Katherine Marie Rumple

Class of 2023

In 2018, when I was 13, we moved from Tennessee to Florida. I felt like I was starting my life over again.  Meeting new people and making new friends was a little difficult in the beginning.  After a while it did get easier, and I had a good group of friends at school. Throughout my 8th grade year, I struggled with depression a little bit and was starting to stress out over going into high school.

About a year later, my mom and I were sitting on the couch when my leg started to shake and then stopped randomly. A couple minutes later it would happen again. This would happen randomly throughout the day, but we didn’t know what was going on. I was honestly a little bit scared because I did not know what would happen. My parents took me to a neurologist to see what was happening. I was diagnosed with a tic disorder, Tourette’s syndrome. As the doctor told me this, I was confused on why I had it and what life was going to be like from then on out.

The doctor prescribed medication for me and it helped with the tics. A couple weeks later I felt my back burning, the next day my shoulders started to cramp. We called the doctor the next day and he told me to stop taking the meds. He started me on a different medication to see if that helped. This one also helped with the tics but gave me major muscle spasms that would bring me to the ground screaming in pain. He took me off that medication. I did not start another one at the time.

Over the next 2 years we decided not to start a new medication due to the side effects of the others. We noticed that the tics were not too bad in general, just during stressful times. With the help of my parents, we came up with some coping mechanisms, including using a stress ball, and or a fidget cube to keep my mind off different things that stressed me out.

Towards the end of my junior year in high school my tics started to get worse again. I would hit the desk, I would hit myself multiple times without meaning to. At this point I knew I had to see a doctor again but I did not want to go on medication due to my previous experience with it. We found a new neurologist and she confirmed that I do have a tic disorder. She put me on a low dose ADD medication to help reduce stress and to calm my nerves. This medication is helping me every day even during the more stressful times in my life.

During this time, I discovered my passion for baking. Baking completely calms me. I love baking for everyone. I enjoy taking cookies, cupcakes, or banana bread to my local church for friends to enjoy. My future goal is to own my own bakery.

During the summer before my junior year, my mother was diagnosed with cancer. She fought hard through radiation treatments, Chemotherapy and eventually surgery. This experience caused my tics to intensify as I worried about mom. Through all of this I learned the power of family support and prayers. Thankfully the surgery was a success, and my mom is now cancer free. I now know that whatever challenge life throws at me, I can overcome.

Advice and Wishes for Katherine