Sacramento State nursing professor Joyce Mikal-Flynn wrote about how she turned the tragedy of dying and coming back to life into triumph in her book titled “Turning Tragedy into Triumph.”

At the age of 35, Mikal-Flynn drowned and went through 22 minutes of CPR before she came back to life.

As a nurse practitioner, her medical nursing background and her personal experience led her to think about her own recovery and the recovery of other people.

“I was very interested in that aspect of human behavior, so I entered doctoral studies to really look at that in earnest and see what was the impetus, or what caused somebody to go from a very crisis traumatic state to ultimately surviving and then thriving,” Mikal-Flynn said.

In her book, Mikal-Flynn wrote about her experience and about others who went through similar situations.

“I think the beauty of the book is that it doesn’t focus on one traumatic event,” Mikal-Flynn said. “It focuses on multiple traumatic events, including breast cancer to major trauma, to PTSD to a spinal cord injury.”

The book also includes stories from a woman who fell from a 30-foot cliff and later climbed Mount Shasta, a survivor from drugs and alcoholism who now has a productive life and a dentist who had a diving accident, was paralyzed and recovered.

The timing for writing the book could not have been better, she said.

“I see people a lot who are really tired of the victim role or being victimized and they want to take hold of their life,” Mikal-Flynn said.

The classes she teaches include NURS 143 – leadership and management in nursing practice – in which she helps nurses work with people to focus on their personal growth and healing.

“A lot of times as nurses they work in the hospital and somebody’s just been injured, but I try to talk about what’s the next step and how to set them up for ultimate success in the long term,” Mikal-Flynn said.

Mikal-Flynn also teaches NURS 168, a course about the brain and gender-related differences where she discusses how to enhance your own brain health and overcome an injury.

Mikal-Flynn will be talking to Sac State coaches to help athletes recover from injuries and said she has been in contact with the director of The Well to help college students.

“I am going to start working in those directions, specifically (with) students who have gone through some pretty significant trauma, either prior to coming here or even when here,” Mikal-Flynn said.

Mikal-Flynn said she also hopes to start working with the veterans on campus.

“You just really see how once they grasp and accept what has happened, how that can generate really profound growth in them,” Mikal-Flynn said. “Instead of this situations being obstacles or hindrances, they really can turn those around and they move forward in really big ways.”

Mikal-Flynn said she has been pleased with students’ feedback about her book because it has opened a new reality for them.

“Some of my students stay after class and talk to me about the book and how much it not only helped them or they gave it to a family member who needed some help,” Mikal-Flynn said.

Junior pre-nursing major Brittany Unutoa is a current student in the brain and gender-related differences course Mikal-Flynn teaches and she has read the book.

“I felt really motivated by her,” said Unutoa. “Sometimes I get little things in my life that are not that serious and I do not know how I can go on and then I heard (about her experience).”

Unutoa said she knows someone who recently went through a cardiac arrest and someone who lost her young daughter because of a violent crime.

“It is great that she can be here to teach us and just be a role model for everyone who might have something similar to what she went through or know someone that has,” Unutoa said.

Unutoa said she recommended the book to friends.

“It is one of those books you can’t put down,” Unutoa said. “It doesn’t matter if you have gone through something like that or know (someone). It is a great book to read.”

Mikal-Flynn said she would like to write a second book, but this time focus on the family members and friends of those who suffered a traumatic experience.

“They may not have had the direct injury but their lives have changed too,” Mikal-Flynn said. “I think I would also like to look at people who were not quite suc- cessful and compare my findings.”

Mikal-Flynn said drowning and dying for minutes made her embrace that experience as a gift and it also helped her understand the meaning of life.

“I think in all honesty, it sounds odd but I am very glad that it happened because it did allow me to better myself, it allowed me to understand life, appreciate people relationships and what I have at a much deeper level,” said Mikal-Flynn. “As Lance Armstrong said, ‘It’s the best thing that ever happened to me, but I never want to go through that again.’”

Leticia Lopez can be reached at l[email protected]