is to go to grad school for environmental engineering.
Linda Rodriguez Bernfeld
