"RUGBY QUITE LITERALLY SAVED ME"

An incredibly rare medical condition robbed TONI ROBINSON of her confidence - but picking up a new sport got her back on her feet

- Josh Graham

PLAYING RUGBY is more likely to leave you needing hospital treatment than help you get your life back after being discharged, but that is the experience of Toni Robinson. Going to university is often heralded as the best time of a young adult’s life. A sense of freedom, independence and not too many responsibilities. Or at least that’s how it’s sold to today’s teenagers.

But Robinson, now 25, spent the best part of two years searching for answers. At times her eyes were so badly swollen that they closed shut, her lips the same – she could barely eat. Doctors tried time and time again to identify the root cause but were left none the wiser.

Eventually, she was diagnosed with Melkersson-Rosenthal Syndrome, a rare neurological disorder characterised by recurring facial paralysis and swelling.

The road to recovery was more complicated than she could have ever imagined. The condition had not only robbed Toni of precious time but also stripped her of her old personality. She readily admits to being a “bit wild” before falling ill, boisterous and outgoing – “the loudest in the room”.

Sadly, she developed severe social anxiety and depression and drifted from friends. Previously a footballer at a local club, sport had fallen by the wayside as she lived in hospital, desperate to get better. That was until one day a friend’s persistence paid off and she rocked up at local rugby club Blaydon RFC, 15 minutes from Newcastle’s city centre. That’s where she found a love for rugby union she never knew existed. And not only that but a considerable playing talent too. But before we delve too far into that, let’s take you back to the start. Robinson had just enrolled at Northumbria Uni to study maths in 2019.