Amplified Musculoskeletal Pain Syndrome makes your brain believe your body is in pain, which causes the nerves to flare. This causes actual pain, and kids dealing with this struggle to do any activity whatsoever. 

A freshman, Kyler Ball, has had to deal with this constant pain for over three years. 

“My pain used to stop me from being active,” Kyler said. “Thanks to Kansas City it doesn’t anymore.” 

Starting at the last week of September through the middle of October, Kyler had to go to Kansas City to finally receive treatment for his pain. The hospital he pretty much lived at for four weeks was Children’s Mercy Hospital. 

“We had to do lots of physical therapy,” Kyler said. “Squats, planks, and running at least three miles every day were just of few of the things we had to do.” 

This hospital also turned swimming into therapy in order to help with the pain in his knees.  

“My knees and back hurt all the time,” he said. “Pool therapy was a lot of swimming and leg stuff, but it felt like torture.” 

Kyler loves to play tennis. The year before he started playing tennis is when he got the amplified musculoskeletal pain syndrome, and it prevented him from doing certain things on the court. 

“Before the treatment, it slowed me down playing tennis and affected how I played,” Kyler said. “It doesn’t now.” 

Through his pain, Kyler has discovered a love of music. It has become “a good distractor” for his pain, and he is able to play electric, bass, and acoustic guitar, along with piano, oboe, and a little bit of drums. 

“I want to own a recording studio for artists to come record their songs in,” Kyler said. “I got to do it a couple of months ago, and I want to be able to give that same experience to other music lovers.” 

Although his pain prohibited him from playing much this season he is ready to play for Chisholm Trail tennis this spring. 

“I love playing tennis for my school, Kyler said. “And it’s nice to feel like a normal kid again where I don’t have to sit out while other kids are having fun.”