Laney Sorrell: From Pain to Perspective
Lora Parsons
The Ashland Beacon

Laney Sorrell, daughter of Shannon and Sara Sorrell, graduated from Paul Blazer High School in Ashland. As with most outstanding seniors, she has a long list of accolades and accomplishments that illustrate just how dedicated she’s been to academics, athletics, and leadership within her school building. Those things include: graduating 7th in her class of 224, carrying a 4.25 weighted GPA with a course load that included AP and dual-enrollment classes, participating in six different clubs or honors societies, and playing for competitive and/or school teams in softball, basketball, golf, and soccer at some point during her high school years. While her list of involvement is long, her list of awards is even longer, including Honor Roll every year, regional and state honors for FBLA’s public speaking competition, three-time state qualifier in golf, top 10 finishes in the regional golf tournament for three consecutive years, participation in the Ashland Alliance Youth Leadership program, and being selected as a representative for Blazer’s Senior Salute. And, to top it all off, she passed three pathways (educational goals within a certain discipline that often lead to certifications and future career possibilities). In general, students rarely pass two of these and Sorrell has tackled three: Business, BioMed Science, and Early Lifespan and Development. The future looks bright for this shining Tomcat, but her path to get to this point hasn’t been easy.
At eight years old, Sorrell experienced her first chronic migraine which started with a small dot of blurry vision and developed into a visual aura where she felt like she was blind for sometimes as long as 20 minutes. Anxiety and fear plagued her due to the temporary loss of vision and the pain that she knew would follow. These cycles of Sorrell’s migraines would recur nearly five times a month with regular headaches also impacting her an additional three or four times a week. At this point in her life, she reported, “This was something that consumed my mind, and I let it control me. I had to realize that my migraines didn’t define me and that I could treat them and not allow them to have so much weight over my life." That realization would come at a neurology appointment, where she noted the doctor’s intentional effort to speak to her, not her mother. “He wanted to empower me with knowledge, to explain what I was experiencing, and to teach me how to cope with it. This was life-changing for me." Having been armed with information about what was happening and how she could handle it was all the ammunition Sorrell would need to overcome this obstacle.
With the support of her family and doctors, it became evident that some important decisions would need to follow. Migraines of this severity would likely influence various areas in which she wished to excel. She knew they might impact her performance when taking prolonged tests, for example. Sorrell understood that “Chronic migraines aren’t a medical condition that people realize prevent you from doing things, but they do. It was hard to admit that I needed that help through a 504 plan because I didn’t want those around me to judge me or assume I was taking the easy way out." But, she also realized she needed to advocate for herself regardless of what others thought so pursued having a plan like this developed. (A 504 plan is a legally binding list of accommodations that some students need to eliminate the likelihood of a diagnosed condition negatively impacting their performance on school-related tasks.) As Sorrell learned, it did not get her out of any work or decrease the rigor of content she could pursue; it simply helped to eliminate her migraines’ impact on her educational outcomes. Hindsight affords her the ability to see that this was the right move given the severity of her migraines.

Another hurdle that Sorrell found herself having to overcome occurred during her junior year. In a mid-field collision during a soccer game, she completely dislocated her shoulder, tearing her labrum and bicep tendon and separating her acromioclavicular joint. Risk of injury is a concern for all athletes, and Sorrell had to face this fear directly, having both sports she played at the time--golf and soccer--threatened with surgery and recovery time. This injury brought with it an opportunity for growth: “I had to learn how to cope in new ways and to ask for help doing things that I used to consider normal, daily tasks. As a control freak, this was difficult for me. I had to realize that I can’t control everything, especially in this situation. I had to trust others to help." Through the adversity that she’s faced, what she’d most want to share with others is the affirmation she received even during those toughest times--that God had a plan for her life and He was true to His promise to use even adversity for His good.
A pivotal moment a couple of years before the shoulder injury helped to shore up Sorrell’s beliefs about good coming from bad situations. Sadie Robertson said in a podcast: “If you can’t change the situation you’re in, change your perspective." Sorrell recognized the importance of this life philosophy especially while recovering from the injury. Learning that she couldn’t change the fact that she was injured and would require six months of physical therapy led to the need to overcome sadness, anger, and fear. Changing her focus, and instead looking at all she could do, allowed those negative emotions to be transformed into joy, peace, and hope. “Without God, I would not have gotten through this situation and stayed as positive as I did. This made me thankful for the abilities to walk, talk, see, and so many other things that I didn’t realize I took for granted." Having previously stored up her identity in her performance on the soccer field or golf course, Sorrell realized that she needed to place her identity in things that aren’t of this world: “Worldly things, such as sports, are never consistent, but God never fails and is always consistent. I find my identity in Christ and He is my firm foundation.”
Having conquered her injury and migraines, Sorrell now understands that she is not only capable of participating in the sports she loves but also confident that she can navigate any similar injuries or unexpected challenges with the support of her Heavenly Father.
If she were to share her life with others, it would be that realization: “I play for an audience of One, which means that in every situation you’re in, there is light in the darkness. Sometimes you just have to search for it." She further explained, “Whether it’s migraines, an injury, or something else, I know that God is my source of joy and my strength."
Sorrell has signed to play on the women’s golf team at Pikeville, her future home-away-from-home. She will train in the field of Osteopathic Medicine with the hopes of becoming a Sports Medicine Physician as her next goal.
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