Miriyana Godsell-Slade, 19, recovering in Christchurch Hospital after she was hit by a car on September 20.
Miriyana Godsell-Slade, 19, recovering in Christchurch Hospital after she was hit by a car on September 20.
September 20 started as a normal day for Miriyana Godsell-Slade, but it would soon take a tragic turn for the worse.
The 19-year-old nursing student set off on her regular walk to Ara Institute in Christchurch, but she was struck by a car while crossing the road and sent flyingover the windscreen.
The self-confessed class clown recalled being struck on the right side of her body as she dashed across four lanes of traffic on Moorhouse Ave in the city centre.
"I went rolling on to the windscreen, broke the windscreen and went flying off the car before landing on the ground," she said.
"I was in a lot of shock, screaming and moaning. The thing I was most scared of was getting run over again."
Godsell-Slade said a stranger came and held her while he phoned for an ambulance and made calls to her mother and friend.
"I don't remember the ambulance arriving, I just remember being in this daze where I could hear what was going on but it was like I was seeing myself on a map and viewing memories of my life," she said.
The teenager broke her pelvis in two places and broke her sacrum. She has been hospitalised indefinitely and is expected to have difficulty walking for the next three months.
She cannot put any weight to her right leg and needs rigorous physio sessions to train her brain and muscles to walk again.
"I will be on crutches for three months and have a carer each day that will come in and shower me, help me do meal prep, and do cleaning and that sort of thing," she said.
Miriyana Godsell-Slade sustained a broken pelvis in two places and a fractured sacrum. As a result she will have difficulty walking for three months.
Despite her injuries, Godsell-Slade has kept a positive attitude and said she "felt blessed to be alive".
"From get-go I thought whatever this is I am going to deal with it. I am still here and I am still determined."
She wanted to take her second chance at life as an opportunity to remind others about pedestrian safety.
"I always cross at the same part of the road but it is not an official place you are supposed to cross," she said.
"On this day I started walking across and then all of a sudden the lights went green and I was standing in the middle of the lanes.
"I thought I could make it to the middle but as I began to move a silver car came out of nowhere and I was hit."
She said she hopes people can learn from her mistake, and remember to always cross at a pedestrian crossing or designated lights.
"I am not letting myself feel guilty about it because I wouldn't be able to recover if I did, but I feel bad that the driver had to deal with the fact that she ran me over, because it is not her fault or anything.
The 19-year-old nursing student was struck by a car on Moorhouse Ave in Christchurch.
She said she has made it through the ordeal with the love and support of her family and friends.
"My friends and family have been visiting constantly and have so much faith in me. They have been amazing.
"I had a rough day yesterday because I realised that the next three months are not going to be what I envisioned them to be, but I will cope with everything as I have a good support team."
Godsell-Slade won't know when she can leave hospital until she can do simple tasks like dressing herself.
"The hardest thing is that mum lives in Invercargill and my dad lives in Pegasus and I have been living in a flat by myself so I don't know where I am going to go when I leave.
