The odds did not seem in her favour as the doctor’s prognosis was that Natalie Gunther only had a 50% chance of survival, and she had a huge possibility of being paralysed for life.
Johannesburg, South Africa (16 August 2015) – A year ago, almost to the day, Natalie Gunther was in a severe car accident caused by another driver. She was the passenger in a car that rolled off the highway.
During the process, Natalie was flung out of the car and found over 15 meters away from the accident scene.
Her friends and family were told that she had various fractures, blood on her brain, and a severely broken neck.
The odds did not seem in her favour as the doctor’s prognosis was that she only had a 50% chance of survival & that percentage had a huge possibility of her being paralysed for life.
“We were devastated… and didn’t know quite how to deal with the news at the time, all we knew is that we would help Natalie by any means”.
Natalie spent some time in the ICU and underwent various operations, including having a steel plate screwed into her neck to hold the other vertebrae together.
“When waking up every day with the only goal of walking again and not feeling pain.. you realise how petty things normally would ruin our day or take priority.”
She was bedridden for months during her recovery but Natalie decided to use her time wisely & started a business that did not require her to move.
“I believe that everything happens for a reason, I’m grateful for the lessons learnt, the pain I’m enduring has made me realise what I’m meant to do with my life and for others.”
She spent hours on the internet & taught herself how to create websites. Along the way, she also learnt about graphic design… coupled with her Marketing skills, her “bed-business” Green Leaf Project quickly took shape.
During the recovery period, Natalie also started a charity called Hope Station; it is still new but focuses on helping children and women. The main objective is to get them off the streets, get them out of bad relationships and assist with trauma counselling.
“The charity part was my motivation to start this business and just before my accident I kept telling myself I need to do it but never made the time; the accident happened and in terms of business and charity… everything has fallen into place and grown nicely. People shouldn’t wait for a drastic event to do what they love and make their dreams come true.”
Natalie plans on growing her business and charity nationally as her main objective with her “second life” is to help businesses with affordable services and products and help people to better themselves and pay it forward…
“It has been a year, I still go to physio and although I have pain every day and will never be able to do things that others will do, like play a lot of sports or function 100% as before. I am very positive and grateful to have a second chance at life and not be paralysed. Everyday I am amazed and grateful that miracles still do happen.”
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