Horror moment saw woman, 25, 'partially decapitate' herself on holiday in Turkey

Becca Reed, 25, was on holiday with a friend in Turkey when the horrific accident happened

A young woman who "partially decapitated" herself after diving into a pool and breaking her neck on holiday has said she's "fortunate" to be alive.

Becca Reed, 25, was in Turkey celebrating her 23rd birthday with a friend on May 16, 2022. The horror moment happened when she dived to catch a ball during a game of pool volleyball and hit her head on the concrete base of the pool.

She spent the following days in a "haze and daze", managing the pain with painkillers and believing she just had whiplash. It wasn't until she returned home and sought medical advice on May 19 that she discovered she had crushed the C5 and C6 vertebrae in her neck.

This led to two surgeries and years of mental and physical rehabilitation.

"When I did eventually see a doctor, the first thing she said after I told her what had happened was, 'I'm surprised you're not dead,'" Becca said.

She said doctors credited her unusually strong back and shoulder muscles as the factors that held her spinal cord in place, helping her survive the moment of impact and the days afterwards.

Speaking about the accident, she said: "I was in pain, but there was no swelling, there was no bruising, my muscles were all just really tight – and it's called guarding.

"My muscles were guarding the rest of my body because I essentially partially decapitated myself, so my muscles were holding my head on.

"I had been going to the gym five or six times a week for nearly two years beforehand – and that is why I am alive.

"Doctors said if my injury had happened to a normal person, they wouldn't walk, move, talk."

'I just floated in the water for what felt like an eternity'

Becca has always led an active lifestyle, taking part in weightlifting, skipping and boxing.

But the incident in Turkey changed her life "in an instant".

"The dive just went so wrong," she explained.

"My hands didn't even hit the bottom, my head was just the first thing to hit the bottom.

"Once the injury had happened, I just floated in the water for what felt like an eternity and I was just thinking, 'Can I move my feet?'"

Becca soon realised she could move and climbed out of the pool, and over the following days remained in bed, taking painkillers.

"I hadn't jumped to, 'I've broken my neck or I've broken my spine', I just thought it was severe whiplash," she said.

After flying home, the pain increased and on May 19 she called NHS 111 for advice.

She was advised to visit A&E, where she underwent an X-ray and various scans before being placed in a neck brace.

"Doctors told me I had the worst injury in London on this day," she said.

"They said that my C5 and C6 vertebrae were just completely smushed and I had basically just cracked them both in half."

Becca was taken to the Royal London Hospital where she underwent two operations: one to replace the shattered vertebrae with a metal structure, and another to stabilise her neck with rods and screws.

This is when doctors said her pre-injury dedication to fitness saved her life.

"The pain was actually the worst after the second surgery because they had to cut through all of my neck and back muscles," she said.

"The surgeon said you've grown muscles where people don't usually grow muscles because I used to lift weights, and that is one of the main reasons why everything else held on."

According to Spinal Research, every two hours someone is paralysed by a spinal cord injury in the UK and this can be caused by an accident, illness or a health condition.

Becca had to re-learn how to turn over in bed, stand up from lying down, walk and even put moisturiser on her face.

She described the recovery process as "long and gruelling" and said she neglected her mental health at times.

However, she knew she had to "show up for (herself)" and, with the support of friends and family and Spinal Research, she began to rebuild her strength.

"My body held on for dear life when I didn't know it needed to... so I really needed to spend some time getting my body back to where I trusted in it again," she said.

After six months, Becca, a PR professional from London, was able to start lifting more than 10kg and in January 2024, as part of her new year resolutions, she wanted to "find passion in movement again".

She decided to start running and said she found "peace and serenity" and a newfound confidence in herself and her body.

Nearly three years after the accident, she will be running the TCS London Marathon on behalf of Spinal Research to raise awareness of the science and support systems that helped save her life.

She said: "If there's one thing that comes out of any of this, it's me advocating for people to get in the gym and be active.

"I didn't realise it would save my life, and you don't want it to be too late, so start now.

"Just show up for yourself now so you can thank yourself later because you don't know what's around the corner."

You can donate or find out more about Becca's fundraiser here.