Contagious positivity: Jillian remains confident with new normal

It would have been easy for Jillian Romanyk to throw in the towel. To quit.

By now, many know of her accident and the challenges she continues to face in everyday life.

But do not for a second believe she will give up. Complacency is not an option for Romanyk, who must adjust to life with paralysis.

“I’m a very independent person, so having to rely on people or asking people to help me is new,” Romanyk says.

She’s going through one of her morning classes at Sturgis High School, a smile on her face.

“I have really good friends," she says after a bit of a pause, looking on at her classmates. "Sometimes they want to help too much.”

The accident

The accident occurred June 17.

It was a day in the mid-80s, the sun was shining. Unfortunately for Romanyk and Fekile Lind, who was driving the truck involved in a multiple-vehicle pile up on U.S. 12 that afternoon, the day soon grew dark. The crash left Romanyk and Lind, plus others in separate vehicles, with major injuries.

Romanyk, a senior-to-be at SHS, got the worst of it. Multiple people were airlifted from the scene of the crash. Romanyk said she doesn’t remember anything about the incident. She had been sleeping in the passenger seat when the crash occurred.

“They told me I was screaming, but I don’t remember that," she said. "I woke up in the hospital and thought I was dreaming and I was working there.”

Romanyk had planned to play volleyball once again for the Trojans in the fall, but the crash changed those plans.

“When I realized how bad my injuries were — my mom (Jaime) told me what happened — I just started bawling because all I do is play sports,” she recalls. “I’m athletic. But now I can’t do that anymore and that instantly made me sad. That was really my only mental breakdown I had was when I found out how bad it was. After that, I’ve tried to be positive.”

Romanyk lost her left foot to amputation and is paralyzed from the waist down. She uses a wheelchair, but still smiles from ear to ear and does her best with her situation.

“Am I lucky to be alive? Yes.” she said. “I’m lucky to have the friends I have, too. I’m different now, but they don’t mind. They are great. I feel more lucky that no one died. That’s what I’m happy about. If I had been in a smaller vehicle or a car, I’d be dead.”

Athletic training and track

Romanyk is an active member of the Sturgis High School athletic training team. She remains positive about making an impact.

She wants to continue her athletic pursuits. There are some options for Romanyk in the upcoming track and field seasons. Even though she must use a wheelchair, there looks to be options for her to still be able to compete.

J.B. Starkey, Sturgis track and field coach, said coaches are looking at those options for Romanyk. There may even be some indoor track and field opportunities prior to the official start of the season.

As they discuss this during one of Starkey’s classes — physical education prior to lunch on a Friday — a smile grows on Romanyk’s face. None of this has been easy, but being able to potentially compete brings her joy.

“I want to continue with track. I’m working with my physical therapist on balance and stuff so I can throw. I know I’m not gonna throw it as far — all my muscles were in my legs, and they are so much smaller than they used to be,” Romanyk said. “I’m gonna keep weight-lifting, keep reaching for my goals. It’s been positive, if I say I wanna do something, people believe in me still.”

Effortless positivity

Romanyk’s positivity is encouraging. It’s also contagious. Being a positive person is something she was prior to the accident. It's something that is not fake and comes naturally to Romanyk.

“My biggest fear when it happened was that she would no longer have that positivity,” Starkey said. “She has blown that fear away. I was afraid she would lose herself.”

Romanyk spent 31 days in the hospital before any of her rehabilitation started. Following her release from Bronson Methodist, Romanyk spent some time at Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital in Grand Rapids.

“I was at Mary Free Bed a while, but I needed to get out of there, even though I loved it there,” Romanyk recalls. “I needed to go home. I was sick of being in the hospital. I had a good time through it all there, my therapy people helped me and it was so much fun. My sense of humor helped as well. I think you need a sense of humor.”

Starkey said the school, mainly Jeff Wanamaker, manufacturing technology teacher, have aspirations of getting Romanyk equipped with an advanced wheelchair. This would allow her to be able to compete in the discus and shot put, a pair of field events where Romanyk has excelled for the Trojans.

