Since Michael Oher is in the news, let me tell you a story you probably don’t know about him. On Sept. 18, 2016, while playing against the 49’ers, he took a vicious hit that gave him a concussion. The concussion protocol was not followed; he played the next week. He had started and played 122 games, including one Super Bowl victory; September 25, 2016 was his last.
He soon suffered from headaches, blurred vision and was incapacitated. The very brain that had given remarkable drive as a kid, now was turning against him. Doctors prescribed him a smorgasbord of drugs and a fog slowly blanketed his life.
He retreated into a dark room.
Two years later, he saw a crack of light in the darkness. His weight had ballooned to 400 lbs. His head was killing him. He didn’t want to leave the room. But he followed that light to Granny White Park in Brentwood, TN and walked about 15 yards. The next day, he walked 16 yards. Over and over he got up, went out and pushed against a brain that was lying to him.
Like Academy-Award winning director Sarah Polley, who was in bed for three and half years due to her own horrific concussion, he pushed into symptoms and overcame them. He lost the weight and is now helping kids like he was helped along the way.
He did the work.
I’ve seen a lot of opinions about Mike in the comments section. I got to spend an hour-and-a-half with him yesterday — and while that’s not long enough to really get to know someone, my BS detector did not go off (and I have been dealing with politicians for over 30 years — I have a well-honed BS detector). One of the things that really hurts him about The Blindside is that it made him look like he was helpless and dumb. When you meet him, you quickly realize he’s far from either.
His new book “When Your Back’s Against The Wall” is a good read. I read it after having my spinal surgery in two years. As I quickly recover (PTL), I think about him walking in Granny White Park. Healing, whether in the heart, mind, or soul, happens one step at a time.