Life Changes in an Instant 

When Tessa Vablevicus was just 11 years old, she and her brother Harry crossed a country road and were both struck by a car going 100 kilometers per hour. While Tessa managed to survive, her brother sadly did not make it. The accident resulted in Tessa suffering a skull fracture, a brain bleed, haemorrhage, a fractured pelvis, a broken tibia and fibula, and extensive damage to her left leg. 

“When I woke up, I was in post-traumatic amnesia. So not remembering much, not remembering my family or anybody around me, not knowing where I was or what had happened.”

“The power of the mind, trying to protect me.” 

“From there I went on a journey where I had to not only find out who I was again and my family and everybody, but how to walk and talk and just how to be in this world.” 

Difficult Times 

School was difficult as Tessa tried to navigate her physical and emotional scars. “There were dark times she admits, “I lost myself for a while, and had to move away from everything I knew just to get a fresh start.” 

Support from those Around Her 

“A lot of people were able to guide me in the right way, and just my family being the way they are really helped my mum. My mum has a lot of faith, and I think that definitely helped her through it all, which helped me as well.” 

Tessa sees herself as a gypsy soul, passionately embracing life to the fullest. As she approaches her 30th birthday, she reflects on her journey as a married woman and mother to three beautiful daughters. Balancing her busy life as a hairdresser and mind coach, she thrives in the vibrant energy of her daily experiences.  

“After my accident I knew I had a deeper purpose of helping others.”

A New Mindset 

This year Tessa connected with a neuropsychologist in Brisbane, an expert in how brain injuries and conditions affect somebody’s behaviour, mood and cognitive function.   

“I became a mum. And I’ve just been living my own life for so long and I really was curious to see where I was at in my healing process.”  

Tessa has also started participating in mindset work, Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP). A method of mindset work that looks at how language and thoughts influence behaviour, it has shown promise in helping people change their habits and reach their goals through various techniques. 

“My advice for others is not (to) let your beliefs hold you back. Not let your thoughts and beliefs hold you back. Don’t let somebody else tell you who you can or can’t be. We are capable of so much more than we realise and all we can do is try our best every single day.”

“I’ve done a lot of mindset work in NLP. It’s all to do with the brain. Science and spirituality. I’ve been able to sort of get into that and help other people get rid of what’s holding them back.” 

“It showed that I may struggle a little bit with the overwhelming side of things, but there’s nothing I can’t do if I if I don’t learn. If I don’t practise. So that was really beautiful to find out as well.” 

“At the end of the day, that belief that I was disabled was keeping me back. It sounds bizarre but that label was keeping me stuck.” 

“My advice for others is not (to) let your beliefs hold you back. Not let your thoughts and beliefs hold you back. Don’t let somebody else tell you who you can or can’t be. We are capable of so much more than we realise and all we can do is try our best every single day.”