Julia Rivers as a Questar CNA student.
Julia Rivers is a shining example of a student who had a vision and has let nothing stand in her way, literally. A June 2018 graduate of Troy High School and Questar III’s CNA program, Julia is determined that she is going to achieve her goal of becoming a doctor. Julia is currently enrolled at Hudson Valley Community College, majoring in Bio sciences and works as a CNA at Eddy Memorial Geriatric Center in Troy, New York. While she was enrolled at Questar III, Julia earned first place in the 2018 State Skills USA competition in her career field, Certified Nurse Assistant.
Julia recently took a few minutes to talk with Questar staff and let us know how great she’s doing and that she encourages everyone to set a goal and do whatever it takes to make that goal a reality.
Here is Julia’s amazing story of “never saying never” in her own words.
As I walked up the steps, my goal was reached. A wave of nervousness engulfed me, followed by a knot in my throat. Senior year began and I was finally, after what felt like a lifetime, attending school without a wheelchair. Every step, every inhale and exhale, was a victory in it’s own. Walking those steps had been the impossible, but that day it became the attainable.
Two years ago, the year of 2015, I began to fall. Literally. It all started out with pain in my back, minimal at first. Gradually, the pain became unimaginable. I walked as if I was 100 years old. School was impossible, and my father hired a tutor so my studies could be finished at home. Days and months went by, life became dim and I began to give up. Doctors told me, “It’s all in your head.” I eventually began to believe them. No friends, no support, and my family against me.
A year passed and it was my junior year. I was back at school, but confined to a wheelchair. Embarrassing as it was, I focused on my studies. Weeks went by and bullying became a regular. Keeping my head down, ignoring it, no matter how much it burned down inside. “We’re going to pull you out that wheelchair and beat you.” This was one of the calmest of the things I had heard. It didn’t stop there. I kept dragging along, so much dead weight behind me. Thinking about my future filled me with dread. I wanted to be a nurse or a surgeon. But how could a girl in a wheelchair do such a thing? So I, that girl, tried to turn my life around. The Certified Nursing Assistant program came to my attention. I applied as soon as possible and a glimmer of hope appeared. I learned my acceptance wouldn’t be until March.
Finally, March rolled around and I was seeing a new doctor. Hope was useless and nonexistent. I arrived to the appointment with the same expectations, awaiting the no answer news that I’ve grown accustomed to for almost two years. I left that appointment a different person. Finally, I had my answer,- it wasn’t all in my head! The doctor diagnosed me with MPS (myofascial pain syndrome). This disease affects my muscles, causing unbearable pain, spasms and muscle locking. Unfortunately, there’s no cure and not a lot of information about it and why it happens. Even with the unfortunate news, my perspective began to change.
That small glimmer of hope I had left erupted from a spark into a flame because finally, I can heal. Life as I knew it embarked on a new path, with the destination in sight. As I changed, so did my world around me. By pushing myself back up, I flew a few steps forward. I was not letting my disease control me; I will control me. I embarked on my journey by finishing my junior year a whole new me and started to heal. Without looking back I trekked onward, reaching the end of the storm.
The summer of 2017 was the boom of my recovery. I was accepted to the Certified Nursing Assistant program, been finally diagnosed and on the right path, and I was no longer confined to the wheelchair. I had decided no more and pushed myself out of it. To heal one must set a goal. My goal, a year ago, was to not use a wheelchair. It was difficult, painful, and downright impossible. I did it anyway. “Just keep swimming,” My dad would say, and so I did. I found the courage to get a job and applied to Market 32 and was hired instantly. This job added to that spark of hope, igniting it more than ever.
Continuing on my path of healing, I enter my senior year of high school. Nervousness and excitement embraced me. I walked up those steps like I owned the world. From that day on, I haven’t looked back; only forward towards that ever growing flame of hope. Despite my never ending downfalls, I have built myself upwards. Life knocks me down, I get back up faster and hit back harder. Nothing can stop me from healing. To heal others, I must first heal myself.
