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NEW ZEALAND SPINAL TRUST 10<br />
The girl with the<br />
constant smile<br />
Jamie Astwood bounces back from a “freak accident”<br />
to achieve remarkable feats<br />
—Jamie Astwood<br />
My situation is not the<br />
greatest, but I’m super positive<br />
and grateful for living life.<br />
“I want to show people that, yes my situation is not the<br />
greatest, but I’m super positive and grateful for living life.”<br />
Jamie has a maturity, <strong>res</strong>ilience and confidence that<br />
belies her 20 years of age.<br />
It’s that attitude that has seen her selected as a CatWalk<br />
Ambassador.<br />
The CatWalk Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) Research Trust was<br />
founded in 2005 by Catriona Williams.<br />
Catriona was one of New Zealand’s leading international<br />
equestrian riders. Fol<strong>low</strong>ing a riding accident in 2002, she<br />
is now C6/C7 tetraplegic and uses a wheelchair.<br />
Her dream was a cure for paralysis and so CatWalk was born.<br />
The Trust believes in supporting <strong>res</strong>earch in the “very<br />
realistic bid for a cure for spinal cord injuries”.<br />
Jamie was a natural fit to be involved. Her positive<br />
outlook on life is infectious.<br />
LOVELY PERSON: Jamie always wants to look on the bright side of life.<br />
Jamie Astwood was lying flat on her back in<br />
the Wilson Centre in Auckland, a<br />
rehabilitation centre for children. She knew<br />
she had a choice to make.<br />
She was 11 years old and her life had changed in a moment.<br />
“I thought to myself ‘no one wants to be around someone<br />
who is negative and mopey all the time’,” she says.<br />
“I decided to focus on making the most of my situation. I<br />
have a smile on my face constantly. People would rather<br />
be around someone who is positive, smiling and looking<br />
for the good in every situation. You never know what<br />
other people are going through.<br />
“My Mum and Dad have always supported me no matter<br />
what. They let me know that yes, it is ok to have sad days.<br />
It’s ok to feel like you are be<strong>low</strong> the weather. I have those<br />
days. I always come back to I’d rather be happy for myself<br />
and for the people around me.”<br />
Jamie is a remarkable young woman with a bright future.<br />
“I can’t feel my legs”<br />
She will never forget the date 19 January 2013.<br />
Her family were traveling in Northland in the summer<br />
holidays. They visited Ahipara and got the boogie boards<br />
out to do some dune surfing.<br />
“I was a daredevil child growing up and I was having the<br />
time of my life,” she says. “I was like ‘Absolutely I am<br />
doing this’. I went all the way to the top.”<br />
On her last run, Jamie hit a patch of grass at the bottom of<br />
the dunes. She was thrown off her board.
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