Woman’s Weekly New Zealand – August 05, 2019

boundaries“ineverything”.

Sheexplains,“I didn’tknow

if I wouldwalkagainornot.But

I d f h I ld ’

her brain, Kirsty and her mother

flew from Auckland to London

for stereotactic radiation

therapy – a treatment in

which surgeons radiate the

AVM until it’s eliminated.

Getting on the plane to the

UK was terrifying, she admits.

“I was a ticking time bomb and

nobody knew if it was going

to burst again before surgery.

Thankfully, the treatment worked

and I was a success story.”

In the ensuing years, Kirsty

had extensive rehabilitation and

dedicatedeverythingtoher

recovery.Shelearnedhowto

walkagainandwentontofinish

schoolandtertiarytraining.

Shegota jobasa receptionist

andlefthomeaged18,butfelt

a deepdesiretodosomething

more,tohelppeopleandmake

a differencein theirlives.

Soshequitherjoband

joineda missiontriptoThailand

andMalaysia,whichincluded

helpingvillagersbuildschools.

“I f id f hi b

In fact, Kirsty went to great

lengths to keep her struggle

a secret from others.

After becoming a personal

trainer and wellness coach, she

would constantly be thinking

“20 steps ahead” to come up

with ways to hide her fatigue

and the constant numbness

down the left side of her body.

“I didn’t talk about my story

for a very long time. I was

embarrassed, I guess, and felt

ashamed for what I had caused

the family to go through.

“Yet in wanting to hide that

part of my life, all I did was live

in a prison I had built for myself.”

Deciding to share her story

in a book– andtypingit allwith

onehand– hasgivenher“so

muc

it wi

best

thei

“I

push

have

Ki

consulted a brain surgeon who

advised against it but also told

them that medical technology

had advanced so much that

if something did go wrong in

pregnancy, she could receive

help in Geneva.

“So we went for it – we got

pregnant. And things did get

a bit exciting when my heart

started playing up,” she reveals.

“I wouldn’t try again for

another pregnancy, however,

having Maia Rose is such a

blessing. She’s so proud of

me. I’ll be mid-conversation

with someone and she’ll say,

‘Mum, tell them about that

time you died!’” #

Fleur Guthrie

ch freedom”,andshehopes

llhelpothersdesigntheir

tfutures,regardlessof

rcurrentcircumstances.

f I hadn’tbeenpreparedto

htheboundaries,I wouldn’t

emymiracle girl,”beams

f i h d h

Above: Feeling like a “time

bomb” in her head brace.

Right: Kirsty with her little

“blessing”, daughter Maia.

Despite constant

numbness down

her left side,

Kirsty refuses

to let health

challenges

define her.

PHOTOS:

ROBERT

TRATHEN

• HAIR

&MAKE-UP:

JUSTINE

CONROY

IwantedproofthatIcouldn’t

ratherthanjustacceptingthat

Icouldn’t.

“Myfatherusedtocome

visit meeverymorningat

thehospital. Hehadalways

challengedmetopush

boundariesin life andone

of mydefiningpointscame

whenI toldhim,‘I’mgoingto

tryandshowyousomething

newthatI cando everyday

whenyoucomein.’

“Thatwasa bigfeatbecause

atthatpoint,I prettymuch

couldn’tdoanythingatall.

Butlittlethingsliketwitching

a fingergrewtotwitching

twofingers.”

Witha tangle ofabnorma

blood vessels still deep with

“Iwasafraidofeverythingbut

wantedtofacemyfears,”says

themother-of-one.“I hadbeen

testingmylimitsathome,in a

safe environment.I washeading

awayfrommyfamilyandmy

culturetoa placewithlittle

medicalcare. Partofmedidn’t

evenknowif I wouldreallyget

on theplane!

“ButI rememberedmyvow

in thehospitalbedthatmy

medicalcrisiswould notlimit or

defineme.”

Kirst

Maia

“I

dan

get

year

wet

don

that

K

husb

(36),

then

Swit

g

l

in

ty, referringtoherdaughter

aRose(9).

wasadvisedhow

gerousit couldbe to

pregnantbutafew

rs intomarriage,

thought,‘Why

’tweprove

wecan’t?’”

irstyandher

bandPaul

who were

nlivingin

tzerland,