There are two kinds of people in the world: those who call themselves "paranoid" for always thinking that something bad could happen to them, and those who believe "it would never happen to me."
TikToker DeAnn Saenz of @dsaenz94 on TikTok was a member of the latter group after a lifetime of never getting into a car accident or even breaking a bone.
While on a trip to see her grandmother, Saenz did the same thing that she usually did when her husband was driving: she stretched her legs and put her feet up on the dashboard.
Coincidentally, a few months before this drive she'd seen a TikTok by "Lauren the Scarred Mortician" advising people not to put their feet up on the dashboard of the car as it would surely worsen their injuries or likelihood of death in the event of a car accident. Saenz listened to this advice for a bit but then went back to her old habits.
Back to putting her feet on the dash, Saenz was in a car crash with her husband over Labor Day weekend in which she woke up lying "on the ceiling" of her husband's car. One of her feet was stuck between the dashboard and a portion of the windshield that was not broken, her other foot was broken, and she had multiple other severe injuries, including a C2 cervical break in her spine.
Saenz took this experience as a sign to not take life for granted and to also understand that events like a car accident very realistically can happen to anyone, even to people like her who previously believed they wouldn't.
Saenz got back onto TikTok after more than two years away from the platform to share her story and to share the following public service announcement (PSA): Do not ride with your feet propped up on the dashboard.
You can watch that video here:
In a follow-up video, Saenz offered a similar announcement, encouraging people to not drive above the speed limit, as it might save a life. She shared that she had been told that if her husband had been driving any faster, she likely would have died instead of suffering from her series of injuries.
You can watch that video here:
Many appreciated Saenz sharing the safety tip for those who might not know.
@dsaenz94/TikTok
@dsaenz94/TikTok
@dsaenz94/TikTok
@dsaenz94/TikTok
@dsaenz94/TikTok
But most were more just happy that Saenz and her husband were okay.
@dsaenz94/TikTok
@dsaenz94/TikTok
@dsaenz94/TikTok
@dsaenz94/TikTok
@dsaenz94/TikTok
There's a lot to learn from Saenz's short series of videos so far, and she's promised that more are coming as she continues to heal and go through physical therapy.
But the most important takeaway is to practice proper safety precautions and to be grateful for the life we have because our time here is not permanent.
And perhaps as Saenz and her fellow TikTokers have said, "Always do what the Mortician Lady says."
Jane Rosenberg
Jane Rosenberg
@arianagrande/Instagram
@arianagrande/Instagram