Unlimited Edition: Reagan Bischoff's Got a Way

This article appears in the April edition of USA Lacrosse Magazine. Join our momentum.

Reagan Bischoff has cerebral palsy, epilepsy, dyslexia and ADHD.

But her can-do attitude on the lacrosse field and in YouTube videos sets an example for her peers.

"Mental is half the thing when you’re doing something difficult.” said Bischoff, a 13-year-old goalie from Potomac Falls, Virginia.

Bischoff’s parents, Danielle and Johnny, always encouraged her to explore new activities. Same goes for her younger brother, who is legally blind. Bischoff has done everything from softball to swimming to horseback riding. She earned a black belt in Taekwondo. She plays the trumpet. She might try volleyball.

“In my family we never say, ‘I can’t,’” she said. “We say, ‘I will try but I might need help and a little bit of time.’”

Bischoff said lacrosse gave her confidence. She started with the Algonkian Lacrosse Club rec program in Loudoun County. A midfielder at first, she soon moved to the position her father played in high school in New York. She even wears his No. 27.

“I chose lacrosse because it strengthens my left arm, and my dad can help me because he used to play,” said Bischoff, who is in eighth grade. “It keeps my mind moving.”

Bischoff started playing travel with Cavalier Lacrosse in fourth grade and is in her first year with Pride Lacrosse’s 2027 Red Loudoun team.

“She’s going to do amazing things throughout her life,” Pride coach Dana Drever said. “You don’t get a Reagan every day.”

Bischoff was just two months old when doctors removed the part of her brain causing as many as 60 seizures per day. The surgery halted her seizures temporarily but resulted in cerebral palsy on her left side. Her left arm, hand and leg are weaker than her right side.

“With my disability, it’s difficult for me to come out of the goal, and to switch to my left hand and pass lefty like the other people on my team,” she said.

Last summer, Bischoff started to wrap a Bioness L300 Go just below her knee. The device provides electrical stimulation to prevent drop foot when she runs. Previously, she did constraint therapy, where her healthy right arm and hand were casted to force her brain to stimulate her left side. Her family moved to Baltimore for a five-week program at Johns Hopkins.

Bischoff also has been part of the Hand-Arm Bimanual Intensive Therapy program at East Carolina University that tries to help children with brain damage improve their weakened motor functions. Her neurologist has encouraged her to continue with lacrosse. Playing sports teaches Bischoff muscle memory and prevents muscle atrophy.

“We’ve tried lots of sports,” Danielle Bischoff said. “With goalie, she’s able to be in the goal and move in a way that can overcome some of her challenges. Switching to her offside is hard because that left hand sometimes falls off the stick. But she can move her body to the other side of the goal.”

Cerebral palsy makes daily routines difficult. Bischoff invents new ways to make a ponytail, blow dry or curl her hair. She uses a special tool to button jeans and a modified keyboard to type. She found a cutting board with spikes to hold food while she cuts it one-handed. Tying shoes is hard. Putting on a seatbelt is tricky. Two of her most recent challenges are figuring out how to put on gloves and put in earrings on her own.

Bischoff shares these discoveries on her YouTube channel that she named “Throw Leftie,” for something she heard from coaches but had a hard time doing. She posts videos from her lacrosse experiences and regular everyday life but focuses her content primarily on life hacks for people with disabilities.

“I thought I could be that person to help others. Everyone has something that’s hard for them,” Bischoff said. “Especially with the disability that I have, it will help them find a solution.”

Bischoff’s work has gained national attention. She was on NBC’s “Today” show in January. Her favorite player, Taylor Moreno, surprised her with a video tribute and later an in-person appearance at Riverbend Park in Great Falls. Bischoff also was featured in People Magazine as one of the “Girls Changing the World in 2022.” Last May, she was honored by the nonprofit Brain Injury Services with the 2022 Bryant Cohen Empowerment Award for people who “commit to their recovery process while leading and empowering others and maintaining a positive outlook.”

Throw Leftie is approaching 2,000 subscribers, and Bischoff has started a monthly WebEx for girls dealing with disabilities.

“We couldn’t be prouder,” Johnny Bischoff said. “Lacrosse has been a cornerstone in helping her grow into the young lady that she is today.”