If you don't like something, change it. If you cannot change it, change the way you think about it.
That's the mindset of former Rotorua Girls' High School student Kelly Munford who has made a remarkable recovery after being seriously injured in a crash two years ago and will walk in the annual Ports of Auckland Round the Bays in Auckland tomorrow.
The 23-year-old, who lives in Auckland, was driving on the Southern Motorway to Tauranga on February 6, 2011 when she fell asleep and crashed into a tree.
She broke her neck, pelvis and suffered a serious brain injury. She was in a coma and on life support for three weeks. She was in hospital for nearly two months followed by rehabilitation clinics for several months. In a wheelchair for 10 months, Miss Munford is still undergoing physiotherapy and occupational therapy three days a week.
Miss Munford has no memory of the crash. Her first memory was waking up in hospital and wondering what she was doing there.
This was not the first time she had broken her neck. The first time was while horse riding as a 16-year-old.
"My neck has had a hard life," she said.
She said she was lucky she had not been left permanently paralysed.
She said the day she got out of the wheelchair was awesome as she hated depending on others to push her around.
Before the crash, Miss Munford was studying international business but she has now changed to occupational therapyand has started her first paper towards becoming an occupational therapist this week.
She said the crash and subsequent help she'd received had made her want to change her career focus.
Life has changed for her. She gets tired more easily, her voice and speech are different and she needs a walking stick when walking long distances.
However, she said the crash and all the help she had received had made her a nicer person.
Not one to dwell on the past, Miss Munford is determined to get through her rehabilitation and pursue her career goals.
"I've come a long way. It takes time I guess. If only time would move faster."
Her strongest supporter - her father Steve - is walking with her in tomorrow's Round the Bays and Miss Munford said she could not thank her father enough for the support he had given her.
As a father, Mr Munford said seeing what his daughter had been through had been tough.
One of the hardest times for him was when his daughter was on life support and medical staff talked about having a family meeting.
"I was just absolutely petrified that they were going to turn her life support off."
The most profound moment for him was a fortnight after the crash when he put his index finger into his daughter's hand while she was in a coma.
"I said to her 'Kelly if you can hear me squeeze my finger'. She squeezed my finger."
By taking part in the Round the Bays, Miss Munford has fundraised almost $1000 for the Laura Ferguson Trust - an organisation which provided rehabilitation for Miss Munford.
Anyone wanting to sponsor Miss Munford can go to www.fundraiseonline.co.nz and type in Kelly Munford.