27 Jul Inspiring note from a Survivor
Just a year ago Artists For Trauma started with Ford Austin who survived a horrific automobile accident on March 11, 2011. Ford wrote me a beautiful email on March 30 of this year that I want to share with you. He expresses so much of the beauty and hope that we find in life and reminds us that we are so blessed to be alive.
I wanted to share his thoughts with you they are so inspiring:
When I wound up in the hospital with life threatening injuries, I felt like my life was over. Unable to walk, talk, eat or even think clearly, I truly became flooded with emotions and thoughts which only helped further my isolation. By being embraced by Laura and her Artists for Trauma Foundation, not only did I regain hope that a normal way of life was waiting for me, but as an actor, I was also reunited with
From the first phone call with Laura, I was brought to a centered place of hope because I was speaking with another artist who had already walked on the exact Path of traumatic events which my accident had planted me squarely on. Instead of feeling like the world had suddenly become way too large for me to handle, Artists for Trauma enabled me to accept my life one day at a time and even one moment at a time. With Artists for Trauma I felt empowered to be fearless again.
I suffered three fairly serious injuries which Artists for Trauma helped my regain. My ability to act, my ability to speak or sing clearly and my ability to balance which would help me dance and cross a stage.
I mentioned before that I am an actor. I started in high school with commercials and worked in theatre for my career after receiving my M.F.A. In Acting. Eventually, right up to the accident, I was regularly performing in plays across the country and about 10 movies per year. At my core, I have always been an actor…and I always will be.
One day, as I was laying in my hospital bed, I noticed I was unable to connect to the subtle idea of inflection in my voice. I also was mentally incapable of connecting my acting to any subtextual thoughts. As a result, I was unable to act. I felt it was due to my traumatic brain injury or TBI which the doctors said was a result of my head smashing through the windshield of my car. It was as if the connection between my actor-self and my mental facilities had been cut off. In the past, I would think of something I wanted to express and simply say it the way I wanted to say it. Now, due to my traumatic event, I was deduced to one speech pattern no matter what I wanted to express. Everything came out like a robot with no inflection or tone at all. In addition, I had a damaged throat from being intubated for 6 weeks. Basically, my throat and my mind needed alot of therapy.
Artists for Trauma stepped in with a wonderful solution to my mental connection problem which would also help my damaged throat issue. A very skilled singing coach who was trained in the science of how your body makes sound came to my home and trained with me by simply making yawning noises for weeks. By doing this, my body relearned how to relax so my throat could open and make good sound. I regained the connection to my voice soon after that and by that time, my body helped enough that I could go to the singing coach’s house to continue my progress to learning actual songs. After four months, I had learned two songs, gotten my voice back and also regained my ability to connect my intention o my voice with inflection and the use of subtext. My passion for acting was restored and my spirits were lifted each time I sang.
As if that wasn’t enough, Artists of Trauma showed up at my house once again. This time, Laura and her lovely sidekick Estelle were armed with a Nintendo Wii and Wii-fit balance board. We spent the afternoon talking about life, living through traumatic events and coming out the other side a better person as Estelle set up the entire Nintendo system for us. Within an hour, I was standing on the balance board and snow skiing down a mountain! The entire experience was overwhelming to me as I was given such a gift that I now use everyday and have noticed remarkable improvements in my mobility. I have even gotten a few of my dance steps back which I would be more than happy to share with you if you give me half a chance.
So, here I am…singing, dancing, acting and happily living my life again. I m back to work on several movies and looking forward to moving back to New York City to do my first play after the accident ended my life and Artists for Trauma helped me get it started again!
Ford Austin
Car accident March 9th, 2011.
6 weeks in ICU, 4 months in hospital, 7 months in Out-patient Therapy.
Kidneys failed, urethra severed, lungs collapsed, traumatic brain injury, hip shattered, right femur broken, sacrum fractured, 2 weeks in coma, mini-stroke, paralysis on left side of body, heart stopped for three minutes,
Born 1971, Died 2011, Reborn 2012
Sent from the desk of Ford Austin
We are working with more level 1 trauma survivors and want to hear from you! Let us know how we can help with your recovery or the recovery of someone you know.
Laura