I should have died 3 years ago. I don’t say that as an exaggeration or overstatement. The injuries I suffered in my accident should have ended my life but because I was emergency airlifted, I received immediate life-saving care and I am alive.
After over a decade working in the strength and conditioning field, I had finally achieved my dream job as the head strength and conditioning coach at my alma mater, Lycoming College. Starting in late September 2021, I would drive 150 miles every Monday morning at 4 AM to Lycoming’s campus in Williamsport, Pennsylvania for work, stay out there until Friday afternoon, and then drive home to spend the weekend with my wife, Sarah, and our dog, Finn.
Sarah and I rented a house from Lycoming to help with the transition into my new role on campus. The night of my accident, I took Finn for a walk and bumped into three of my student athletes on their way to watch the Lock Haven University basketball game. After chatting for a bit, they started to leave, but Finn, ever the attention-seeker, chased after them for a few more pats on the head. In the process, his collar snapped, and off he ran into a busy street. Without any consideration for my own safety, I rushed after Finn, desperate to make sure he wasn’t struck by a car. He was fine, but I wasn’t so lucky – before I could get out of the way, a car hit me at 40 MPH.
I suffered multiple life-threatening injuries from the accident, including a ruptured aorta. The paramedics didn’t believe I would survive the 1-mile trip to the hospital. The doctors assessed that my condition warranted a trip to Geisinger Medical Center to receive life-saving emergency medical treatment. I was then transported via air ambulance to Geisinger where I underwent critical surgeries. I survived the procedures but remained in a coma.
Three days following the accident, my brain began bleeding and swelling. My neurologist pulled my father and wife aside and told them I had a 1% chance of surviving my injuries, and they should consider planning my funeral. Despite this grim prognosis, I awoke from a coma and was transported to Bryn Mawr Rehab, where I spent the next month and a half. Following my accident, I was given a slim chance of survival, and my injuries should have ended my life. However, thanks to the incredible air ambulance crew that got me to a hospital equipped to handle my life-threatening injuries, I am still alive today to tell you about my miraculous recovery.
Since returning home, I have continued my rehab and am doing exponentially better. I started a nonprofit called Triumph In Recovery to support and assist survivors of traumatic brain injuries, strokes, other major trauma, as well as their vital support systems. I’m writing a book and mentoring at Bryn Mawr Rehab.
Telling my story is an important part of my recovery and I hope others who experience trauma have the same lifesaving access to air ambulance services and topnotch medical care and support.
Tim Chiarolanza is the former Head Strength and Conditioning Coach at Lycoming College and the president of his own nonprofit, Triumph In Recovery. Tim is in the process of writing a book, mentoring at his rehabilitation facility, and launching a motivational speaker career. He is convinced he is alive today because of the incredible care he received in the critical moments following his accident and his resilience, and he wants to use that experience to help as many other survivors as possible.