Kim Thomas – “Chase after Joy!”

BY: SIMONE JENNIFER SMITH 

The key to changing your lifestyle is in your hands, and this is exactly what our woman empowered feature has been doing for people throughout her journey. One of the goals that Kim Thomas has is to help people make that move past their own fears; getting past that fear is what turns your dreams into reality. It is difficult for many people to truly understand their strengths, utilize their resources and support systems, and stay motivated in daily life. Kim has developed the ability to work one on one with men and women, turning their tragedy into triumph. Kim is passionate to serve and empower people and does so through: life coaching, wellness training, motivational speaking, and empowerment seminars. Her main method of working is via powerful scheduled telephone coaching calls, and the clients are given the control that many feel they have lost through self-tailored sessions.

The REALMe Foundation (Restoring, Elevating, Accepting and Loving Me – The Real Me), and Me to We are two initiatives that Kim is actively engaged in developing locally and worldwide. To get involved you can visit http://www.onlifestylewithkim.com/index.html for more information, and to learn more about this unimaginably beautiful woman.

“Beauty comes from Brokenness!”

At 17 years old, Kim went through an experience that would change the course of her life forever. She was out driving, which I am sure for a teenager was an amazing experience and the next thing she knew she was flying through the air and then darkness. The rest of the story was witnessed to her, as she had suffered amnesia because of the impact. Kim had been going through the stoplight when another driver ran the red light and broadsided her vehicle, lifting it into the air and tossing Kim, breaking the majority of the bones in her body. The jaws of life had to extract Kim out of her car, and she was flown to Sunny Brooke Hospital in critical condition. By the time Kim reached the hospital, she had lost a lot of blood because she had been hanging upside down in the car for a period of time; this rendered her into a coma, and there she stayed in darkness.

When Kim finally came to, friends and family surrounded her, crying and praying. The fact that she had come to was a miracle, and everyone around her knew that her journey had just begun. The damage to Kim’s body was innumerable, from a broken orbital bone to major breaks throughout her body, the doctors told Kim that she would have temporary paralysis lasting anywhere from four to five years. She would also need major reconstructive surgery on her face to fix the damage that had occurred. It was so bad that the hospital had to take out every mirror in her room and put her on suicide watch because of how bad she looked. The doctors told her that they would have to remove her eye and replace it with a fake one. There was so much swelling that her face was disfigured, but the doctors told her that after the reconstructive surgery they would be able to save her face.

One day her mom came to her in the hospital and reminded her that regardless of what the doctor’s said, regardless of all the people praying for her, if she did not believe that she would get better, she wouldn’t. Her mother gave her the mirror, and Kim saw her face for the first time. She saw the disfigurement; she saw the stitches and the scars. At that point, Kim turned to God and asked him for help in healing her body; in turn, she would be of continued service to the world. Whether it was the powerful prayers and well wishes from others, or her promise to God, on that day, things started to change.

“Success is built on adversity!”

Having survived a major and near-fatal car accident, Kim fought against doctor’s diagnosis, and her own fear to overcome one of her greatest trials. During her teenage years, a time when young women are experiencing many firsts; first kisses, proms, first dates, Kim was fighting to heal her damaged body and soul. The doctors had told her that she would lose the use of her eye and have to get a glass eye; her eye miraculously healed and she now has perfect vision. They had told her that she would need multiple plastic surgeries; Kim’s broken facial bones healed, and she did not need to get not even one cosmetic surgery procedure. When you see Kim today, you would never know that she had been through such a traumatic ordeal. These struggles are what have given Kim her testimony and have birthed her destiny; to inspire others in living a life of purpose and passion.

“Happiness is tethered to circumstances; true joy is cultivated in the soul.” –Kim Thomas