I Survived Burns Over 65 Percent Of My Body With The Love Of A Boyfriend Who Stood By My Side

All of my confidence and self-belief was ripped away from me when I was trapped in a grass fire during the 2011 Kimberly Ultra Marathon -– receiving burns to 65 percent of my total body surface area.

The fire engulfed me. When I first woke up a month later in hospital, I didn’t actually realize the extent of my injuries. I spent six months in the hospital, where I couldn’t do anything for myself. I couldn’t feed myself, I couldn’t brush my hair and I couldn’t even take myself to the bathroom. Depression sunk in because I was an ultra-athlete and now I couldn’t even walk a single step. I realised that to get through this I would have to readjust my goals. I would have to be content with achieving the little things. Taking a single step. Climbing a stair. Raising my arms. As Rodger Halston once said: “When you work on the little things, big things happen.”

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