Having a mother like mine makes it impossible for me to not know of the band Def Leppard and most of their songs as she is, in my opinion, their biggest fan. After seeing them in concert at the Minnesota State Fair a few years ago, I was beyond shocked to know the drummer had only one arm. Ever since that concert, I have been inspired and touched by his story and continue to look up to Rick Allen when I find myself feeling hopeless.

The one thing that is more inspiring than Rick Allen’s physical recovery from a horrific car accident that cost him his left arm is the fact that the Def Leppard drummer fought and defeated the mental torment to return to the stage on Aug, 6, 1986. To this day, Allen is taking the time to teach people around the world how to overcome the challenges that come along on the path to recovery.

Dec. 31, 1984. While speeding down a country road near Sheffield, England, Allen mistook an upcoming turn and took his Corvette through a stone wall and into a field. After the car had flipped multiple times with his seat belt betraying him, he was ejected from the vehicle.

“I left the car and landed in a field, and I think my arm was left in the car,” Allen told the BBC’s “Fighting Back’ in 1992. His body going into shock could very well be what saved his life, as he claims it prevented massive blood loss. A woman who lived close by was among the first to arrive to the scene and packed his arm with ice.

After reattaching the limb, the doctors had to remove it once again when gangrene had set in. The drummer says he was never struck with the recognition of never drumming again. “It wasn’t something that just hit me, ‘Oh, my arm’s gone.’ It was over a two- or three-week period that I actually realized that the whole thing was gone.”

To lift his spirits, his brother brought in a stereo to his hospital room. This did not work at first, as it was a reminder of the talent that he considered as lost. Rick Allen joined Def Leppard at the young age of 15. Six years later, he was looking uncertainty in the eyes after losing one arm and the other badly broken. In order to keep him from sliding down off the bed, they put a big piece of foam at the bottom of the hospital bed, which he could press his feet against and push himself up when he needed to. After a few days of listening to the music, Allen realized he could play quite a lot of the parts from some of his favorite songs with just his feet.

Rick Allen returned to the stage for the first time since the accident 20 months later at the Monsters of Rock festival at Castle Donington. He was welcomed back with such excitement that to this day caused him to tear up.

Allen started the Raven Drum Foundation, a nonprofit that works to inspire others who need encouragement during their share of tragedy and hopelessness. The foundation is known for working closely with wounded war veterans and military members, and offers free tickets to every Def Leppard concert.