Hobbies and interests
Painting and Studio Art
Cooking
Art
Dance
Travel And Tourism
Yoga
Exercise And Fitness
Research
Singing
Nutrition
Culinary Arts
Exploring Nature And Being Outside
Rapping
Aerial Silks
Anne Nelson
845
Bold Points1x
Nominee1x
FinalistAnne Nelson
845
Bold Points1x
Nominee1x
FinalistBio
In the summer of 2016, after my first year in college at Auburn University as a pre-nursing major and dance minor, I was in a devastating car accident. I sustained several serious injuries but the most severe was damage to my spinal cord leaving me almost completely paralyzed from the waist down. I spent about three months in an inpatient rehabilitation facility and continued intensive physical therapy for several months after. I returned to Auburn in the spring of 2017 and was determined to continue and complete my minor in dance as Auburn's first wheelchair dancer. In doing so I have transformed the dance program. The return to college life while balancing my recovery was challenging. I was accepted into Auburn's Nursing program and started in the summer of 2019 while still using the wheelchair for classes and clinicals. My injury and recovery has given me a unique perspective in the field of nursing. It not only helps me in my clinical practice but also poses as an example to those around me. I strive to share and teach my experiences with my classmates in hopes that my knowledge may be helpful in their own clinical practice and that my image may be inspiration to others who face limitations in health care settings. Over my college dance career I have performed, presented and taught at various national and regional conferences. My choreography was awarded by the Liberal arts college in 2018 for its outstanding creative research and scholarship. I also was chosen to present my dance anatomy research project which focused on my spinal cord injury at the 2018 Auburn University Research Symposium. More recently, the story of my recovery and integration back into dance has been published in the Shepherd Center Spinal Column magazine, the Auburn Alumni magazine, and I was given the opportunity to share my story on the Auburn University School of Nursing Nurse Narrative podcast. I currently still use the wheelchair for classes, clincals and long distance traveling. However, my use and need for the chair is continuing to decrease as I have relentlessly worked towards building my endurance, strength, and ability through dance, yoga, independent exercise and many other forms of rehabilitation.
Education
Auburn University
Bachelor's degree programMajors:
- Nursing Science
Minors:
- Dance, General
Miscellaneous
Desired degree level:
Graduate schools of interest:
Transfer schools of interest:
Majors of interest:
Career
Dream career field:
Alternative Medicine
Dream career goals:
Researcher and practitioner in osteopathic and dance medicine
Choreographer and preformer
North Alabama Dance Center2018 – 2018Yogurt shop employee
Insanity Skate Park2016 – 2016Consessions stand employee
Palmer Park Consessions2016 – 2016
Research
Dance Therapy/Therapist
Independent, Directed study through Auburn's Dance program — Undergraduate Researcher2018 – Present
Arts
Auburn University Dance Ensemble
Dance2015 Spring AU Dance concert , 2016 ACDA southeast conference, 2017 Spring AU Dance concert, 2018 spring AU dance concert, 2019 ACDA southeast concert2015 – PresentAuburn University College of Liberal Arts
DanceOutstanding Creative Research and Scholarhsip Showcase2018 – 2018
Public services
Advocacy
Auburn University Dance program, Independent, Auburn University School of Nursing — teacher, choreographer, and performer2016 – PresentAdvocacy
Auburn University School of Nursing — peer and teacher2019 – PresentAdvocacy
Independent — influencer and teacher2016 – PresentVolunteering
Shepherd Center Research program — research participant2016 – 2017
Future Interests
Advocacy
Volunteering
Philanthropy
Entrepreneurship
Frontline Heroes Nursing Grant
Choosing to pursue a career in nursing was something I decided to do when I was in high school. But even before this my fascination for anatomy, discovery, and research began in childhood. My parents still tell stories about me, as a young girl, watching surgeries on TV instead of cartoons. My first experience learning about anatomy was in 7th grade biology. It was my favorite topic in the course and the dissection experiments we conducted were so incredibly fascinating to me that I knew, then, that I wanted to go into the medical field. As my education continued I became more aware of how vast the career options can be. Not only has my fascination for medically related subjects been present from a young age, but also my nurturing spirit. Some of my youngest memories are of me loving and caring for younger children, animals, trees, plants, and baby dolls. The nurturing that began in my childhood has now grown into maturity and will follow with me into my nursing career.
In the summer of 2016, after my first year in college at Auburn University as a pre-nursing major and dance minor, I was in a devastating car accident. I sustained several serious injuries but the most severe was damage to my spinal cord leaving me almost completely paralyzed from the waist down. After emergency surgery, I stayed in the ICU for 5 days. A week after my initial injury, I was transferred to the Shepherd Center in Atlanta and spent about three months in specialized inpatient rehabilitation and then continued intensive physical therapy for several months after. I returned to Auburn in the spring of 2017 and was determined to continue and complete my minor in dance as Auburn's first wheelchair dancer and my nursing degree no matter what it would take. The return to college life while balancing my recovery was challenging. I was accepted into Auburn's Nursing program and started in the summer of 2019 while still using the wheelchair for classes and clinicals. My injury and recovery has given me a unique perspective in the field of nursing. It not only helps me in my clinical practice, but also poses as an example to those around me. I strive to share and teach my experiences with my classmates in hopes that my knowledge may be helpful in their own clinical practice and that my image may be inspiration to others who face limitations in health care settings. My life changing injury has transformed me into feeling proud that I have the first-hand experience of what it is like to be the patient and the ability to be a teacher to those who do not.
In 2018, I got the chance to combine my two passions, fascination for the human body and dance. I was chosen to present my dance anatomy research project which focused on my spinal cord injury at the 2018 Auburn University Research Symposium. More recently, the story of my recovery and integration back into dance has been published in the Shepherd Center Spinal Column magazine, the Auburn Alumni magazine, and I was given the opportunity to share my story on the Auburn University School of Nursing Nurse Narrative podcast. I currently still use the wheelchair for classes, clinicals and long-distance traveling. However, my use and need for the chair is continuing to decrease as I have worked relentlessly toward building my endurance, strength, and ability through dance, yoga, independent exercise and many other forms of rehabilitation. I am humbled but beyond proud to stand where I am today as a wheelchair dancer making history at Auburn University and a student nurse with personal experience of what my patients are going through. Although there may be a possibility of some physical limitations I will face in my ability as a nurse, I am more confident in my ability to problem solve creatively, advocate for myself and others and my abilit