Biography & Autobiography Personal Memoirs
After the Truck Hit
Jennifer Kuchinka's True Story
- Publisher
- DriverWorks Ink
- Initial publish date
- Sep 2014
- Category
- Personal Memoirs
-
eBook
- ISBN
- 9781927570173
- Publish Date
- Sep 2014
- List Price
- $13.31
-
Paperback / softback
- ISBN
- 9781927570166
- Publish Date
- Sep 2014
- List Price
- $19.95
Classroom Resources
Where to buy it
Description
Jennifer Kuchinka was a new mother in Estevan, Saskatchewan, struggling with postpartum depression when she ran out of the hospital and onto the highway, only to be hit by a tractor-trailer truck. Jennifer survived that harrowing experience and now shares her story of the accident that left her with a permanent brain injury. She tells how she recovered and created a new life as a single parent, and how she is committed to raising awareness of postpartum depression and acquired brain injury.
About the authors
Awards
- Commended, Honorable Mention, Wild Card, Great Midwest Book Festival
Contributor Notes
Jennifer Kuchinka was born in Estevan, Saskatchewan. She was raised by her mother, Joyce, and her father, Clayton, in Macoun, SK on a farm. Jennifer participated in 4-H, loved track and field, figure skating, horseback riding, reading and writing throughout her childhood. She graduated from Estevan Comprehensive School in 2000 and convocated from the University of Regina in 2004 with a Bachelor of Education degree.
After that, she embraced travelling and embarked on her career in education. She currently resides in Estevan and teaches elementary school, trains for fitness competitions, fundraises for the Saskatchewan Brain Injury Association, and parents her young daughter, Avery.
Excerpt: After the Truck Hit: Jennifer Kuchinka's True Story (by (author) Jennifer Kuchinka; edited by Deana Driver)
Prologue
I know I am not the only young woman who has had trouble in her life, and I am not the only woman who has experienced the heartache of a miscarriage or a failed marriage. I also know that I am not unique in having given birth to the most beautiful, amazing baby girl in the world.
But I just might be the only one who has fallen down the deep, dark hole of postpartum psychosis and, as a result, run out onto a highway at night to be struck by a semi/tractor-trailer.
Everyone says it is a miracle that I didn’t die, and I believe in miracles – the miracle of a little girl; the miracle of the love of parents and friends and family; the power of prayer; and the tenacity of a mother’s love for her child.
I know that the reason I am alive today is twofold – one is because of the love for my daughter Avery, and the other is because I have an important story to tell – a story that might just help another woman who feels helpless and alone.
Postpartum depression affects one in five women and is very real. If left untreated, postpartum psychosis can develop. It is often minimized as “hormones” or “baby blues” by friends, family and worst of all, doctors. I want to help make sure that more is done to try to prevent the tragic outcomes that often result.
My name is Jennifer and this is my story.
Editorial Reviews
"Reading Jennifer’s story I got so caught up in the minutiae of her life that I kept losing sight of the big picture. That her injuries were so severe that she should not have survived, or at the very least should not have been able to function well enough to write the book that I was holding in my hands. She had to learn to walk and talk again, to feed and dress herself, change a diaper and make decisions. She also had to learn to drive again, and to me this sums up her incredible determination. She failed her first test. She was advised to take ten hours of driving lessons and try again. Jennifer took twenty hours…and nailed the test. Her story is incredible."
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