Nothing makes me appreciate just how fortunate I’ve been in life than hearing about someone else’s medical problems. I may not be wealthy or well to do, and I likely never will be — heck, at this rate, I might never retire — but at least I’ve been healthy.
When I hear about a story like Victoria Arlen’s, well, you can’t help wanting to share such an amazing, inspiring tale. Considering what she went through and overcame, you can’t help feeling hope for the future.
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Victoria Arlen is nothing short of incredible. She’s an ESPN host, a paralympic gold medalist, a model, and an author.
And, as an author, Victoria tells an absolutely mind-boggling story of determination — her own. As much as she’s accomplished, Victoria had to get over a hurdle that the odds very much stacked against her.
For most of her childhood, Victoria didn’t get sick. She was sporty, playing hockey with her two brothers, swimming, and dancing.
That all changed after her 11th birthday, however. She started catching colds, and then she had numbness in her feet. Her doctors were perplexed as she got worse and worse. Two weeks after the numbness showed up, she was hospitalized with impaired mobility and cognitive function.
“My nerves were dying,” she told People. “I literally watched as my body shut down.”
Her doctors couldn’t figure out what brought it on, so they suggested Victoria’s parents take her home to care for her, which they did, setting up a hospital bed for her on the ground floor of their home.
For the next two years, Victoria has no memory. However, after that, her brain started to tune in.
The only problem was that she was still completely paralyzed. She could hear things going on around her, her doctors and family members talking, but she couldn’t tell them that she was, in fact, conscious. “I was really scared,” she says.
Doctors eventually diagnosed Victoria with two rare autoimmune diseases that caused inflammation in the brain and spinal cord: Transverse myelitis and acute disseminated encephalomyelitis.
She heard the diagnosis, and then heard her doctors tell her parents that “You need to accept the fact that your child is going to die,” she told Today . Her one thought at hearing that: “I’ll be damned if this is how my story’s going to end.”
Victoria kept her mind occupied by writing screenplays in her head, praying, and trying to visualize what her life would be like when she could move again.
“I kept reminding myself of what was good — and that I was still there,” she says. And, three months after turning 15, Victoria finally re-gained control of her eyes. Her road back was only just beginning, but she says that “from there it was miracle after miracle.”
Dr. Micheal Levy, who helped treat Victoria, says that only one-third of transverse myelitis patients ever recover.
So even opening her eyes was a big deal — but she was far from out of the woods. Over the next six months, she re-learned everything, from wiggling her fingers to learning to talk again.
Feeling returned to her upper body, but her lower half was much slower to respond.
She was in a wheelchair, but with the help of her brothers and a lifejacket, she could still swim.
And swim she did, all the way to the podium at the 2012 London Paralympic Games, taking home a gold medal and three silvers.
But while she trained in the pool, she also worked at walking. Although doctors told her it was likely impossible for her to walk again, she was determined to try.
Three months at Project Walk in California produced no progress, however.
She had to return home disappointed, but her mother wouldn’t have it. She called up her husband and informed him that they would be mortgaging their home to open a Project Walk on the East Coast.
Victoria attended eight hours a day for more than two years before she was even able to twitch her leg. But, five months after that twitch, she took a step under her own power.
In all, Victoria spent 10 years in a wheelchair. Naturally, when she had her legs under her again, she didn’t waste a beat.
She strode directly into the spotlight, and landing a contract as a model for Jockey.
And then she put her story down on paper, writing a book about her years spent trapped in her own body and her recovery.
Not only did Victoria excel in her modelling career, but she was propelled into the spotlight when she was featured on ‘Dancing With The Stars’.
Her backstory was inspiring for everyone on the show, and her performances did not disappoint.
From being completely paralyzed, to experiencing years and years of physical therapy, Victoria proved shes tougher than most.
And extremely talent to boot. It seems the trials and tribulations of her youth gave her the necessary tools to overcome any challenge, and to truly live her best life.
Victoria is finally able to live the life she only dreamed about for those long two years locked in.
And, looking back, she says that despite all she’s had to overcome, she wouldn’t change it. “I’d never choose what happened to me, but I would never change it. It’s my tragic, beautiful journey,” she told People.
It seems like she’s definitely come to terms with the cards she was dealt, and that’s something we should all aspire to do.
Victoria Arlen is someone who can inspire everyone , and a perfect example of the power of determination and fearlessness!
