Keeping Her Head Held High: Yali’s Journey Defeating Dystonia

wo years ago, Yali used a walker as she inched toward her school’s entrance. Her neck, twisted and folded forward, hunched her over in “the shape of the letter r,” as her dad described it. As classmates zoomed past, slinging heavy backpacks, Yali couldn’t hold her head up.
A month before, the 11-year-old could jump out of her mom’s car and run into school like other kids. Now, she could barely walk. Seemingly overnight, her symptoms had taken over.
On April 15, 2022, Yali’s sore neck quickly morphed into trouble walking while trying to keep her head up. After several doctor visits in their home state of Georgia, Yali was diagnosed fairly early with DYT1 dystonia, or generalized dystonia, thanks to a pediatric neurologist in her hometown.
As her symptoms grew worse, Yali and her parents became discouraged. But they knew they had to explore all options to help her reclaim her life.
Read the full story: ufhealth.org/s...