Hello and welcome to my story. My name is Emily Owen. I’m 27, and I’ve been a survivor fighting to get my life back from the driver who stole it from me on September 7, 2019.
I was 22 and a senior in college, completing my final few classes. I was taking my dog on a walk before dinner when a distracted, intoxicated driver hit us. My sweet dog died, and I fell into a near coma. I was soon diagnosed with DAI. Diffused axonal injuries. Meaning the axons or the connecting fibers between the neurons in my brain were sheared or torn. Diffused just means that it was all over my brain, so everything was affected. The right side of my body was partially paralyzed, and I lost the ability to talk and walk. I had to relearn how to do everything, how to feed myself after my feeding tube was removed. I had to learn how to shower by myself after getting help for months. I even learned to walk alone again without someone holding onto me or my gait belt.
At first, I learned by watching, but luckily, I was in the best hospitals, nursing homes, and rehab facilities, and I had the best doctors who gave me the tools I needed to shine. Slowly, I’ve learned to work to overcome my deficits and not let this horrible accident define the rest of my life. I have already spent weeks in a near coma, six months living in hospitals and nursing homes, and almost two years in neurological rehab, and now want to live out the rest of my life in the best way that I can.
At this point in my recovery, I don’t have to lead with “I got hit by a car.” anymore when I meet someone for the first time. It doesn’t have to be part of my introduction, and I don’t need to explain anything upfront. But I can never erase this from my story, and some my residual deficits still need explanation.
Since that terrible day in 2019, I wrote and published a book chronicling my recovery. It is called “The Best of the Worst: My TRUE Story of Surviving and Thriving after a Traumatic Brain Injury”. Look for it on Amazon!
This process has helped me accept my new identity as a neurodivergent person. I know my brain doesn't work the way most people's brains do, but that doesn’t have to hold me back. It’s not a bad thing. I will NOT let this nightmare ruin my life. I’m taking on the rest of this life, considering my neurodivergence a superpower. I want my story shared with as many people as possible that are in a similar situation. In my book there is a description of the many treatments I was lucky enough try and a list of resources at the end to help anyone facing overwhelming challenges and give them encouragement and confidence that they will overcome them.
