Yahoo Finance 'Great Pottery Throw Down' hopeful Adam opens up about car accident
The Great Pottery Throw Down hopeful Adam has told how working with clay helped him recover after a car accident that left him with broken legs, brain damage and post traumatic stress disorder.
Adam was knocked down by a car more than 10 years ago and spent 18 months in a wheelchair before learning to walk again.
Sharing a picture of himself in hospital after the accident, Adam told his followers on Instagram that it was of “the most defining moment of my past”.
Watch: uPaint Pottery Studio gets creative during pandemic restrictions
Read more: Everything you need to know about The Great Pottery Throw Down
He also told how making pottery had helped him because he could “put all the angst, pain, drama and anxiety of recovery into the clay”.
“It’s the anniversary of when I was run over and became the me I am today,” he wrote.
“Same Adam but a bit different, slightly past my best and would probs need a yellow sale sticker if I was a yogurt.
“I broke both my legs in several places, smashed most of my teeth, broke my nose and had some brain damage for a while too, PTSD, panic attacks, anxiety and amnesia.
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“It was an awful time for me and my family, amnesia is a scary thing for everyone and being in a wheelchair or 18 months is tough. I was able to eventually learn to walk again and have rebuilt a life. I’m more patient, understanding and value the simple things in life much, much more.”
He went on: “Clay has been a pivotal part of my recovery as it is creative and comforting and each time you make something you feel a sense of achievement.
"Clay gave me a focus and a meaning, there are no wrong answers in clay craft as everything you make is an extension of yourself.
“For me I could put all the angst, pain, drama and anxiety of recovery into the clay. I could mourn my old dreams and physically build new ones.”
The potter added: “This picture is probably the most defining moment of my past and clay truly helped me survive it all."
Adam said being on Pottery Throw Down – which sees home potters strive to create their most imaginative pieces – "makes it all feel like it was in some way meant to be".
"So hopefully being in The Great Pottery Throw Down 2021 alumni with all the fab experiences and new friends I’ve met is hopefully going to be a defining moment for my future," he said.
“Who knows what will happen next for me?"
Watch: The Great Pottery Throw Down trailer
