People run after hearing gun fire at the the Route 91 Harvest country music festival [David Becker/Getty Images]
Life is uncertain and unpredictable and it never gives you a chance to internalize the changes it keeps rolling out in your path. Without even a whimper, a happy life can turn into a tough ride, full of thorns and bristles. An apt example of this case is the mass shooting of Oct. 1, 2017, in Las Vegas during the Route 91 Harvest country music festival. The fun and festive mood of the music lovers, swinging to the reverberating beats at the concert, was transformed into a nightmare within no time, when Stephen Paddock (64) started firing on them from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino that killed around 59 people and injured over 500. It has been reported that the killer was found dead in his room after an hour of his last shot from the rifle. Probably, the shooter died from a gunshot wound he gave to himself. However, the motive behind all this is still unknown.
Everything you want to know about Las Vegas mass shooter Stephen Paddock: Read more
Tina Frost, wakes from coma
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Tina Frost, 27, shown here with her mother, was shot in the head during the Vegas shooting.
Among those who were severely injured was Tina Frost, a 27-year-old public accountant at Ernst & Young (E&Y). A Maryland woman who had moved to San Diego about five years ago, Frost was shot during the mass shooting in her forehead due to which she went into a coma. However, the Las Vegas shooting victim woke up from the coma on Oct. 13, 2017.
Frost suffered severe injuries
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Pic Credit – http://www.dailymail.co.uk
The Las Vegas shooting is a scary incident, especially for the victims of the incident. Frost is one such person who got severely affected and seriously wounded during the incident. Frost was attending the music festival with her boyfriend Austin Hughes when the gunman opened fire in which a bullet struck her forehead. Austin along with another man carried Tina to a pickup truck from where she was taken to Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center in Las Vegas. In order to save her life, the doctors had to remove her right eye as well as a part of her skull so that the bullet fragments could be removed from her head that could help in reducing the swelling in the brain.
Brave soul shows signs of recovery
The US shooting victim is showing signs of quick recovery. According to GoFundMe, a campaign created to collect funds for the 27-year-old’s medical expenses, Frost has already taken her first few steps after waking up from the coma last week. In fact, she has also been able to breathe without any support for almost six hours. Some other signs of recovery observed in Frost included opening of her left eye and looking around the room, tapping her feet on listening to music and squeezing hands of those around her. She is even responding to situations. For instance, she is showing thumbs up to her boyfriend Austin when asked for. She was also able to sit on a chair and hug a teddy bear.
Observing these signs of improvement, Frost’s neurosurgeon in Las Vegas Dr. Keith Blum has suggested and got her transferred via a medical flight to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. The aim is to help her continue her treatment and attain a speedy recovery.
GoFundMe campaign raises more than $500,000
Started by a family friend Pam Clark, the GoFundMe campaign aimed at collecting $50,000 to assist Tina’s recovery. The campaign has already collected around $529,890 to help Tina pay for her medical care, recovery, and other related expenses. The funds for Frost are being raised in ways like selling of #TinaTough T-shirts; selling of #StayFrostie bracelets; Frostie Brews, a fundraiser campaign by Molloy’s Irish Pub; and offering classes for Zumba, yoga, meditation and aroma therapy.
Frost risks developing mental health issues
Frost, the US shooting victim, was lucky to wake up from the coma and show signs of improvement. However, it is important to understand that till now the consequences of the shooting were physically visible in her, but the severity of the incident can affect her psychological health as well. It makes her susceptible to develop severe mental health issues, such as depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
While Frost has been lucky to receive the right kind of help and support immediately, there is no treatment that can help her instantly deal with the trauma. Everything takes time and so, it is necessary that Frost is given the desired liberty and freedom to recover gradually in terms of her mental health.
Way forward
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Tina Frost, Las Vegas shooting victim, wakes from coma is not an end of her story. It is certainly the beginning of Frost’s better life that can be attained by offering her the right kind of help and support. She needs to find ways to avoid the thoughts of the traumatic incident in order to stay away from any kind of mental problem because trauma increases the risk of various mental problems like PTSD. However, for the moment, the brave soul is showing signs of improvement and her ongoing journey and fight against the worst phase of her life can be a source of motivation and inspiration for the society and the entire world.