Texas mom left paralyzed in domestic stabbing is already on her way to life after trauma
Brittany Morris earned an associate's degree, is on her way to a bachelor's, and has eyes on a master's degree.
BEAUMONT, Texas (KTRK) -- Five-year-old twins Issac and Imanu'el arrive home from school each day to find their mom, Brittany Morris, sitting on their front porch, waiting for them.
It is a place of comfort and stability now, but in 2019, the porch is where their father stabbed her eight times, immediately paralyzing her, before he ran off.
"'Let's get rid of the knife.' That was my first thought when I realized I couldn't move," Morris recalled the moment she was motionless and bleeding. "But I thought that's nothing to worry about right now. 'Let's get rid of the knife.'"
In the three years since the attack, she has reinvented herself. She was already a student at Lamar University, but now she's a straight-A student, earning her associates degree in occupational safety and health.
She's working on her bachelor's degree of science in industrial technology. She then wants to earn a master's degree in psychology.
She has goals, but she said she has some hesitation.
"Asking for help (is the worst part), having to depend on other people to help. I'd rather do everything myself if I could. Sometimes, I can't, but if I can do it myself," she said.
Morris travels to Houston twice a week courtesy of medical transport to rehab at TIRR Memorial Herman, where she re-learns to stand and walk.
She's already earned a driver's license and wants to buy a van so she can drive herself to rehab and to work while she continues her education.
What's driving her? She said her faith.
"I just make sure I allow myself to enjoy every single day, every single minute with (my kids), whether it's a handful or not, and it is a handful," she joked.
In the meantime, her attacker is in jail for the assault, but his family continues to participate in the boys' lives.
Despite that, she said he's discovered she's not one to hold onto grudges, which she was surprised to learn about herself.
Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that one in three American women will suffer from domestic abuse at some point in their life. Morris offers advice to other women in abusive relationships.
"Everybody says, 'Just get out.' Everybody says, 'Just leave.' But it's not so easy," she said. "You just have to love you more than them. And when you think you love somebody more than yourself, I think you should always question it."
She's now focused on the future and determined not to let what she's lost be greater than what she's gained. And she wants her sons to learn from her life.
"I want them to see that no matter what the situation is, it can be done and don't ever let anything be an excuse. Because if there ever was an excuse, this is the perfect excuse to give up or not do it. But you don't do that. You just keep going because you want to be something," Morris said.
You can play a role in Morris' ongoing recovery. Donations to help purchase her needed van are being accepted in this crowdfund site.
If you need help getting out of a domestic violence situation, call the Houston Area Women's Center 24/7 hotline at 713-528-2121 or call AVDA at 713-224-9911. You can also click here to chat with an advocate online. If you are deaf or hard of hearing and need help, call 713-528-3625.
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SEE ALSO: Houston police face the growing problem of domestic violence
