She is a marathon runner. An inspiration. The part-time model and engineer who got caught in a bush fire in 2011 while competing in an ultra-marathon in the Kimberley.
Turia Pitt was 24 and she was “mummified“. She suffered burns to 64 per cent of her body and lost the fingers and thumb on her right hand. She has had more than 200 operations. This year she will have four or five more.
But Pitt defied our expectations years ago. First of all, she survived after spending five months in hospital. Then, she went onto to become an inspirational speaker, an author, an ambassador for non-profit organisation Interplast, and – almost unbelievably – an IronWoman.
Now she’s told us she’s looking forward to 2017. In particular, she’s looking forward to her surgeries.
LISTEN: Turia Pitt talks to Mia Freedman on No Filter. (Post continues…)
How is this possible? Through a concept Pitt calls “re-framing”.
“Re-framing is simply looking at your challenges, goals and life in a different way,” Pitt wrote on her blog on Thursday. “No one looks forward to surgery and, even after having over 200 operations, it’s still no walk in the park for me.
“Instead of feeling frustrated, scared or overwhelmed, I choose to look at my surgeries as a good thing,” she continued.
“I get to catch up with all the medical staff who have worked with me over the years, it’s forced time out, I get to eat ice cream and watch movies and most importantly, the benefits of having the surgery will far outweigh a few weeks of discomfort.”
There are three strategies Pitt shared for successful “re-framing”, too.
Be conscious
“Take note of the negative mind games going on in your head,” she wrote.
“Be conscious of the way you’re really thinking about yourself and the stuff that happens around you.”
