Woman who beat paralysis takes on London Marathon

A woman who feared she would not walk again after she was paralysed below the neck has said she will "give it my all" when she takes part in the London Marathon this weekend.

In 2020, Stevie O'Brien from Rotherham was diagnosed with a rare condition where the immune system attacks the body's nerves. She sustained a spinal cord injury as a result of her condition that caused her paralysis.

Six years later, doctors and family members have been "amazed" at her recovery, as she prepares to walk the 26.2 miles around the capital on Sunday.

The 39-year-old said: "I'm really proud to get this far. I don't know how far my legs will carry me but I'm just going to give it my all and enjoy the day."

Before being diagnosed, O'Brien was a keen runner and had already completed three marathons and signed up for the 2020 Manchester and London events before they were cancelled due to Covid-19.

In April 2020, she started getting pins and needles in her feet and hands, lost temperature sensation down one side of her body, and eventually lost bladder function.

After surgery for a bulging disc in her neck, her symptoms continued to worsen and within two weeks she was completely paralysed below her neck and had lost sight in her right eye.

She was eventually diagnosed with the rare neuromyelitis optica (NMO) spectrum disorder.

According to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, only 1,000 people in England have the condition.

Covid restrictions meant visits to the Royal Hallamshire Hospital and Spinal Unit in Sheffield were severely limited for family members in Maltby.

Her mother June Blythe said: "We didn't see her for 14 weeks when she was in hospital.

"It was heartbreaking. We couldn't phone her because she couldn't use her arms. It was so difficult."

O'Brien went on to make a remarkable recovery and six months after being admitted to hospital, she took her first steps.

"The doctor said they were really quite shocked and he said that my recovery was really quite unusual because of how severely the attack came on," she said.

"Some people with NMO might get pain behind their eye and pins and needles, but they don't always end up with full paralysis. They didn't know if I would walk again."

Blythe recalled the moment she regained some hope for her daughter.

"I was sat in the back garden in the sunshine furloughed and she sent me a video of her moving her big toe for the first time in hospital. I cried," she said.

The London Marathon will be the first walking challenge O'Brien has undertaken since her injury.

She said: "I've run marathons before, but I know this is going to be completely different because it's harder on my legs."

She will be raising money for the Spinal Injuries Association.

While she is no longer able to run due to her injury, she will be walking the route alongside her husband Justin.

"My husband is the one that literally got me back on my feet. He was stood in front of me and lifted me up and that was the first time I stood. So for him to walk it with me is going to mean a lot," she said.

For Blythe, along with the extended Rotherham family, it will be a "special day".

"Every day breaks my heart because I know what she could do with her running but I am so extremely proud of her. She's amazing," she said.

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