The ‘Today Effect’: How surviving trauma gave one coach new purpose
After a devastating accident nearly took his life, former coach Tim Chiarolanza found a new mission: helping fellow survivors by embracing the power of today.
In November 2021, Tim Chiarolanza, 36, was walking his dog in Williamsport when the leash broke. Without a second thought, the former Lycoming College head strength and conditioning coach gave chase — right into a busy street.
Mr. Chiarolanza saved his pet. But he was hit by a car traveling 40 miles per hour. The impact left him bleeding profusely and not breathing.
Bystanders called 911, and a paramedic made a critical on-site decision to perform a tracheotomy — a procedure he’d never done before. It was the first in a chain of lifesaving actions that day.
Mr. Chiarolanza was airlifted to the Level 1 trauma center Geisinger Medical Center in Danville. His injuries were catastrophic: a ruptured aorta, a separated pelvis, a collapsed left lung and multiple broken bones.
His surgical team, led by head of surgery Denise Torres, MD, worked tirelessly, performing complex procedures that kept Mr. Chiarolanza alive. Then, 3 days later, his brain began to bleed and swell, revealing a traumatic brain injury. He spent the next three-and-a-half weeks comatose in the Geisinger ICU.
A new kind of recovery
When Mr. Chiarolanza finally woke up, his journey was just beginning.
“I was essentially a newborn at 32,” he recalls. With the support of his wife, family and a dedicated team of Geisinger therapists, he relearned how to walk, talk and perform simple daily tasks.
The competitive mindset that had made him a successful coach now fueled his recovery. He approached every physical therapy session like an athlete training for the most important game of his life. But his brain injury continued to present the biggest, most frustrating challenge.
“I know my brain injury is there 24/7,” he explains. “It’s an invisible injury. If you saw me in the street, you’d never know what I’ve been through.”
The Today Effect
Today, 4 years after the accident, Mr. Chiarolanza considers himself about 85% recovered. He’s back in the gym and has found a powerful new calling. He started the Triumph in Recovery Foundation to support other trauma and brain injury survivors and their families, providing resources and community. He serves as a peer mentor to help others in similar situations.
His experience also gave him a new philosophy he calls “The Today Effect.” It’s a conscious, daily practice of focusing on the present moment and finding gratitude in it.
“I was young, I was healthy. I took great care of myself. I thought tomorrow was going to keep coming for a while,” Mr. Chiarolanza says. “And then this happened, and tomorrow was almost taken away.”
The Today Effect is a structured practice built on 4 daily "anchors." First, Mr. Chiarolanza identifies 1 reason why today is important. Second, he decides on 1 action he can take to make the day great. Third, he focuses on presence, consciously working to stay in the moment. The final anchor is connection: choosing 1 person to connect with, whether it’s a fellow survivor, a friend or family.
Melissa A. Hlavaty, an adult trauma program case manager at Geisinger who worked closely with Mr. Chiarolanza, says it’s this dedication to connecting with and helping others that stands out most.
“No brain injury is ever the same — which is why it’s so special to see patients come back,” Ms. Hlavaty says. “Watching Tim building a full life while adapting to long-term deficits is exactly what we hope for.”
She sees Mr. Chiarolanza’s mission as a powerful extension of his own healing process. “He’s trying to get people to realize that where you are now is not going to be where you are tomorrow. It’s small steps,” she says.
For Mr. Chiarolanza, who also sits on the board of the American Trauma Society Pennsylvania Division and frequently lectures about his recovery, ongoing connection with his Geisinger care team is a powerful reminder of where he’s been and who made his new life possible.
“The fact that I'm still in communication with them, and they want to help with everything that I'm doing, is a testament to how incredible the organization really is,” he says. “I am alive today because of Geisinger.”
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