Abigail Zwerner, the Virginia teacher who was seriously wounded when police say a 6-year-old student intentionally shot her during class, says her recovery remains grueling.
Zwerner, speaking publicly for the first time in an interview to air Tuesday on the “TODAY” show, said she faces “obstacles and challenges” following multiple surgeries after being shot in her left hand and upper chest. Her occupational therapy appointments have also left her physically and mentally exhausted, she told “TODAY” co-anchor Savannah Guthrie.
“Some days are not so good days, where I can’t get up out of bed. Some days are better than others, where I’m able to get out of bed and make it to my appointments,” said Zwerner, 25, with her left hand bandaged after a recent fourth surgery to help a bone that was severely damaged.
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The physical scars are healing, she said, including a wound on the side of her body where doctors inserted a chest tube after her lung collapsed.
“But, you know, for going through what I’ve gone through, I try to stay positive,” said Zwerner, a first-grade teacher at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News. “You know, try to have a positive outlook on what’s happened and where my future’s heading.”
Zwerner was praised for her handling of the shooting, in which she escorted about 20 students to safety. She was hospitalized for nearly two weeks.
She said in an interview with NBC News on Monday that she still doesn’t have full function of her left hand, making the most simple tasks, such as making a fist, opening a water bottle and getting dressed, extremely difficult. She said her doctors are still uncertain about whether she will be able to use her hand like before.
“Physical therapy is not only physically exhausting but mentally exhausting as well. I’m supposed to be moving them once every hour, throughout the hour,” she said of her fingers, “just…
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