Not many people on this earth can say they were shot point-blank in the head and lived to tell the tale.
But for Australian domestic violence survivor Rosanna Robertson, 35, it has been her tragic story for nearly a decade.
The mother-of-one was shot in the head at age 25 by her schizophrenic ex-partner Damien George, 24, in October of 2007 after an argument outside a pub in West Ryde, Sydney.
‘It’s funny, I felt no pain and I thought: “Did he just shoot me?”‘ Rosanna told FEMAIL.
Rosanna Robertson (pictured) was 25 when she was shot in the head by her ex-partner in 2007
The yoga teacher managed to drag herself to a security guard who called her an ambulance
‘He shot me point-blank in the brain and the bullet just exploded. I was lying on the ground for about two-and-a-half hours just focusing on my breathing.’
The former gymnast has previously credited her love of yoga for saving her life that day.
‘I, very luckily, had the yoga tools, and focussed on my breathing, and went into a meditative state,’ she previously told the Northern Star.
Leaving her in the carpark to die, George fled, and Rosanna mustered up every last bit of strength to drag herself across the ground to alert a security guard.
‘I began to feel pressure on my head, my brain was shutting down, so I knew I didn’t have much time left, so I began to commando crawl slowly.
Despite the bullet lodging into her cerebellum, Rosanna miraculously survived, but was put into an induced coma for 10 days and spent another three months in the ICU
‘I’d crawled onto a laneway with the hope a car would see me. A man called Ray found me.’
Despite the bullet lodging into her cerebellum, Rosanna miraculously survived, but was put into an induced coma for 10 days and spent another three months in the ICU.
Outside the hospital walls, George was jailed for 11 years for the horrific attack – but Rosanna’s nightmare was far from over.
‘I thought I’d be able to just get up and walk but where I was shot in the brain pretty much meant I couldn’t walk or talk at all,’ she said.
‘I thought I’d be able to just get up and walk but where I was shot in the brain pretty much meant I couldn’t walk or talk at all,’ she said
‘It was like the middle man between my brain and my muscles had disappeared and while my mind was fully functional, my body just wasn’t listening.’
The formerly athletic woman found it hard to lose her independence as she was forced to learn to walk all over again.
Doctors warned her she would never have the full functions of her brain again, and the young mother was determined the defy the odds and prove everyone wrong.
Since the unspeakable crime, Rosanna has relied on a walking frame and has only recently upgraded to a walking stick to help her along.
Her son, who was only six when she was shot, is now a healthy, loving 16-year-old boy who Rosanna describes as her ‘rock’.
‘He is just my rock and my motivation. I just want to be there for him,’ she explains.
Doctors warned her she would never have the full functions of her brain again, and the young mother was determined the defy the odds and prove everyone wrong (pictured with Ray Martin)
Since the unspeakable crime, Rosanna has relied on a walking frame and has only recently upgraded to a walking stick to help her along
The heartbreak, anguish and physical pain following a gunshot to the head has been indescribable for Rosanna, but the one-woman warrior says she is now ‘content’ with her life.
‘I am happy now. It has taken me 10 years to get this far,’ Rosanna said.
‘I’ve also met my soulmate, who is the complete opposite to all the bad men out there.’
Speaking about the tough subject of domestic violence, Rosanna says she now wishes she had noticed the ‘red flags’ in her relationship which ultimately led to the final act of depravity.
‘I didn’t learn about the red flags until after I was shot, I felt like I couldn’t leave him because he had a mental illness,’ adds Rosanna.
‘I initially thought: “It’s finally happened, I’m free”. I was a silly girl.
Speaking about the tough subject of domestic violence, Rosanna says she now wishes she had noticed the ‘red flags’ in her relationship which ultimately led to the final act of depravity
But I was never angry at the man who shot me. I was more angry at myself.’
Instead of wallowing in grief and anger, Rosanna has chosen to spend September helping those with conditions like herself.
Fundraising for brain injury charity Sidetember, she will live some of her day doing simple tasks we often take for granted – like talking, texting, eating, getting dressed – as a person with a brain injury has to.
Money raised will be shared between Brain Injury Australia’s advocacy efforts and sustaining Royal Rehab’s Return2Sport program.
Rosanna’s former partner will be eligible for parole in March 2019.