Collapsed lung, five-day ICU stint, newfound passion for sketching anime: Priya Mohan’s journey to rebuilding her running career
A 3,200-feet high trek to a monastery in Bhutan brought Priya Mohan calmness, but she felt discomfort in her lungs. The high-altitude trek in October was during a family vacation. The 22-year-old had taken time off after prematurely rushing back to competition in March. A collapsed lung, a medical condition where air gets between the lungs and the chest wall and applies pressure, had put the brakes on the promising one-lap runner’s career two years ago.Priya was in the ICU for five days and then rested at home in Bengaluru for nearly two months before starting rehabilitation. The Bhutan trip was a reminder that her lungs were yet to fully heal.
She also used the time away from the track to sketch anime, appear for two semester exams for her bachelor’s degree in sports management, and to re...
