Over the past month here at 7NEWS we have closely tracked the progress of Lorna Wade who was beaten so badly by an ex-boyfriend that she almost died. We first introduced you to Lorna from her hospital exactly a month ago when in an interview later criticized by the prime minister she boldly spoke declaring her injuries as a lesson to all other women. A week later the collective heart of the nation sunk when Lorna's condition went south and she was rushed to Merida for treatment. Well, hope is alive; tonight, she is back in Belize and Keith Swift visited with Lorna who is proud to be the poster girl for domestic abuse survivors.
Lorna Wade, Domestic Abuse Survivor
"I just want to say I feel good and I just want to thank everyone who stood by my side. Most of all I thank God because without God I wouldn't be this far."
Seeing Lorna Wade today able to talk and even cracking an occasional smile makes it hard to imagine that a month ago this was Lorna. Badly beaten and bruised when we met her in the KHMH with her head bandaged and face in stitches. Lorna was in a literal fight for her life.
[June 7th Footage of Lorna on hospital bed mumbling that she is in pain]
But exactly a month later, Lorna the domestic abuse victim is the domestic abuse survivor.
Lorna Wade, Domestic Abuse Survivor
"I thought I was going to die. I thought I would have died because of the pain I was in. But then people began to pray and I began to pray. I always loved the Lord but I can't explain how much I love him now. He was with me every step of the way and I prayed and prayed. I said to God 'I refuse to give up.' And then I thought about my baby because I love my children. I said 'God I need to go back to my babies and you can't take me away because my babies don't have a father and now they won't have a mother.' Once I heard a lady telling my sister she didn't think I would make it. I was in a coma and I refused to let her say that but I couldn't respond back because I was in a coma. I was twisting and turning though because I said to myself that 'I will make it. I will make it.'"
She would, but it was an uphill fight. One week after her attack Lorna's condition took a turn for the worse and she was flown to Merida where this CAT scan showed that her skull was fractured and her brain was swollen. Surprisingly there was good news in these CAT scans since she didn't require surgery. She has been back from Merida for more than a week now and is well on the road to recovery.
Lorna Wade,
"Everyday I have headaches and then I don't see that well. But at least I know that I will get there; I will see and the headaches will stop. Everyday I fight with the headaches but as I said my family is supporting me; they are by my side and they encourage me. They let me know I have somebody and by having somebody there I know I will recover. I know that I will make it."
And Lorna believes she made it for a reason. She sees herself as a survivor not a victim which says should send a message to all women.
Lorna Wade,
"Do not take abuse because it is not a nice life to live. Do not keep it undercover. I always used to hide it. Whatever beating I got, I used to hide it and whenever my sisters would ask me about an injury I would say it is nothing. I used to get hit with cement blocks, hit with bicycles, and all kinds of things. I just want to tell all women that they don't have to go through the abuse. They don't have to go through nothing like that. After the first knock they should report it the police or fight back or something because your husband or boyfriend isn't your father; he has no right to hit you."
Q: Do you think you will ever reach the point where you will forgive him?
Lorna Wade,
"Yes I think I could."
Q: Have you forgiven him?
Lorna Wade,
"Right now I can't tell you how I feel. Right now sitting here I can't tell you how I feel but I don't hate anyone."
Lorna has no room for hate, only love. She admits the headaches are nagging, her blurred vision bothers her, and they are still the nasty scars visible more physically than emotionally. But all that is overcome by happiness that she is alive and as they say, where there's life, there's hope.
And though she is in the forgiving mood, Lorna Wade expressed a fear to us today that Elston Young who is awaiting trial for her attempted murder could soon be out on bail. We couldn't confirm this but a new law mandates that if Young wants bail, he would have to apply to the Supreme Court.
That aside, doctors in Merida told Wade she should make a full recovery though they warn she could be plagued for life with seizures. And speaking of Merida, Wade says her trip and enormous hospital bill would not have been paid without the assistance of the social security board, the Prime Minister who is her area representative, and the individual Belizeans who each gave a little to her cause.
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