You won’t come across too many people in your lifetimes like Elaine Gomez and her daughter, Michelle DeMont.

And you probably won’t come across anyone who has died, or nearly died, as many times as Michelle.

Today, Michelle lives every day battling multiple chronic conditions that cause excruciating pain, including rheumatoid arthritis (RA), fibromyalgia, and complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS).

Their inspiring saga started 17 years ago in a nondescript parking lot. As Michelle, then 19, walked across the lot to work, a car traveling 30 mph slammed into her. She suffered traumatic brain injury (TBI) and barely clung to life.

She credits Elaine’s unwavering motherly love and support for the fact that she now has Master’s degrees in both Sociology and Criminology, along with a degree in small business management. At the time of the accident, Elaine had a successful business, was married, and was helping to raise her husband’s two step-children.

But Michelle needed her mother’s care 24/7, and Elaine gladly dedicated every moment to caring for her daughter. Ultimately, Elaine’s dedication to Michelle cost her both her marriage and her business.

Elaine fiercely contradicted doctors who told her that Michelle would only ever have about 40% brain function, so she should be relegated to a nursing home. Over the course of her rehabilitation, Michelle had more surgeries than she likes to count. During one surgery, she coded and was gone for 11 minutes, incurring further brain damage.

But thanks to their fighting spirit and mutual love, the duo has managed not only to survive, but to thrive.

Together, the mother and daughter now run the Soul Fighter Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to meeting the needs of the disabled community and their families. Every day, they, and the community they serve, prove that love really can conquer all.

To read more about these two inspiring women, see this recent article in The National Pain Report and visit the Soul Fighter website.