Graduating Public Policy Student Offers a Master Class in Overcoming Adversity

Posted April 28, 2025

Michelle Lee knew something was wrong.

It was 2019. She had been struggling with neck pain for two years, but doctors kept telling her it was simply a byproduct of bending her neck while studying too hard.

Then her hands started going numb. Painful shocks would race down her arms. Joints began popping out of place. The discomfort kept her up at night.

“It was extremely painful, and most days I couldn’t move, yet I was always told, no, this is in your head,” said Lee, who applied to and was accepted to Georgia Tech even while attempting to figure out the mystery ailment disrupting her life. 

She tried to do what she’s always done: push through to achieve her academic goals. But, eventually, the weight of her illness became too much. In 2020, Lee had to put her Georgia Tech studies on hold, head home, and focus on finding out just what was happening to her body.

It took two years away from Georgia Tech, being shuffled from doctor to doctor, but she finally got an answer: hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (hEDS) and a trio of leaking heart valves — a combination Lee said has put her future at risk.

EDS is a connective tissue disorder that affects every part of the body, causing severe pain and mobility issues. One of 13 subtypes, the hypermobile form is the most common and often comes along with other health issues that significantly impact quality of life. 

Less than two months after her diagnosis, Lee began alternating between relying on a walker and wheelchair to help her move around. She was just 22.

Lee said her parents wanted her to stay home in Augusta so they could help take care of her. But to Lee, there was just one thing for her to do: come back to Georgia Tech and go after that degree.

"I live every day in excruciating pain,” Lee said. “But I won't let anybody or anything take my academic prowess away from me."

On Friday, a little less than three years after she returned to Georgia Tech to continue her studies, Lee will graduate with honors and a B.S. in Public Policy, having forged a love for health policy and advocacy in her time here.

One of her favorite professors, Andrew Buskell, remembers her as an outstanding — and inspiring — student.

“Despite all her hardships — debilitating fatigue, chronic pain, struggles with the healthcare system — Michelle was always present and always engaged,” Buskell said. 

“Present didn’t always mean in-person, though she would be in the classroom when she could,” Buskell said. “But she would also join from parking lots and waiting rooms where she was seeking emergency care. Once, she even joined from her hospital bed. No matter where she was located, her dedication to learning shone through.”

Lee is sticking around Georgia Tech for one more semester to finish her master’s degree in the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School of Public Policy, in hopes of furthering her ability to shape health policy. She wants to continue making an impact for as long as she can.

"I want to cultivate a life for myself,” said Lee, who also works as an executive administrator at the National Alliance on Mental Illness’ Georgia office. “Whatever time I have left, that's not significant. It doesn't matter. What matters is what I can build in the time I do have.”

As something of an expert on overcoming adversity, Lee has advice for other Georgia Tech students going through rough times. You can do it, she says.

“Yeah, failure is an option. But is that really the route you're going to choose? Because ultimately everything in life is a choice. And you hold the power.”

Oh, and you better bet Lee will be at Commencement.

“You'd have to drag me kicking and screaming away,” Lee said.