One year after the tragic Las Vegas shooting at the Route 91 Harvest Festival, survivors from Santa Clarita looked back on their first year of recovery and shared with KHTS how their lives have changed since that fateful night on Oct. 1, 2017.

Dominica Zeolla — who suffered a gunshot wound to her back, fractured her spine and ribs and had her lungs fill with blood as a result — still deals with the physical impact of her extensive injuries every day.

Zeolla noted her ribs and back remain numb, and she has physical therapy every one to two weeks to help keep her body “movable.”

Dominica Zeolla

“(The recovery process) is going to be probably for the rest of my life,” Zeolla said. “It’s day-in and day-out. It’s like a reminder of the situation, just because of the pain of it.”

Despite her daily physical challenges, Zeolla noted that she is slowly getting back into her work as a real estate agent in Santa Clarita, and leans on her friends, family and therapist for emotional support.

Related: Las Vegas Shooting: Santa Clarita Victim Dominica Zeolla Out Of ICU

“I think my No. 1 thing is staying close to my friends that were involved in getting me out of the venue,” she said. “They have their day-in and day-out struggles too, so we all kind of just stay connected.”

While she has “good days” and “bad days” when it comes to dealing with her emotional trauma, Zeolla tries to appreciate every day and enjoy being with her loved ones as much as possible.

“That’s how we kind of look at it now, is just enjoying life with each other, taking in those small moments and really just appreciating the life that we have,” she said. “It really puts it into perspective when you almost lose your life, and it makes you just try to appreciate everything.”

Zeolla encouraged any other Las Vegas shooting survivors in need of support to reach out to her via the Instagram handle @dominicazeolla.

“If anybody ever feels the need to reach out to me, or anybody, just for support, I’m totally open to connecting with different survivors,” she said. “(It’s a) community of support.”

Brandon White, a Canyon High School grad who had relocated to Arizona to become a state trooper after also working as a firefighter and deputy sheriff, was struck by gunfire in the leg during the Las Vegas shooting while trying to shield others.

Because White was left with significant nerve damage after the ankle and foot reconstruction surgery needed to repair his injuries, he has been unable to return to his job.

Brandon White

“Currently I’m going through the medical retirement process with law enforcement, so unfortunately (I) lost the career,” White said, adding that physically, he is “completely not the same anymore.”

“I still have some trouble walking and just doing normal tasks,” he continued. “My foot is basically dead, so I can’t feel most of it.”

Related: Las Vegas Shooting: Two More Victims From Santa Clarita Recovering From Injuries

White noted he was already dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder before the concert, as six months prior, his police car had been struck by a semi-truck on the interstate, leaving him with a brain injury.

These challenges, combined with the emotional trauma of the Las Vegas shooting and having no choice but to end his career in law enforcement, have made the last year “real tough,” affecting White in ways he said he didn’t even realize at times.

With everything White has gone through in the last year and a half, he said he has gained new friends as a result, but also lost relationships during the process.

“I gained some good friends, but there were people who I really thought were close friends of mine, but they’re not. Basically they completely abandoned me when I needed help,” he said, encouraging the community to “be there” for their friends and loved ones who are struggling.

“It’s not all about having parties and being there for the fun times,” White added. “Be a good friend when they need a good friend.”

Susie LaPorte sustained gunshot wounds in her neck and upper torso and broke her shoulder during the Las Vegas shooting, leaving her unable to breathe without a ventilator for more than a week.

Though she graduated from physical and occupational therapy earlier this year, LaPorte noted that her recovery has been slow.

Susie LaPorte

“I’ve had to learn how to have patience,” she said, recalling a time period when nerve damage and numbness in her hands prevented her from even lifting a glass cup. To this day, LaPorte still experiences this numbness in her hands, shoulder and back.

“It’s just always a reminder, the physical (challenges),” LaPorte said. “There’s not a day that goes by, not one day that goes by that I do not think or talk about what happened.”

Related: Las Vegas Shooting: Santa Clarita Survivor Susie LaPorte Shares Series Of Small Miracles That Ultimately Saved Her Life (VIDEO)

Despite these physical challenges, LaPorte continued that recovering from the emotional trauma of the Las Vegas shooting has been the hardest.

She said she seems to struggle the most when she finds the courage to go out at night, and if she sees a crowd or gathering of people. Suddenly “something clicks” in her head and she will begin anxiously scanning the crowd for potential threats, looking for exit signs and planning a potential escape.

“I have to talk to myself to make my anxiety level go down,” LaPorte said. “No matter where I am, I’m always preparing myself of what am I going to do, where am I going to go.”

Knowing the one-year anniversary of the Las Vegas shooting was coming up has had an impact on LaPorte emotionally as well.

“With the year anniversary coming up, I have so much anxiety,” LaPorte said. “I’ve been so weepy and crying. I’ve just been sad I guess — anything really sets me off. Even 9/11. That was so hard for me that week; it just brought back so much.”

As LaPorte continues with her recovery process, she expressed her gratitude for the support of her friends, family and the entire Santa Clarita community.

“I really do want to thank the community,” she said. “I want to thank my friends and family for their support and all the love and care. I’m hoping and I know that one day, it will get better for me. I just don’t know when.”

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