That’s all a work in progress, though. For now, Romanyk goes about her days, looking to fit in.

What's the daily routine like?

Her daily routine is in some ways the same as it was prior to the crash. There certainly are some differences, though. After waking up in the morning, with help from her mom, Romanyk gets dressed, puts on makeup and uses the bathroom. She waits for best friend, Megan Hecht, to pick her up for school. At school, while things can prove difficult, she makes the best of her time.

Her first class is creative cooking. It’s different now, because she can’t reach all of the equipment needed to cook on a stove. She also needs to be aware of her legs — since she has no feeling, there's a risk of burning them without realizing it.

Her second class is creative writing. Sometimes, Romanyk and her "chauffeur," whichever friend gets her from point A to point B in between classes, get creative in the student-packed hallways.

“I leave early, bring someone with me, they use me to get out of class,” she says, giggling. “Getting to class on time isn’t a problem. Most people get outta the way.”

Next comes math class, where she has quite a few friends. She enjoys that class.

“I’m good at math, but right now I’m so lazy when I get home I don’t do my homework,” she says, covering her mouth after a brief smirk. “It’s bad.”

Later in the day, she heads to Centreville by bus for CTE, her favorite time of day in the classroom. Following the school day, there are physical therapy sessions, but not every day.

Some of her best times currently is when she can attend an SHS athletic event. It comes by way of just being able to watch her friends compete, or helping as an athletic trainer at games.

It still sucks, sometimes

There are stares. There are people with questions. Oftentimes it can be uncomfortable, but Romanyk doesn’t allow any of that to make her feel bummed. People are people and with her injuries, there will always be looks and questions. Sometimes those suck. Sometimes she plows right through it all.

“It’s been easy, actually, People do stare at my leg sometimes, but I just make a funny joke after it,” she said. “Me and my friends count how many times it happens during the day. I think most of the time it’s by accident, so it doesn’t really bother me.”

Despite not letting those types of situations bother her, the loss of her independence and freedom might be the most challenging aspect.

“I have moods where I do get mad, difficult moments where I get upset, but my mom or one of my friends hugs me and I am fine after that,” Romanyk said. “If I want to feel normal, I just go hang out with my friends because they make me feel normal. They just know I have to do things different now.”

Homecoming queen and what's after high school

Romanyk was voted as homecoming queen by her peers. She may have won the award anyway, but being at school in her condition could also have helped.

“I made the joke before that if I won, it would be because I’m paralyzed,” she said. “I had thought that, but it was funny. I won anyway and that was nice. It was great that Nancy (Montoya, last year’s queen) got to put the crown on me.”

So as she navigates the halls of Sturgis High School, her friends helping push her around, the smiles never seem to go away. Romanyk is loving life, even though it brings big differences than what she was used to growing up. She’s on target to graduate with her classmates in May and then it’s off to the land of higher learning.

She plans to attend Glen Oaks Community College and wants to pursue nursing. It’s the helping of people, putting them before the needs of herself, which helps to set Romanyk apart. Some may feel sad for her, but she maintains a positive outlook.

“There will be people who feel sorry for me and that’s OK,” Romanyk said. “I still have my friends, I know I can accomplish things and they know I can, too. I have to be positive.”

Like most teens, Romanyk spends time on her phone, especially TikTok. She’s finding some inspiration there as well. She has started to follow some TikTok-users who are paralyzed, seeing what they can do and applying those things to her life. Some take part in CrossFit. Romanyk is paying special attention to that. She wants to be stronger, as fit as possible.

“I have hopes. I feel like I should be doing something because I survived my accident,” she said. “A lot of people tell me I should write a book, but I’m not very good at writing. I want to do something with my life and I’m not going to change my goals or how I look at things. I’m positive. I’m happy. I’m just going to be going about it differently because I’m paralyzed.”

Romanyk was honored prior to the volleyball senior night back on Oct. 7. Her smiles throughout the process were striking, but that is normal for her.

Being "normal" is all that matters to her.

Even if it is a new normal.

This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: Contagious positivity: Jillian remains confident with new normal