Jeff Fedotin
Special to Rivals High

An outsider wouldn't have picked up on it.

It was just another light-hearted moment - a slap and a smile - between high school friends on opposing volleyball teams at a summer event.

But for Texas teen-agers Paige Jennings and Kelli Kaufman, it was so much more. It was acknowledgement that both had recovered from Chiari malformation, a debilitating brain disorder, and returned to the volleyball court - not to mention everyday life as teen-agers.

"I just remember when they were slapping hands - just the goofy grin that each had on their face," Susan Kaufman, Kelli's mother and coach, said.

"They have a special connection. They were kind of there for each other when other people tried, but nobody else could really understand."

Finding a cure for their condition - not to mention a friend who could understand their struggles - has given them both plenty to be thankful for this fall.

Jennings and Kaufman suffered from Chiari (pronounced KEY-ar-EE) malformation, an ailment where cerebellum tissue protrudes into the spinal canal, disrupting the flow of spinal fluid. It afflicts roughly one in 2,000 people, but usually not until early adulthood. Just getting a proper diagnosis is half the battle.

Jennings, a 17-year-old senior, began experiencing double vision during the third grade. It progressed to severe headaches by the seventh grade. By the time she reached Irving High School, she was struggling through shoulder numbness, blackouts and lightheadedness caused by ordinary actions like screaming or laughing.

She cited insomnia as the worst side effect. Averaging about an hour's sleep each night, she did little outside of school and volleyball. Jennings stopped hanging out with her friends during the weekend. Instead she would retreat to her bedroom and try to rest.

"I could never spend the night at someone else's house because I would be absolutely miserable," she said. "I would go out for an hour and then just come home. I would usually end up crying or something. So I didn't want to put that on other people."

For Kaufman, an 18-year-old senior, the pain began as dull headaches during her freshman basketball season at Euless Trinity. Six months later, she began feeling sharp head pains triggered by everyday movements, such as serving a volleyball or coughing and sneezing. The sensation could reduce her to tears.

"All of the sudden, I'd get a shoot of pain," she said. "It's just like you can't do anything else. All you can focus on is how bad it hurt."

Because the girls had suffered through such pain, the diagnosis of a rare and serious brain disorder actually provided some reassurance. That was particularly the case for Jennings. Since the third grade, she had visited more than 20 doctors. In September of 2007, a physician told her she had Chiari.

"I was a little scared because it seemed like the unknown to me. I had never heard of it before and had no idea what to expect," Jennings said. "But most of all I was relieved. After seven years of going without answers, finally having a diagnosis seemed unreal, like it was too good to be true."

Correcting Chiari requires surgery. Brain surgery.

To address Kaufman's Chiari, doctors performed a craniectomy during May of her sophomore year. They shaved off part of her C1 - the uppermost vertebra - and the base of her skull, creating a hole between the head and spine for the spinal fluid to flow. During that seven-to-eight hour operation, they also sewed a patch of cow heart tissue to the base of her head to support the brain and prevent it from entering the surgically-created hole.

Jennings also had a craniectomy, which removed part of her C1 and skull, during Thanksgiving of her sophomore year. The pain, though, did not subside. So she underwent a second procedure in April, when doctors implanted an artificial patch similar to Kaufman's during a six-hour surgery.

The post-surgery recovery was arduous. Kaufman remained hospitalized for a week and in the intensive care unit for five days. She could not drive a car for a month or lift an object heavier than five pounds for several months.

Kaufman's friends, though, bolstered her spirits. Guys and girls shaved the bottom part of their heads and dyed their hair pink, helping her cope with one of the more difficult consequences of the surgery.

"As a teenage girl," she said, "it's not that easy to just shave off all your hair."

Jennings, who missed almost the entire second half of her sophomore year, also received help from her pals. After school her friends regularly stopped by her house to visit and keep her in the social loop, even providing dating gossip about her classmates.

Their family and friends, however, couldn't truly understand what they were going through.

Kaufman and Jennings' best support came from one another. They e-mailed a few times a week to ask how the other was doing or discuss their doctors. Jennings described what she could expect from the surgery and the difficult recovery. When she came down with a cold, Kaufman asked Jennings if illnesses had increased her headaches as well.

"It was just really nice to have someone to talk to," Jennings said, "that definitely understood to what extent exactly the symptoms were."

Their acquaintance came about serendipitously. Both were part of the Texas Image Volleyball club - where Susan Kaufman coaches - but trained on different teams. Susan Kaufman never instructed Jennings, but the girls had mutual friends and would see each other at the club. During the fall two years ago, one of the Texas Image directors told Kaufman that Jennings was about to undergo surgery for Chiari.

"That was such a relief," Kaufman said, "that someone else was having the same kind of pain."

The pain is behind them, and both returned to the sport they love.

Kaufman received clearance during January of her junior year, forcing her to miss Trinity's 2008 season, but she played for Texas Image last year.

Jennings, who recovered in time to play for Irving as a junior, earned first team all-district 7-5A and academic all-district 7-5A honors as a senior. Kaufman also had an impressive 2009, receiving honorable mention in her district and academic all-state recognition. Both of their teams finished in fifth place in their district.

Although Jennings expressed complete satisfaction with her surgical results, certain activities remain problematic. She cannot ride roller coasters. Airplanes and even elevators can make her nauseous, and she still has neck pain.

Kaufman faces greater restrictions. Once known for taking charges on the basketball court, she cannot play competitive basketball because her head could violently hit the court. The senior, who used to squat 245 pounds, can no longer rest a barbell on the back of her shoulders. And her mother worries that childbirth may become difficult down the road.

"(The doctor) couldn't correct it 100 percent," Susan Kaufman said before chuckling. "But it's pretty darn corrected."

The future is bright for both student-athletes. Both have served as class presidents at their respective schools for each of their four years. Kaufman ranks second in her class, which she calls a "bummer" after occupying the No. 1 spot for the past three years. She is considering attending Regis University in Denver, Washington University in St. Louis and Texas Tech University in Lubbock with aspirations of becoming an ophthalmologist.

Although Kaufman's competitive volleyball days will end after high school, Jennings will continue on the athletic route. She has not narrowed a list of colleges but has a good chance of landing a scholarship to play volleyball on the next level.

They will take different paths and likely head to separate universities, but Kaufman and Jennings always will share a unique bond.

"We may not call each other every single week, but I'm pretty sure we'll talk every once in a while," Kaufman said. "We'll keep in touch."

THE NETWORK: Rivals site for your state | Follow RivalsHigh on Twitter