Episode 79

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Published on:

23rd Nov 2025

Hit by Two 18-Wheelers & Still Standing

In this episode of Survival Mode Disrupted, Leticia sits down with LaCole Smith, a woman who has literally survived what most of us only fear in our nightmares: being sandwiched between two 18-wheelers and told she might never walk again. LaCole shares how one ordinary day turned into a life-altering collision – the motor thrown out of the car, water splashed across her face making her believe she was covered in blood, and doctors warning that a sneeze, a wrong turn, or a fall could leave her permanently paralyzed. But her story doesn’t stop at the crash. We go deep into what it means to be a bedridden mother of four, stuck in a back brace, drowning in pain, injections, isolation, and fear – and still deciding, “Failure is not an option. My children need me. I’m getting up.” Today, LaCole is the CEO of AAL Publishing & Consulting, a one-stop shop for authors where she mentors, publishes, and even prints books in-house, helping others find and protect their voices the way she fought to protect her own.

🎙️ What We Talk About

  • The day everything changed: being hit by two 18-wheelers and realizing she survived what should’ve killed her
  • Confusion, panic, and thinking she was covered in blood when water splashed her face
  • The brutal medical reality: fractured back, damaged hip, back brace, injections, and the constant threat of paralysis
  • The mental & spiritual crash: depression, grief, feeling forgotten, and still praying anyway
  • The moment her mindset shifted from “why me?” to “this will NOT be my life”
  • How her father’s faith and words grounded her when her own strength was shaky
  • Sneaking out of bed to shuffle through the house because she refused to let the prognosis define her
  • Why she believes mindset + words + faith = an unstoppable force
  • The danger of letting other people’s fear and failure write your future
  • How she went from flat on her back to publishing and printing the stories of others through AAL Publishing & Consulting


🔑 Key Takeaways

“Anything we do NOT push through becomes a hindrance to our end goal.”
“If I had stayed in that bed and accepted what they said, I would not be who I am today.”
“Most people fail before they start because they let other people’s fear become their facts.”
“Sometimes there’s blessing in the fall – because getting up again is where you find your strength.”


💬 Connect with LaCole

  • Facebook (Personal): LaCole Smith
  • Facebook (Business): AAL Publishing and Consulting, LLC
  • Groups:
  • Motivational Talk Dialogues
  • Storytelling Unleashed (writing community)
  • Instagram: @author_lacolesmith
  • YouTube: AAL Publishing and Consulting



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About the Podcast

Survival Mode Disrupted with Leticia R Francis
Disruptive Unapologetic Conversations about Survival Mode
Survival Mode Disrupted is not just a podcast. It's a rebellion.

A raw, unfiltered space where we finally stop pretending we're fine and start telling the truth—the truth about the trauma we've carried, the identities they had to wear to survive, and the radical decisions we made to break free.

Because here's the deal: survival mode isn’t just a season. It’s a damn identity. One that so many were forced to adopt just to get through life, to stay safe, to stay needed, to stay sane. But eventually, it starts costing you more than it protects. Your peace. Your purpose. Your power.

This podcast is for the disruptors—the people who were told to stay small, stay silent, stay grateful for crumbs… and said “hell no.”

Hosted by Leticia, The Survival Mode Disruptor herself—a trauma recovery mentor, speaker, and woman who has lived through the fires of abuse, betrayal, and breakdown and still chose to rise—this show dives deep into the unapologetic exits from survival mode that no one talks about.

You’ll hear from women (and a few brave men) who walked away from toxic relationships, soul-sucking careers, generational dysfunction, religious trauma, cultural expectations, and the lies they were taught to believe about themselves. Not because it was easy—but because staying would’ve killed something sacred inside of them.

These are the stories of bold pivots, quiet courage, and messy but miraculous rebirths.

Each episode is a conversation—a disruption—meant to wake something up in you. Whether it’s a guest sharing the moment they chose themselves for the first time, or Leticia dropping a truth bomb that makes you question everything you’ve normalized, this podcast is here to shake the foundation of your survival mode identity and replace it with something truer. Something freer.

We’re not here for surface-level self-care tips or fake empowerment slogans.

We’re here to talk about what it really takes to:

Reclaim your voice after being silenced.

Reinvent yourself after being broken down.

Rewrite your story when everyone else wants you to stay the same.

Release the guilt of choosing YOU.

This is for those who are done performing. Done pleasing. Done pretending.

It’s for the ones ready to exit survival mode—not slowly, not quietly, but disruptively and unapologetically.

You won’t leave this podcast the same.
You’ll cry. You’ll rage. You’ll laugh.
You’ll see yourself in every story.
And more importantly, you’ll remember who the hell you are.

Welcome to Survival Mode Disrupted.
It’s not just a podcast.
It’s a movement.
And your exit begins here.

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About your host

Profile picture for Leticia Francis

Leticia Francis

I am not here to inspire you—I am here to activate you.

As a Survivor, Keynote Speaker, and Trauma Recovery Mentor, I know what it’s like to fight battles no one sees. I also know that breaking free is possible. My work is about disrupting survival mode, exposing trauma-driven success cycles, and giving women the blueprint to reclaim their lives.

🔹 200+ podcast features & speaking engagements
🔹 Global Women of Choice Award Winner 2022
🔹 Creator of the Survival Mode Exit Plan
🔹 Host of Survival Mode Disrupted Podcast