Katie Stubblefield’s sense of humor truly shines when she talks about her experiences with face transplant surgery.
She once quipped, “It was the longest nap of my entire life.”
For those not familiar with Katie’s still – evolving speech style, such words might not be immediately understandable. However, her parents are usually there to offer explanations. Since Katie, who was just 18 at the time, sustained severe facial injuries and significant complications from a self – inflicted gunshot wound on March 25, 2014, Robb and Alesia Stubblefield have been by her side, helping her “take four steps forward, two steps back,” as Robb puts it.
Katie became the recipient of the Cleveland Clinic’s third face transplant and the institution’s first full – face transplant. This complex procedure required the coordinated efforts of eleven surgeons and other specialists.
At the age of 21, Katie underwent the face transplant, making her the youngest person in the United States to have received such a procedure.