Mike Rolls is living proof that we can not only overcome challenges we face, but reach greater heights using positive focus. Mike is a survivor of one of the deadliest diseases on the planet.
At the age of 18, he contracted meningococcal septicaemia while on a football trip. His injuries were extensive; he suffered multiple amputations, severe internal injuries as well as the mental trauma of the 3 year ordeal. Here the education speaker shares his journey of rebuilding every aspect of his life from scratch.
My story – the power of resilience
Imagine waking up in intensive care. Broken, unable to speak, body parts missing and completely unaware of what has happened. Imagine not just overcoming such an experience, but living an awesome life in spite of it! My life is an example of the power of resilience.
The experience
I’m a survivor of one of the deadliest diseases on the planet, Meningococcal. This lethal, fast acting and brutal infection left me with horrific internal and external injuries, including amputation of my right leg and half of my left foot. It completely derailed my life.
This all happened to me at the age of 18, when I decided to celebrate a successful football season with a team trip to Tasmania. Excited with my bags packed off we went to the airport.
My next memory was waking up at the Alfred Hospital after 5 and a half weeks in an induced coma, scared, confused and in enormous pain. I couldn’t even spell “Meningococcal” let alone comprehend how this had all happened. My family had been told to say goodbye on numerous occasions. Miraculously, I survived.
I knew that my life would be different from here on. I remember the first time I was wheeled through the rehab hospital, there were old wooden legs on display everywhere, it was completely overwhelming. My attitude at the time, which still remains the same today is: Focus on what you CAN change rather than what you can’t.
My legs weren’t going to grow back so lets give some new ones a crack! (And thankfully they weren’t wooden!)
The lessons
I strongly believe in “Proactive Resilience” – which is arming yourself today, for the problems you face in the future. We can be proactive in building resilience by implementing simple behaviours that will ready us for what the future holds.
Being proactive about resilience is a powerful tool to decrease the depth we plunge to in a crisis and increases our ability to successfully overcome any challenge!
The three areas of “Proactive Resilience” I attribute my success to:
Entering a different zone
Don’t run the same lines, tracks or paths in your life; step out of your “safe place” and challenge yourself regularly. It’ll make you comfortable with change and you’ll be a champion in a crisis!
Challenge toxic beliefs
Why do we always sell ourselves short? We are far more powerful than we can ever imagine.
If you had have asked me how I’d cope with my meningococcal experience before I contracted it, I’d have said there’s no way in hell I could have! I now know that what we can achieve when our back is to the wall and we believe in ourselves is incredible. Never underestimate your abilities!
Amputate dead weight
In 2009, I made the choice to cut my other leg off. People thought I’d gone mad, but the truth was that this painful, troublesome and somewhat useless limb was holding me back.
Sometimes we need to be ruthless with the areas of our lives that hold us back and detract from our overall happiness. Cut them loose.
And now
Implementing these key areas into my own life have enabled me to achieve some awesome things, like running again with brand new legs after 13 years! Representing Australia in golf at the World Champs, even climbing 89 storeys of the Eureka Tower in 30 minutes!
Nothing worth having ever comes easy, so take on challenges and keep moving forward.
Whilst meningococcal successfully devastated my body, it failed hopelessly to break my spirit. We can all build proactive resilience and ready ourselves for anything the future will throw at us! (Our future selves will thank us for it!)