GREENFIELD — The migraines first crept in a week before the start of the season this past October.
Madison Wise wasn’t worried initially, since migraines run in her immediate family, but once fatigue and illness accompanied the pulsating pain in her head, the Iowa State junior realized something wasn’t right.
Sleeping more did nothing. Neither did prescribed medications.
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“It made me pretty sick. I thought, I was just sick, but it was actually caused from the migraine. It wouldn’t go away, and it just kept going,” Wise said. “After about two weeks, it started messing with me, so my reaction times were slowed down a lot. I wasn’t 100 percent sure what it was. I thought I could just get out of the migraine cycle.”
The migraines were persistent despite the 6-foot-1 Iowa State junior’s best efforts to self-soothe. Wise tried to play through infliction, but the signs were there, and they grew worse for the former Greenfield-Central standout.
“My reaction time was so slow, I couldn’t process. A ball would be coming at me, and I couldn’t find it fast enough,” Wise recalled. “One practice, we were running in transition, and our point guard threw it to me, and I was wide open, but I just couldn’t find the rim fast enough. She was like, ‘shoot the ball Maddie,’ and was like, ‘I can’t see.’ I could not find it. That’s when coach (Bill Fennelly) called me over and said, ‘We need to figure this out.’”
Wise admits to suffering concussions in her youth, some during AAU basketball and in high school, so she’s dealt with headaches in the past. But, this was different, and the migraines were rapidly impacting her ability to execute simple tasks.
“If I would turn my head quick, I couldn’t focus on anything. It would take me a second to focus. I could tie my shoes and do everything normally, but if I would look quickly or turn my head pretty fast, everything would take a while to come back,” Wise said. “It would make me dizzy.”
Wise worked with doctors, the team’s trainers and physical therapists, but finding the cause of her migraines required a trip to Pittsburgh with her parents, Lynn and Kent. There specialists identified the problem. Wise’s vestibular system was compromised and needed to be retrained. The condition affected her balance and spatial orientation, which was evident whenever she tried running too fast or attempted sudden athletic movements.
“They did some different testing, and they said it was an extremely vicious cycle. Once you get into it, it’s really hard to get out. It was pretty scary, especially first because I didn’t know what was going on. I’ve never had that happen to me. The unknown was really scary,” Wise said. “I’ve had concussions before, so I’ve had headaches, but they normally go away and they normally didn’t affect me like that and I knew I hadn’t been hit, so it was really confusing.”
While she hadn’t endured a concussion in several years, the past trauma might have been the spark the migraines, though it’s not certain. What was undeniable was her recovery, which required her to sit out from late November until mid-January.
A returning starter for the Cyclones, Wise had competed in 31 games as a freshman in 2017-18 and started 28 contests. She averaged 8.7 points and 4.5 rebounds that season and earned Big 12 Freshman of the Week honors three times.
As sophomore, she started all 35 of the Cyclones’ games, averaged 8.0 points, 4.0 rebounds. Wise was named to the WNIT All-Tournament Team and posted a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds against Kansas to help Iowa State win their opening-round game in the Big 12 Tournament.
She was looking forward to building on her first two seasons, but for the first time in her career, she was at the mercy of time and the unknown, fearing she might never play another game.
“I’ve been really lucky and really blessed where I’ve never had an injury where I’ve had to sit out. I tore part of my rotator cuff in high school, but I played through that,” Wise said. “It was really eye-opening for me. You could lose that really quickly, but I was really fortunate and blessed enough not to.”
Requesting a redshirt to save another year of eligibility was an option, but not for Wise. Determined to work her way back, she instead followed a strict and intensive program to retrain her motor functions.
She began following a regimented sleeping and eating cycle and exercised to the point of nearly making herself sick while conducting eye tracking drills to regain her ability to focus on objects.
“I would do mountain climbers and turn my head as fast as I could or do defensive slides while turning my head. It was constant where you made yourself dizzy to the point where you had to stop. Let it come down, and then do it again,” Wise said.
“They actually compared it to an astronaut. They said astronauts have to train their bodies and their minds to go up into space. So, I was literally retraining my body to function again because it was completely thrown off.”
Her plans for the season were equally turned upside down, regulated to the sideline where she gained a new appreciation for the game she’s always loved.
“I’d never had to sit on the bench because I was hurt, so it was pretty humbling for me,” Wise said. “I got to see the game from a whole new perspective, and I got to cheer my teammates on. I think ultimately, I’m a better person and better teammate from it. It really humbled me.”
It wasn’t until Jan. 15, the earliest she could return, when Wise rejoined the Cyclones after she was cleared by doctors and her trainers. Iowa State faced TCU at Hilton Coliseum, losing 77-74, but Wise was happy to be just to be back and finally contribute, again.
“Checking in for the first time was at Hilton, so the crowd was cheering. It kind of gives me goosebumps thinking about it,” Wise said. “We have great fan support, so checking back in was pretty exciting. I made it a goal for myself to get back. They told me the earliest I could come back was the game I did come back. So, it was a goal.”
In 19 games this season, Wise averaged 2.7 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists and posted a season-high nine points at Drake in one of the four games she competed in before the migraines became debilitating.
She logged 24 minutes on Feb. 23 against Texas Tech with three points in her longest time on the floor since her comeback, and was on the court for 11 minutes against No. 2 Baylor on March 8.
The Cyclones beat Baylor, the defending national champions, 57-56, which ended up being Iowa State’s final game of the season once the COVID-19 pandemic halted all NCAA competition in March.
“It’s crazy knowing that our season ended, but we did go out in a pretty good way. We won on Senior Night against Baylor,” Wise said. “If you had to end your season early, that’s the way we would have chosen to do it. If you had to, obviously.”
Wise was in Kansas City for the Big 12 Women’s Basketball Tournament when she learned, along with her teammates, the season was over. There were rumors swirling prior to the announcement, but it wasn’t until the Cyclones were asked to leave the floor and return to the locker room that they were officially informed.
“It was pretty tough. Everyone was kind of shocked, especially our seniors. That’s a tough pill to swallow for them. It was a great team, so it was hard to watch our seniors go,” Wise said. “Honestly, it didn’t feel real when coach said it. Everyone was in shock.”
A business major, Wise also lost out on an internship with Pacers Sports and Entertainment this summer due to the Coronavirus pandemic, but she’s already setting goals for next year. She considering a double major, finding her dream job with an NBA team or ESPN and to be at 100 percent for the 2020-21 season.
This time pain free.
“As soon as I had testing, they were reassuring and told me it wasn’t from a concussion. This is all from the migraine cycle,” Wise said. “I’m excited to be back.”
