A circus performer was left paralysed on one side of her body after falling on her head during an aerial move.
Nina Jussila was practicing how to drop from aerial silks when she fell 13ft and landed head first on March 7 this year.
Unable to feel anything, the 29-year-old was rushed to hospital, where an X-ray revealed her fifth vertebrae was dislocated, putting a dangerous amount of pressure on her spine.
Surgeons operated to release the pressure, with Miss Jussila, who lives in Norwich, being forced to stay awake throughout the procedure to ensure no permanent damage was done to her backbone.
Although the surgery seemed to go to plan, Miss Jussila later discovered she could only feel pain on her left side but could only move her right. She was diagnosed with the neurological condition Brown Séquard syndrome (BSS).
After intensive physiotherapy, Miss Jussila walked by herself for the first time since the accident on May 10 and hopes to one day perform again.
Nina Jussila, a circus performer, was left paralysed after falling on her head during an aerial move. Miss Jussila landed on her head from the 13ft drop, unable to feel anything. She is pictured left performing before the ordeal and right arriving at hospital on the day of the fall
A scan revealed her fifth vertebrae was dislocated, which was putting a dangerous amount of pressure on her spinal cord. The X-ray shows a disc that was fitted to strengthen her backbone
Speaking of the ordeal, Miss Jussila said: 'On March 7, 2019 I fell 13ft when trying to learn a new trick on aerial silks.
'My head hit the mat first, then the rest of my body fell on top of it.
'It all happened so fast, I just realised I had made a mistake then the next thing I know, I landed on my neck.
'I screamed out that I couldn't feel my body, and luckily I had friends around me to call an ambulance and keep me calm.'
Miss Jussila, who is originally from Finland, was rushed to hospital where she immediately underwent scans.
'My fourth and fifth vertebra were damaged badly,' she said.
'The disc between them was fully gone and the fifth vertebra was dislocated, which put dangerous pressure on my spinal cord.
'If there was any more pressure, I could have been completely paralysed.'
Pictured before the fall, Miss Jussila was practicing a new move on aerial silks at the time
Her left side was initially paralysed, however, she is gradually regaining movement
Pictured before the ordeal, it is unclear if Miss Jussila will ever perform her tricks again
Miss Jussila went under the knife that same day in a seven-hour operation to relieve the pressure on her spine.
'First, they needed to get my fifth vertebra into the right place to release the pressure, which they had to do when I was awake to make sure my spinal cord would not be damaged,' she said.
'After that was done, they took a piece of bone from my hip and put it between the vertebras to fuse my spine, and then they added a metal disc to support it all.'
On March 21, Miss Jussila was able to move her left hand again, however, doctors insisted she still spend five weeks on bed rest.
'I just needed to rest by lying on my back and not moving my spine at all,' she said. 'After that, I could start sitting and eventually try to stand and walk too.
'My body started to recover right away, only a tiny bit, but those improvements kept me going.
When people are paralysed, it affects their physical abilities but also affects the internal organs as well.
'I needed to learn how to breathe and cough properly and how to use my bladder again.'
