Introduction | Bree Seely

Last year, two days before Thanksgiving, I was life flighted to the UMC Hospital in Las Vegas, NV. I had fallen 25 feet off a cliff while I was hiking with my boyfriend. I landed feet first in gravel. The force of the fall rammed my legs upwards causing my L1 vertebrae to combust. The pieces of bone shot into my nerve cord, causing my legs to completely lose feeling. I thought I was paralyzed until a few minutes later when the feeling came back. It was like getting hit by lightning.... constantly. It wouldn't stop. Even amidst all the pain though, I was still grateful. I could feel them. I would walk again. My boyfriend had miraculously gotten enough cell service to call 911 and help was on their way. An ambulance arrived but we were too far out in the desert for it to make it. So a big truck came out and I was loaded into the back of it, wrapped on a board.

A helicopter flew out from Vegas, landed, and I was boarded. By this time I was in shock and my body wasn't responding very well. I remember the man in the helicopter was very calm and told me everything was going to be okay. It's funny how much you trust a stranger when your life is in their hands. I remember landing and being loaded onto a gurney, heading into the hospital... then I lost a couple days. The next thing I remember I was in ICU on Thanksgiving day. My family was all there, along with my boyfriend, his parents, and a few of my friends. I was so on drugs, I'd had major surgery performed on me about 12 hours before and I wasn't even sure where I was. It was the scariest, most traumatizing thing I've ever had to endure.

A day later I found out that during my surgery they had hit a lymphatic system and fluids had surrounded and collapsed my lung. You would think a person would notice if one of their lungs was deflated but I had no idea. A chest tube was put into my side to pump the lymphatic fluid out. Because of this I wasn't allowed to eat or drink anything for 5 days. It started out being a couple days. Then a couple more. Then a couple more. I ended up being in the hospital for two weeks. By then my legs had atrophied so badly it took all of my strength and two people on each side of me to walk to the bathroom, which was about 5 feet away from my bed. I pretty much had to learn to walk again, step by step. There was something wrong with my heart, they say it was stress from the trauma, but it would rocket to 160 bpm whenever I exerted any energy. The average persons heart rate is around 60. Needless to say this scared me a lot! It still happens from time to time but they did every test possible and said that my heart is fine.

Pretty much, this event in my life has almost solely created the person I am today. Sure my family and friends and all that made my personality, but this gave me perspective. I lost my legs, now I take advantage of them. I rejoice every time I walk, every time I run a little longer than a minute. I've learned to live life now, as it's happening because you never know when something crazy like falling off a cliff and breaking your back can change all of that. I was almost a paraplegic, I am so grateful now that I have the chance to change my life and to be stronger than I ever was. I don't get mad and ask "Why me?" I am grateful for this life changing experience to help me appreciate the good things in life. Now I know I can be strong.