Disabled Star City woman finds support in small town and family

The series, dubbed #IGotThis, focuses on the connection between disability and mental health and how people find ways to stay positive.

“We talk to all sorts of interesting everyday Saskatchewan people. They have a physical disability, and they talk about their challenging times mentally,” said Jellicoe. “They also talk about the ways they have found to feel better.”

Gabrysh, for instance, uses helping others to help her own mental health.

“She’s had some dark depressing times and days and months but she is such a go getter and she has always had such a positive attitude,” said Jellicoe. Jennifer Jellicoe TV series 3

Gabrysh was paralyzed 15 years ago after jumping to catch a football thrown in fun at a pool party. She landed in the shallow end of the pool in a foot of water, bursting two vertebrae.

“She was in the prime of her life. Popular, outgoing, athletic and working and living in Regina,” said Jellicoe.

Being in a wheelchair doesn’t slow Jennifer Gabrsyh down when it comes to things like boxing with her dad. (Submitted photo/Honey Cut Studios)

Despite feeling no pain and thinking she would be back at the party later in the evening, Gabrysh instead learned that she would never walk again.

Now, after participating in multiple medical trials and having a nerve transplant, she can move her shoulders and biceps and pinch together the thumb and forefinger of her right hand.

Gabrysh has moved back to Star City in order to get better care and be close to family.

“She has had some very tough, very dark times, as one can imagine, over the years, particularly when it comes to health issues like pressure sores and bone fractures,” explained Jellicoe.

Gabrysh can spend time alone but is unable to transfer herself between bed and wheelchair and needs help, which she usually gets from a care aide. Finding a reliable aide is a challenge, and Gabrysh has had over 100 in the last 15 years.

Some have not bothered to show up for work in the morning, leaving her confined in her bed and not able to get up even for food.

Mentally coping is a huge challenge but thanks to determination and technology, Gabrysh has found ways.

She loves volunteer work and gives freely of her time to groups and boards and in return, reaps the mental benefits of helping others.

“You have to keep your mind active any way that you can, and she does that. She has parents who take her fishing, who rigged up a super cool quad chair that she off-roads through the snow and water and through the ditches. She’s able to operate that,” said Jellicoe.

Using stories like Gabrysh’s is the point of the #IGotThis series, starting its third season on March 23, airing on AMI on Wednesdays starting next Wednesday.

Jellicoe, as creator director at Honey Cut Studios which produces the series, is able to help tell the stories.

“Sharing her story hopefully will connect with someone out there that’s listening in and maybe give them some ideas and some encouragement to keep going if they’re feeling down. That’s the whole point of the show,” she explained.

The series is giving a voice to people who haven’t felt heard in some of their struggles.

Honey Cut has talked to almost 50 people about their struggles with disability and how it has affected their mental state.

“It has been tough. People have talked about suicide. They’ve talked about the darkness of depression there were some challenging times. Some of them have opened up about that and some of them have said, I haven’t thought about that in years,” said Jellicoe.

Despite the intense emotion and remembered pain, Jellicoe said that many people find the experience almost cathartic. They feel better and have a better grasp of the scope of their achievements.

Jennifer Gabrysh is featured on the eighth and final episode of the series.

—

Susan.McNeil@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @princealbertnow

by Susan McNeil

Disabled Star City woman finds support in small town and family

What's Trending