MARIETTA, Ga. — A business student at Kennesaw State University was in a horrific car accident and doctors told his parents he probably wouldn't survive.
Michael Wolcott was unconscious for months after suffering a traumatic brain injury. But the 24-year-old finally regained consciousness after the terrible car crash. That within itself is a miracle as doctors say 90 percent of people who suffer from a traumatic brain injury, like his, never wake up.
Seeing Michael now, it's hard to believe the college senior was told by doctors he'd probably never drive again, let alone walk.
“When you're close to having your life taken from you, you start to appreciate other stuff a lot more,” he said.
Michael was in the backseat with his best friends when their car slid off the road in May of 2017. He nearly lost his life.
“We heard about it when two police officers came to our door and as a parent that's your worst nightmare,” Bambi Wolcott, Michael’s mother said.
Michael spent months in the hospital diagnosed with a severe diffuse axonal injury, known as a DAI. He had lesions all over his brain.
“Doctors said you might have to make arrangements,” Bambi recalled.
But last July, a miracle happened.
“He said, 'Why am I here',” Bambi said, recounting her son's first words. “We will never forget that moment.”
Fortunately, Michael didn't have to have surgery. But he did spend months in physical therapy.
“I had to do so much therapy, like six to eight hours a day for weeks, months,” he said.
His family set up a Facebook page, Michael’s Road to Recovery, so friends could keep up on his road to recovery and even learned just how special he was. People from all walks of life came to visit him in the hospital.
“There were people who came and sat with him and wouldn't leave,” Bambi said.
For the most part, Michael’s medical treatment is over and in May of 2019, he will graduate from Kennesaw State with hopes to go into the hospitality industry.
