With Friday marking the six month anniversary of a devastating car crash that left her teenaged daughter paralyzed, a Santa Clarita mother is looking back on her family’s journey of recovery.

On January 28, 18-year-old Kaeli Edmonds was driving home on Vasquez Canyon Road around 9 p.m. when she lost control of her car. Kaeli’s spinal cord was severed in the resulting crash, leaving her paralyzed from the chest down, with no use of her hands.

“I was just looking back on the photos from when she was in the ICU, and seeing how far she’s come,” Deanna Thorpe, Kaeli’s mom, told KHTS on Friday. “I think of how it could have had a different outcome, and I’m just so thankful that I still get to see her every day and laugh with her and kiss her.”

Related: Santa Clarita Teen Paralyzed In Crash Comes Home, Family’s Struggle Continues

Over the last six months, Deanna has been at Kaeli’s side through her emergency surgery at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital, her transfer to the spinal cord injury rehab Craig Hospital in Colorado, and the difficult transition back home in May.

“It feels like a short amount of time, but really it’s been half of a year already,” Deanna said, noting the six month anniversary of the crash is a significant date for the entire family, including Kaeli’s three siblings.

One of the biggest hurdles Kaeli has overcome during her recovery is the respiratory issues she faced as a result of the crash. After her right lung collapsed and she developed pneumonia, Kaeli had to be on a ventilator for 56 days.

“There was a time where I thought she was going to be ventilator-dependant forever,” Deanna recalled. “That was her biggest struggle in the beginning.”

Kaeli’s ventilator was taken out during her time at Craig Hospital, and the hope remains she will never need it again. Recent chest x-rays showed her lungs look “perfect,” according to her mother.

However, Kaeli has a new mountain to climb after being rushed to the emergency room with a condition known as autonomic dysreflexia (AD), a dangerous complication of spinal cord injury caused by a problem in a part of the body without feeling.

“There can still be pain or something going on below her injury level that’s causing her body pain, but because she can’t feel it, what happens is the body finds different ways to send signals that something’s not right,” Deanna explained.

Though Kaeli was exhibiting almost all of the symptoms of AD, her doctors weren’t able to pinpoint what was triggering it, leaving Deanna with no choice but to remain “vigilant” in monitoring her daughter for another AD episode.

In the midst of Kaeli’s continued struggle with her recovery — including a heart condition diagnosis and low blood pressure, — she has managed to finish one out of the three remaining classes of her senior year at Vasquez High School, and is continuing to master the range of movement she still has in her arms and wrists.

“She can brush her own teeth and she can still do her own makeup, and she’s getting really good at it,” Deanna said.

While Kaeli still hasn’t felt ready to see most of her friends, a few of her best friends have started appearing at the house, helping lift Kaeli’s spirits and give her a sense of normalcy.

Related: Santa Clarita Teen Paralyzed In Crash Stays Strong Through First 60 Days Of Rehab

“There’s certain friends that you just can’t keep away — they just love her so much that they need to see her,” Deanna said with a laugh. “I think when they leave to go do normal teenage stuff … that’s kind of hard for Kaeli. I see in her eyes she just wants to go with them, but it’s definitely helped seeing her friends. They give her something that I can’t give her.”

The Thorpe family is still waiting on state assistance to help cover the cost of a caregiver for Kaeli — which Deanna was so desperate for, she started paying out of pocket for four hours a day — and is asking the community for continued support through a GoFundMe page that has raised just over $20,000 so far.

“I’m stuck in paperwork and loopholes and waiting for approvals,” Deanna said. “We still really do need help with donations… I’ve used most of the GoFundMe and the donations to pay for the help, and obviously for her medical expenses, and I don’t foresee me being able to go back to work anytime soon.”

One weight off Deanna’s shoulders has been the promise of a donation of a handicap-accessible van — which will allow for Kaeli to be transported in her power chair — from a local couple whose daughter has had a spinal cord injury for 30 years.

“It’s just amazing how generous they are to donate (the van) to us without any strings attached or anything,” Deanna said. “And the fact that they’ve been doing this for 30 years just reaffirms that I’m not alone and it’s possible — I can give Kaeli a great quality of life.”

To donate to the Thorpe family for Kaeli’s care and medical expenses, click here to visit her GoFundMe page.

All photos courtesy of Deanna Thorpe.