Northern beaches: Claire Willmott reveals what life is like after zip line accident
Nine months ago Claire Willmott’s world changed forever when she was left paralysed below her shoulders following a horrific zip line accident. Now, for the first time, she she has opened up about the life-changing experience.
Manly
Don't miss out on the headlines from Manly. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- Landslide risk: Families banned from homes after deluge
- Old health centre to be transformed into housing
A mum who became a quadriplegic after a devastating backyard accident has told how her whole life changed in a split second.
Claire Willmott, 38, of North Curl Curl, suffered severe spinal injuries and is unable to move anything below her shoulders, after she was flung from a flying fox zip line in a relative’s backyard in Belrose on May 19, last year.
The mum-of-three and a top lawyer for Bayer, a multinational pharmaceutical company, told the Manly Daily she remembered having a turn on the zip line and getting part way across but nothing after that.
“You wake up and it’s a normal day. You don’t ever perceive something like this will ever happen and then it happens,” Mrs Willmott said.
“It’s life changing. It’s a lot more than my legs just don’t work.
“At first they thought I could be ventilated for the rest of my life.
“So, it’s a big thing to be able to talk and breathe by myself.
“It’s one step at a time for me. I’m fortunate that I’ve got a lot more to live for and be thankful for and to be positive.”
The horrific accident happened at a family party in front of children, including her own, Taylor, 9, Ryder, 7 and Archer, 3 and a half.
She said her daughter has particularly struggled after witnessing it.
“At first the conversations with the kids were, ‘Will you live mummy?’” Mrs Willmott said.
“They went through a period of being very frightened.
“Now they talk about school or soccer. Life is becoming more normal.
“The healthier I get, the easier it gets for the children.
“The young one is happy to sit on my wheelchair.”
Mrs Willmott said her husband Curtis, 42, a banker for ANZ, was wonderful, but he had a lot to juggle, with work, looking after three kids, a house, and a wife in a wheelchair.
But there is hope.
In the last 10 days she has been able to move three knuckles on her left hand.
And, at the weekend she left the rehabilitation centre in Ryde and moved to Sargood on Collaroy, which offers short term accommodation for those with spinal injuries.
She will be there for four weeks before doing a house swap with her parents in Bayview because their home is better suited for a wheelchair.
Eventually when her North Curl Curl home is fully adapted the family will move back.
Mrs Willmott said she was so grateful to family, friends and the community for their support.
A gala concert at Glen Street Theatre is being held and it is hoped to raise money to help with the renovations so Mrs Willmott can return home as soon as possible and be as independent as possible.
She said there will be tough times ahead as she continues to get used to the “new normal”.
“The next thing we cross is to see how we go when we are all back together and it’s real life — there’s a lot still coming,” she said.
But at the moment she is focused on getting home.
“Just being with the kids is what I’m most looking forward to and Curtis, lying in bed and having them around me,” she said.
“It makes you appreciate what you probably take for granted.
“You get a lot of life perspectives quickly.
“You’ve got to appreciate every day we’ve got and the small things in life.”
To buy tickets for the gala hosted by Notable Theatre Company go to: glenstreet.com.au/whats-on/gala-benefit-concert-support-care4claire