Chimney Collapse Victim One Year Later: Being Positive Is A Choice

BOSTON (CBS) -- From the beginning, Erin Field focused her efforts and energy on staying positive. No one would blame her for being angry. But any anger she felt, after the accident that left her paralyzed, wasn't directed at anyone or anything. She says she cried, briefly, looking at old pictures. "I just said…I'll never do that again." But any sense of feeling defeated was short lived. And now, the 22 year-old Somerville woman is working hard at getting stronger and more mobile.

Erin and her boyfriend, Jack were in a hammock on a North End rooftop on July 11, 2017. The hammock was tied to a brick chimney on one side and a low wall on the other. Suddenly, the chimney gave way, crushing Erin. She doesn't remember the accident. But she does remember the rescue effort on the roof and the long trip down a firefighters' ladder on a backboard. "I remember being lifted off the roof and that's because I'm scared of heights. I thought, oh my God!" The ambulance rushed Erin to Mass General Hospital.

Her brother, Todd called her parents at their home in Maine. "He was very vague, " Heidi Field remembers. "He just said, 'There's been an accident and I need you to come.'" Surgeons used a metal rod to stabilize Erin's spine. She had a tracheotomy, internal bleeding, and—at one point—her heart stopped. She has no memory of that. But the three weeks that she can't remember, her family will never forget. They were by her side around the clock. And when Erin was finally conscious of her new reality, she was determined to start working. Eventually, she was moved to Spaulding Rehab Hospital.

The fall of 2017 was supposed to be Erin's last at Goucher College in Maryland. She was planning to do a semester abroad in London. Suddenly, all her future plans seemed to be up in the air. But in the midst of her rehab, she announced that she would return to college for the spring semester in January. She believed that the academic expectations, social benefits of being with friends, and the pursuit of a goal would serve as powerful therapy. But nearly everyone around her had concerns. After all, she would be returning to school in a wheelchair not six months after the accident. "She said, "I'm going back to school in January. I'm going to finish my senior year," Heidi remembers. "In my mind, I'm thinking, she's never going back to school. She proved us wrong."

Erin says, it was all part of her plan to focus on the possible; the future. "I was like, I'm not getting depressed. I'm not going to let that happen because that's just so much worse."

She didn't have physical therapy, Heidi says. "She needed mental therapy. She needed her friends. She needed fun." On May 27, 2018—after writing a 14-page term paper using a stylus on an iPad (Erin still does not have use of her hands) she graduated from Goucher College to a standing ovation. She describes it as a turning point in her recovering and her confidence. "From the beginning of school to the end, " Erin says, beaming, "I was just so much better."

Since graduation, Erin's been working with physical and occupational therapists at Spaulding three days a week. She also works on getting stronger at Journey Forward. Her physical therapist, Kim Palermo says Erin's attitude makes the breakthroughs possible. "Erin comes in every day with a smile on her face wanting to work. She lets me throw pretty much anything at her. I get her outside her comfort zone. And she's pretty much game for anything. I think it helps both of us make that progress." Right now, they are working on Erin's ability to roll on her own and sit up without assistance.

Two weeks ago, Erin stood for 30 minutes—the longest period of time to date—in a machine called an Easy Glider that helps a patient maintain bone health and improves strength and balance. It is precisely the kind of milestone Erin celebrates with an eye on bigger goals in the future. "I'm gonna walk eventually. I don't care what the doctors say. I'm gonna walk. But it's going to take time."

She says her family (her parents and four siblings) and boyfriend have been amazing. In June, Erin welcomed a new family member when she adopted Oakley, a bulldog puppy. "She changed my life." Oakley (one of the most gentle puppies this reporter has ever met) rides with Erin on her wheelchair, travels with her to therapy and naps while Erin's working. Someday, Erin hopes to make Oakley a therapy dog. And more immediately, Erin will use her positivity to help other patients at Spaulding by becoming a Peer Volunteer—talking with them about what they can expect in their recovery and ways to approach challenges. She is perfectly suited for the role. Her advice to anyone facing adversity? "Don't give up. Live in the moment. Don't take anything for granted. As long as you stay positive, you're going to get better and you're going to be happy." She plans to go to law school and become a disability lawyer.

Her mom tears up thinking about the year the Field family has been through and Erin's progress. "Erin has taught me to be positive. It's a choice."