In 2007 Carmen Tarleton’s now-imprisoned ex husband attacked her and doused her with industrial strength lye, causing more than 80% of her body to be burned. Her face was completely ravaged and scarred. She lost complete sight in one eye and partial sight in the other and feared spending the rest of her days being disfigured and introduced with disclaimers like “these images may be disturbing.” But this morning the 44-year old mother of two revealed her new face as surgeons at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital successfully completed a face transplant.
Dr. Bohdan Pomahac, who is the director of the burn unit at B&W, first performed the groundbreaking surgery in 2011 and suggested the same for Tarleton. However, according to CNN, “It took about 14 months — an unusually long time — to find a donor, because she had so many antibodies in her immune system built up from the blood transfusions and surgeries used to treat her injuries.” Tarleton is now the fifth person to receive a face transplant.
Nevertheless after more than 50 surgeries, a 15-hour operation, and one medically induced coma, Tarleton courageously took on the media this morning in a press conference that displayed her resilience, optimism, and light-hearted personality.
Accompanied by the face donor’s daughter and Pomahac, Tarleton said “I have been on this incredible journey for the past six years and receiving this wonderful gift ends this chapter of my life. What a great way to move forward with what life has for me now.”
Back in March, Tarleton published a book called “Overcome: Burned, Blinded and Blessed” in hopes of speaking not only to abuse victims, but to serve as inspiration for anyone and everyone. In it she discusses how she met her husand, how she may have experienced a premonition of something tragic happening to her, and how she coached herself to optimism.
Since the devastating attack by her estranged ex–who is now serving a 30 to 70 year sentence–Tarleton was forced to quit her job as a nurse but appeared on the daytime talk show Dr. Phil after which she received various private donations to help pay for what I imagine are innumerous medical bills.
Being jobless and blind might be all one could bear and enough for one to quit the good fight, but Tarleton did just the opposite. Still marred from the attack, she took up piano lessons near her home in Vermont and, as the cliche goes, unexpectedly fell in love. Sheldon Stein now serves along side Tarleton’s family and friends as a chief support system.
