By Linda Scales
When Mehrak Hazaveh walked across the stage to accept her law diploma at uOttawa’s convocation on June 12, anyone watching would not be aware of her hidden injuries. However, they’re a true testimony to her courage, resilience and perseverance. This was a moment that almost never happened.
Iranian-born Mehrak began law school in 2011. However, within a few months of starting classes, a car accident in Ottawa derailed her plans to study in the combined JD-MA program in international affairs in French. The accident left her with a broken back and leg (in two places), a serious concussion and multitude of smaller injuries.
Supported
Alone in Canada, her family overseas and unable to come to her, Mehrak felt lost. She found strong support from friends, neighbours and acquaintances, including Amanda Turnbull, assistant dean of common law, who informed her of the faculty’s decision to hold her spot in the program for two years. “I’ll be grateful to her for the rest of my life,” Mehrak says.
Unfortunately, the seriousness of her injuries meant even that wouldn’t be enough time.
Mehrak’s recovery in the hospital took more than a year, followed by an additional nine months in a private nursing home, the last place she ever expected to be living. “In the beginning, it was very tough, but it was also an interesting experience,” she says. It had an unexpected silver lining: she was able to offer companionship to the older residents and teach them things such as how to use Skype. In return, she “learned stuff I couldn’t learn elsewhere, like what’s important at that age. It helped me.”
“I never thought I’d return to law school,” says Mehrak, who began her studies again in 2013, when she was well enough. This time, it was to the English-language program. Her accident had stripped her of her French-language abilities, although her other four languages (Farsi, Spanish, Swedish and English) were unaffected! She doesn’t understand why, although she admits she has severe memory problems in general from the concussion.
Accommodations
“The Access Service gave me a lot of help,” says Mehrak. “I got accommodations for extra time to write exams,” for example, to help her cope with her ever-present chronic pain, PTSD and anxiety. She was unable to study full time, so couldn’t return to the JD-MA program, because it wasn’t offered part time.
Her worst experience at uOttawa was in a contract law exam. After returning from a break (an accommodation arranged for her) to get some food and painkillers, Mehrak didn’t have a clue about how much she’d already written despite knowing the answer to the question. “I only had 45 minutes left,” she says, remembering the four- to five-hour exam and her feelings of panic. She chose to skim through her answers in her completed booklets and then write like crazy. “I passed the course,” Mehrak says, but there were consequences. “After that, every time I had exams I feared I would get panic attacks.”
Despite the challenges of the past six years, Mehrak is positive about her future. She’s considering a career in immigration law, an area she experienced briefly as a volunteer with the Refugee Sponsorship Support Program. And despite her ongoing health challenges, she likes the person she’s become.
“For me, law school was about being given a second chance that I never thought I would ever get,” says Mehrak. “I never cared about getting A+ or getting the best marks. I went to class and I just enjoyed it!”