Noelle Foley, daughter of WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley, has opened up about a life-altering injury that began in the most unlikely of circumstances, a roller coaster ride. Speaking with Saraya on the “Rulebreakers” podcast, Foley revealed that a single trip on a ride at Dollywood triggered a five-and-a-half-year struggle with a concussion and ultimately led to the discovery of a rare and serious neck condition.

“This one went up down and immediately went back up,” Foley explained of the ride’s abrupt design. “So it’s like your whole body is forcing forward and then immediately backwards. My head hit really hard in my neck.” She said the effects were instant, recalling exhaustion and a headache that never went away. “I had a headache since that night, until literally five and a half years later.”

Foley described an exhausting journey through the medical system, seeing “around 50 doctors and physical therapists” in an attempt to understand her constant headaches and extreme sensitivity to light and sound. Answers finally came through a digital motion X-ray, which revealed cranial cervical instability. “I tore about 10 ligaments in my neck,” she shared. “And because of those torn ligaments, it causes my neck to be unstable, like my head isn’t securely on my neck.”

Even through the hardship, Foley has embraced her story, including doing what she called a “sexy photo shoot with the neck brace” as a way to reclaim confidence.