A single mother of two has lost her job and will be forced to undergo six months of rehabilitation after a spinal fracture became infected during a girls’ trip.
Kylie Wanschers, 49, stepped onto a wet hotel balcony to get a towel and fell backwards while on holiday with a friend in March.
Doctors at his home in Armidale, in the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales, suspected broken ribs, but Wanschers knew it was much worse.
He had a CT scan to check for further injuries, but was unable to get a follow-up appointment until three weeks later, during which time his condition rapidly deteriorated.
Her friend, Jodie Hayden, said the mother was experiencing spinal spasms and was “screaming in pain.”
He was later diagnosed with two fractured vertebrae, T9 and T10, which led to an infection that aggressively attacked his spinal cord.
When she was airlifted to John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle, Ms Wanschers could not feel or move either of her legs.
Although she had surgery to insert a steel rod into her spine, she now faces six months of rehabilitation that have cost her her job.
Kylie Wanschers (left), a single mother of two, is learning to walk again after a fall from a balcony left her with two fractured vertebrae and an infection that aggressively attacked her spine.
Ms Hayden said her friend was left with a lifelong injury and her right leg “will never be the same”.
Ms Wanschers was transferred to Sydney’s Royal North Shore Hospital and will undergo rehabilitation in the north-west suburb of Ryde.
Ms Hayden has taken on the role of caring for her friend’s two children while Ms Wanschers learns to walk again.
The recovery process will last until October, meaning she will have been separated from her two children for six months.
Ms Wanscher’s home will also have to undergo massive renovations, including “modifications to the bathroom, ramps and railings”.
Ms Hayden said her friend will have to pay “medical bills for life”.
When she was airlifted to John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle, Ms Wanschers could not feel or move either of her legs.
“(Ms. Wanschers is) a very selfless person, always looking at other people and thinking their stories are worse,” he said. 7News.
‘She doesn’t like people doing things for her, she’s very independent.
“Things are pretty tough, but she is determined.”
Ms. Hayden launched a GoFundMe to help her friend pay for renovations, medical bills, and support her transition back to life at home.
The fundraiser has raised more than $5,000 since it launched in late July.