On a beautiful summer evening in July of 1979, at the age of sixteen, Eileen Andrews’ life changed forever. A passenger in a tragic car accident, she holds a sad recollection of the details leading up to the crash.
Found unresponsive at the scene, an ambulance took Eileen to the hospital with life threatening injuries. The medical team temporarily revived her, but did not expect her to live. On the second day Eileen stopped breathing again, and doctors rushed her into surgery for an emergency tracheotomy, where they discovered a complete separation of her trachea. The medical team performed a miracle and saved her life. At that time, it was unheard of for anyone to survive this type of injury.
The results of the trachea injury left her with paralyzed vocal cords and caused her to be in a chronic state of respiratory distress. She also incurred a traumatic brain injury which resulted in cortical blindness and deficits to her balance and coordination, but her intellect and memory stayed intact.
Eileen was in a coma for approximately four weeks. She remembers waking up in the hospital and knowing she was in a car crash, but not fully understanding the significance of her injuries. Eileen learned how to walk, talk, dress, and feed herself all over again. Since she couldn’t speak for a period of time, Eileen communicated with her mom through hand squeezes to spell letters of words she wanted to say. Her biggest cheerleader, her mother never allowed Eileen to give up.
An aspiring athlete prior to the accident, Eileen competed in gymnastics, swimming, ice skating, skiing, and diving. She was the first sophomore to make varsity hockey cheerleading at her school. She loved to sing as well, but her love for horses shined above all else.
While hospitalized for five months, she received physical, occupational, and speech therapy. Life was frustrating because her brain would not send accurate messages to her physical body. Eileen decided to have the trach removed before getting discharged because life would be very difficult for her if she kept it in. At that time, no surgery could help her breathing without damaging her voice. Upon release, Eileen walked with crutches and continued outpatient physical therapy for many years thereafter.
Once back home she received tutoring and graduated from high school. Eileen was grateful she had a supportive group of friends to socialize with who accepted her limitations.
At nineteen Eileen moved out of her parent’s home, purchased her first horse, and started college at North Dakota State University. She eventually graduated with a BA in Sociology and a minor in Psychology.
After college she built a home next to a boarding stable so she could walk back and forth to ride her horses. Shortly thereafter, a private entity bought the boarding stable and refused to keep boarders, so Eileen needed to find another boarding stable. This incident triggered feelings of depression and anxiety.
She would be tested over the years more than the average person. She endured a violent sexual assault, the loss of her father in a car accident in 1998, and her sister passing in 2018.
Eileen does not allow obstacles to stand in her way. She doesn’t let her visual impairment hold her back, and considers it to be her superpower along with her photographic memory. This benefitted her greatly when she decided to learn yoga.
After rehabilitating from a broken ankle in 2016, Eileen decided to try a yoga class at a local gym. She wanted to improve her balance, coordination, strength, and flexibility while working on her walking.
Eileen started coming to yoga classes one day a week and initially used the wall for balance. She told the yoga instructor about her visual impairment and how it would be difficult to follow visual cues.
Sold after her first class, Eileen loved how she felt. She experienced a calmness and peace often elusive to her. Eileen says practicing yoga really helped her deal with life’s challenges, and gave her more confidence in herself and in her body. It helps her feel young and vibrant again. She started retraining her brain to send accurate messages to her body.
Eileen credits yoga with saving her life by providing her with purpose and meaning. Grateful to find a physical activity she could excel at, yoga ultimately led to Eileen’s self-love and acceptance. Coming to yoga helped with feelings of loneliness and isolation, providing her with a sense of community. Eileen uses yoga as a tool to deal with depression, anxiety, PTSD, and chronic pain, which exacerbated during the pandemic when her gym closed.
Pre-pandemic Eileen practiced approximately four days a week – sometimes two to three yoga classes a day. She began to feel strong and confident with her practice.
In true warrior fashion Eileen signed up for yoga teacher training in 2019 and became a certified instructor. Her photographic memory allowed her to learn all the poses and sequences with ease.
Eileen says, “I want to be an inspiration to others and encourage them to follow their dreams and let nothing stop them.” She truly achieved this goal.
Monica Delius is a certified yoga instructor who specializes in creating a gentle, sustainable yoga practice for her clients. She is passionate about sharing how yoga can be accessible for anyone who wants to practice. In the corporate wellness realm she supports employees with yoga and meditation classes.
