The Will to Live

Though Charla says she's still the same person she was before the attack, there are things she misses. "I'm just sorry I can't spend more time with my daughter," she says. "I know she misses me. I miss her too." Seventeen-year-old Briana is a senior in high school and is living with friends in Stamford while her mother is in Ohio. 

When Briana visits her mother, Charla says they just enjoy being together. "We lay next to each other and we hold each other and we talk about things—what she does at school or with her friends." Next year, Briana will be heading off to college, which Charla says she's excited about. "I want her to have the best. I always wanted everything good for her." 

Despite her setbacks, Charla has dreams for her own future. "I'm not a candidate for a hand transplant because I have no eyesight," Charla says. "I'm hoping somewhere along the line I'll be evaluated and that maybe when I get a face transplant. The hand transplant will be done with it because they have to be done at the same time from the same donor." 

These days, Charla is working on getting up and walking around. "If I don't feel good, I still push myself to walk during the day," she says.