Mother paralyzed in hunting accident takes first steps alongside 1-year-old daughter
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WBNS) - An Ohio mother says her 1-year-old daughter is the reason she can walk again after a near fatal hunting accident paralyzed her.
What may seem like a typical mother-daughter walk in the park is a special moment for Leah Weiher and her 1-year-old daughter, Laken. She never thought this would be possible a few months ago.
Weiher was in a near fatal hunting accident in November that left her paralyzed from the waist down. She was climbing up a tree to reach a tree stand when she fell.
“As I was climbing up the tree, I grabbed onto the hang-on stand, and it unfolded on me. I fell about 15 feet, landing on my crossbow,” she said.
Doctors weren’t sure if she would ever walk again.
“He basically said it was 50/50. We could do the surgery, and I could never walk again or I could maybe walk again. There was no guarantee I would get any movement back,” Weiher said.
Just weeks ago, she took her first steps – and she did it with Laken at her side.
“We started walking right around the same time, within days of each other, which was my goal. I didn’t think I would actually be able to do it,” Weiher said.
The mother has been doing physical therapy twice a week. It’s those exercises and her love for her little girl that got her back on her feet.
“My daughter, if I didn’t have her, I don’t think I would be walking,” Weiher said. “A lot of times, it was hard to get out of bed in the morning even... All I could think about was her and that she needed me.”
Weiher’s journey to recovery has been long, and she still has a ways to go, but she knows she can do it – for Laken.
“Just never give up and always think about walking or whatever it is that you’re trying to accomplish. I know that she’s my reason, and she is the reason I’m walking right now,” she said.
Her ultimate goal is to be able to run again, something she hopes to achieve in the next few months.
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