As a child, I enjoyed being active and doing things that got my heart racing. I was kind of a daredevil which was both a good and bad thing. I say good because I have been able to do a lot of things that I may otherwise not have due to fear. On the other hand, it is terrible because it changed my life and not for the better. I got in a bad accident, and because of it, I had to get an ostomy bag. As I have grown older, I have realized that it is not bad as I initially thought it was. It saved my life and helped me not have improper bowel movements. 

When I was sixteen, I got in a bad accident. One day me and my friends went to a bridge to jump into the water. The drop was no more than ten feet, so we did not feel any sort of danger. I was the first to jump. Being the resident daredevil of the group, I usually do the scary stuff first. I did not check the river before I jumped, and that was an issue. I have been here before, and I know that below us is ten feet deep water, so there is no chase of getting hurt when landing. When I jumped, I saw it as I was almost at the water. There was a big rock. I did my best to try and shift around in the air, but as we all know, humans can not fly. I ended up doing a belly flop, and the peak of the rock hit me in my stomach region. I passed out from the pain a few seconds after the impact. 

I woke up in the back of an ambulance to see two cute EMT girls taking care of me. I asked them what happened and what was wrong with me. They told me it was most likely a ruptured colon or large intestine but would know more once we got to the hospital and a scan was done. When we arrived, they unloaded me and brought me straight to a scanning room. After the scan was completed, they saw that my large intestine had ruptured, and my colon was almost the same. The doctor told me that I would need an ostomy bag. This would take any waste and not allow it to get to my colon so that it could heal. The surgery was done, and when I got out of the hospital, I found my true passion. 

Following my procedure, I needed something to take my mind off of my new situation. My friend invited me to go work out with him one day, and I took him up on his offer. On that day, I learned how much I loved working out. Since then, I have worked out almost every day. Even after I had my ostomy reverted back to normal a year after my accident, I still worked out. Working out has helped me through many different issues in my life without any kind of risk to my well-being. I did not have many issues working out with an ostomy bag. It restricted my movement a bit, so eventually, I began working out without the bag. 

I am very grateful to my friend for introducing me to working out. It has helped me get through many rough patches in my life these last few years, especially during my ostomy life. I had the procedure reverted two years ago tomorrow, and I’m so glad. I have definitely reduced my daredevil tactics, and I’m focusing on working out and living a good healthy life. 

When I was growing up, I loved to work with my hands and build things. It really did not matter what; I just really enjoyed building and using my hand as well as my imagination. I never expected that I would grow up to be a woodworker as my primary career. I have been a woodworker since I graduated high school three years ago. Four years ago, I got in a bad car accident while on a drive celebrating my graduation. I thought it was going to prevent me from doing my work. I was wrong, and instead, it made me work harder and make better things. 

Two years ago next week I was in a bad car accident. My father wanted to take me for a drive in his sixty nine Camaro. He and I put in a great deal of costume work. We pulled up to a red light, and he and I swapped places. I was driving, and he was the passenger. This was huge as he has never let me drive his Camaro, no matter how much I asked. When the light turned green, he told me to floor it. I did as he said, and when the light turned, I felt all eight hundred horsepower spin the rear wheels before they grabbed and launched us. Just as we got to the middle of the intersection, there was a car coming at us from the left at what seemed like eighty miles per hour. He hit the driver’s side door, my side. I blacked out. 

I woke up in the emergency room along with the driver. It turns out he was drunk and was going to be charged with a DUI as well as attempted murder, seeing as he was flying. Thank God he and I thought it would be a good idea to put airbags and half roll cage; those modifications saved our lives. The doctor said to me that I had a ruptured large intestine from the impact of the airbag, and I would need a temporary, possibly permanent, colostomy procedure. My parents and I gave him the go-ahead, and the procedure was done. When I woke up, I decided to continue the childhood love of woodworking. 

When I was released from the hospital, I wanted to find a woodworking job, but it was hard as all the places wanted the previous experience before hiring. I decided to make my own business, and since that day, I have been flourishing. I have been busy just about every day since I began my company, so to speak. I have many repeat customers. I make anything from wooden statues to tables. I have even been able to work with some celebrities from some of my favorite movies and music. This has been such a surreal experience. I never expected that getting an ostomy would lead me to this, but here I am. Having the ostomy bag is not that bad. The doctor decided that it would be best if I had it permanent, and I did not complain. The bag restricts my movement from time to time, but I am still able to get my work done and produce breathtaking results. 

As a woodworker with an ostomy bag, there are a few challenges that I have overcome and learned to work around. I am actually happy that the accident happened because if it did not then, I’m sure I’d be wasting my time at college trying to figure out what I want to do. 

The cliché’ “always a bridesmaid-never a bride” is said about 100 times a week in my profession.  I started as a wedding planner back in 2017.  I had always loved the organization, beauty, and happiness that goes into each wedding that is planned.  I, however, struggled with those same adjectives in my own life -organized, beautiful, and happy, after my Ostomy surgery three years ago.

It all started when I was 25, and I was helping organize a graduation open house for my cousin.  Thus began the desire to plan events, and the love of organizing and setting the stage started.  We had been working for several days in the July heat, and I started having extreme pain in my stomach. I, of course, just thought I was tired due to the heat and long hours.  I often tend to be one of those people who like just to push through, but on this particular day, the pain brought me to my knees.  I was rushed to the emergency room, and the hours turned into days, and surgery was scheduled and performed.

When I awoke from the procedure to repair my ruptured colon, I was devastated to find out that they were unable to repair my colon fully, and a colostomy bag was needed.  How do I move forward with this new reality?  How do I ever feel pretty again?  After a lot of soul searching and support from friends and family, I was able to become very accustomed to the upkeep and logistics of my new reality.  I would have to say that the initial shock was more than I thought I could handle.  I’m human, and this was not “normal” in my sphere of influence.  

Eventually, I decided to not sick back and wait for life to happen to me anymore and to go after what I truly wanted to do. That is when my career as a Wedding Planner took off. I used my colostomy bag to help encourage the brides and families that I encountered to see themselves as beautiful just the way they are.  Believe me, there were times when I was inconvenienced with the maintenance or the ability to hide it under my clothing while working with clients, but I tried to push through the insecurities this world likes to throw at us.  Thankfully my job has never been affected since I made the decision to focus on the here and now and all the things that I had going for me.  Everyone has something, and I didn’t want my something to change me into someone I wasn’t.  

This experience was devastating, to say the least, but it has taught me so much about myself, and I have had the pleasure of working with several brides thus far that have endured many hardships and trials as well.  I believe that our scars represent what we have gone through, but I also like to think that our scars make it possible for others to see us through a different lens.   I am happy to say that five years post-surgery, I am stronger than I ever thought possible, and I am able to empathize so much more effectively with others like myself who struggle with the insecurities this world like to place on them.