BRAIN INJURY PROGRAM
scholar fighter USM graduate enrolls in elite grad school after overcoming rare brain disorder, six-month coma by Susan Christensen
JASMINE “COCO” WHITESIDE WAS NOT HERSELF. 34
WAYS & MEANS | METHODISTONLINE.ORG
Usually reliable and upbeat, the University of Southern Mississippi senior had begun ditching plans with friends and texting photos of herself crying. Her mother, Angela Whiteside, was baffled. She knew her daughter as intelligent and independent, the kind of kid who takes care of business. “Whatever you wanted or needed, Coco was there for you,” Whiteside said. “Ain’t nobody perfect, but she was perfect.” And now she was a perfect mess. “She was saying stuff that didn’t make sense,” Whiteside said. “She told one of her professors that she was chasing the sun in her car.”