Senior Success: Justin Garza HS senior overcomes chronic pain and injury on path to graduation

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- As graduation approaches, Justin Garza High School senior Trinity Steiner is reflecting on a journey defined by perseverance, resilience and determination.

Steiner's high school experience includes many of the hallmarks of a typical senior year.

She has played water polo all four years, works part-time as a swim coach and is finishing up her final classes.

As she prepares to graduate, she said the moment comes with both excitement and nostalgia.

"I'm ready to be done, but I'm definitely going to miss a lot of stuff, especially like my polo team, my coaches and my teachers," Steiner said. "But I'm excited overall."

What sets Steiner's journey apart is the challenge she has faced for nearly a decade.

She lives with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, a rare and not well-understood chronic pain condition.

To help her navigate campus, she uses a sparkly pink cane decorated with stuffed animals.

"It's a very hard type of pain to describe," she said. "But the easiest way I've been able to describe it to people so they could understand is if you've ever had a Charley horse, which is like one of those really bad cramps in your calf, it's that, but never-ending."

Steiner first began experiencing symptoms at age 9, though it took several years to receive an official diagnosis.

During her freshman and sophomore years, the condition led to pain-induced syncope, causing her to faint multiple times a week.

"I was in so much pain all the time that my brain couldn't process the pain that I was in," she said. "And it like, pushed to the side until it was so much that I would just end up passing out like three times a week."

By her junior year, those episodes had subsided, and she was able to focus more fully on school and athletics.

Entering her senior year, Steiner was named captain of the water polo team, a role her coach said reflected her leadership and determination.

"Even with the restrictions, she's just pushing through for everything, always asking questions. What can I do to get better?" said Tony Aguilar, aquatics girls' head coach. "I know her injuries do stunt her a little bit, but she still pulls through for everything."

However, just months into her senior year, Steiner faced another setback. In September, she and several teammates were involved in a car crash after another driver ran a stop sign.

Steiner was hospitalized for three days and diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury, a brain bleed and a ruptured eardrum.

Doctors required her to remain in bed rest for three weeks and indicated she would likely miss the remainder of the water polo season.

"Mentally, it was very hard. It was very challenging. It was very dark for the first week or so," Steiner said. "But I had my family, I had my girls and I especially had my sister."

Determined to return, Steiner worked through recovery and secured the necessary medical clearance to rejoin her team. She made it back into the pool for the final two games of her senior season.

At the same time, she stayed committed to her studies, working closely with teachers to complete missed assignments and stay on track for graduation.

French teacher Christina Cruz said Steiner's persistence stood out.

"She could have totally thrown in the towel. She had every right to because this happened to her in her senior year," Cruz said. "But she didn't. She stayed positive. She stayed hopeful. Even when she knew things were going to be hard, she stuck with it."

As Steiner prepares to graduate, she said her experiences have shaped her perspective and the message she hopes to share with others.

"You truly never know what somebody's going through just from what you see on the outside," she said. "So just really be understanding and kind with people, because you never know how much the small things you can do really mean to a person with the things that they're going through."

After graduation, Steiner plans to attend Fresno City College.

She hopes to pursue a career as an eighth-grade U.S. history teacher and continue coaching, carrying forward the resilience she developed throughout her high school years.

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