VOA常速英语:女孩将脑动脉瘤治疗过程制作成艺术品

Tessa Carlisle shares her artworks with her school chaplain. They’re based on brain scans from the neurosurgeries that corrected an aneurysm in her brain. Her medical journey started in April of last year. I was about to scream and I felt a very sharp pain in my head and I remember thinking to myself, this doesn’t feel right. And then the last thing I remember is collapsing on the floor and just blacking out and thinking this isn’t real, this isn’t real. There was a second brain surgery in January this year and for both months of recovery, she wanted to use her experience in an art project for school.
I decided that I wanted to tell my story and tell the way I wanted it to be told and show to people that I’m not just a girl who had an aneurysm. I’m a girl who has recovered from something. This April, she shared her experience with fellow students at the Episcopal School of Los Angeles. Tessa came to me and she said I have a story to tell and I’m ready to tell it and so we scheduled her and she got to start that talk by saying, you know, one year ago, this weekend, this happened to me. She has also taken part in the school’s volunteer program by working with young patients at Children’s Hospital, Los Angeles where she received part of her treatment. She’s had support from her family. It’s a very tough thing for a parent but it’s not a hard thing to talk about because the relief of having Tessa back with us is so great.

And to watch her go through this whole procedure and emerge on the other side was very tough, but very, you know, incredibly rewarding and a fantastic thing at the end. Aneurysms are rare in teenagers and they’re dangerous unless treated right away. The family itself takes on a huge burden in trying to care for the child and care for themselves psychologically. It’s really a tough thing. And the fact that you know, Tess and her family came through this so strong. It’s a testament to them. The family has used the experience to reach out, Tessa through her artwork and her mom Clarissa helping raise funds for a Medical Center by running a marathon. They really have funneled all of that, those emotions and things that really could have set them back, I think, and instead have made a positive impact on other people’s lives. Tessa hopes to find a career in the field of art therapy to help others discover the healing power of art as she has.