Turia spent the next two years in the hospital undergoing extensive reconstructive surgeries, and intense physiotherapy. She had five of her fingers amputated, and she wore a compression mask designed to smooth scars and promote healing. Throughout her medical journey, Michael took on the role of being Turia’s full-time caretaker. He never left her side, and he cheered her on through even the smallest hurdles.
“If she can walk in agony and…do all the physio they’re asking her, I can be there in the morning and give her breakfast and be there all the time,” he said. “That’s easy for me.”
Someone made the mistake of asking if he’d ever thought of leaving, and his response is beyond mic-drop awesome.
“I was attracted to her soul, and her character,” he explained. “She’s the only woman that will continue to fulfill my dreams.”
He loved Turia for her personality first, and that’s something that she intends to never lose.
In July of 2015, Michael made good on his promise and proposed to Turia in the Maldives. The couple married in 2016.
Now, after they’ve welcomed a baby into the world, the happy couple says they’re “stoked” for the journey of parenthood.
“It just makes me really stoked that I’m still here, ’cause I get to experience this,” Turia says of being a mother. “And not every woman in the world gets to experience this. I’m still here and I get to do this journey with my best friend.”
Beyond that, Turia is continuing to defy the odds by participating in marathons again, after doctors said she’d NEVER run again.
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Posted by Humankind on Monday, February 26, 2018
Through several interviews with a focus on her survival, love, trials, and beauty, Turia has made one thing clear: Michael’s unwavering love for her, despite the way she looks now, is what saved her life after unthinkable tragedy. Today we celebrate life with this beautiful couple.
