MORE than £60,000 has been raised for a Whitefield woman who suffered life-changing injuries in a horrific mountain bike crash.

Yoga teacher Casey Newton was cycling with friends in Cornwall, where she now lives, earlier this month, when she fell from her mountain bike.

The 30-year-old’s injuries were so severe she had to be airlifted to Plymouth’s Derriford Hospital where she underwent six hours of emergency surgery.

But doctors have told her the damage to her spinal nerves is so serious she may never walk again, leaving Casey terrified about her future job prospects and life with boyfriend Jay.

“I’m absolutely devastated,” said Casey, who has recently been transferred to the Duke of Cornwall Spinal Treatment Centre in Salisbury. “My job as a yoga teacher involves movement and when I’m not doing that I’m in the gym or mountain biking or paddle boarding so everything I do is active.”

Casey was downhill mountain biking on Sunday, April 11, when the accident happened.

“I’ve been mountain biking for 15 years,” she said. “I was doing a jump off a rock but I went over the handlebars and landed on my head which snapped my helmet. As soon as I landed I had this really strange electric shock all the way through my body and straight away I couldn’t feel anything from my waist down.

“I was crying and saying ‘I can’t feel my legs’. I knew straight away I’d broken my back. It felt so cold and I didn’t think I was going to make it. I have never experienced pain like it in my life - I just thought I couldn’t last one more second and I was either going to pass put or not make it.”

Casey has been in extreme pain since the accident, not only dealing with back and leg pains, but also recovering from a head injury and rib fracture and experiencing low blood pressure and pain when eating.

“I didn’t want to hear the bad news at first and I kept having panic attacks,” she said. “They said it was a really serious spinal chord injury and they couldn’t tell me if I’d ever get any feeling back or walk again.”

Due to Covid-19 restrictions, Casey has also had to face her rehabilitation alone for long parts of the day with her parents, brother and boyfriend only allowed to visit for one hour.

“The remaining 23 hours have been lonely and sometimes pretty dark,” she said. “The biggest struggles have been the constant pain, my lost independence and the loneliness I have felt from the very restricted visiting hours. I have been lucky enough to see my parents and brother for very short periods of time and Jay has been by my side every single minute that he has been allowed, caring for me and holding me.

“I’m in pain all the time and in normal circumstances someone would be here to help me through it. What has helped has been all the messages I’ve received and the donations from complete strangers through the GoFundMe page. It’s made me feel so loved and less alone.

“After the hardest year financially with Covid, one of my biggest worries after the injury was being a financial burden on Jay and my family. I became so pre-occupied and anxious about this when we were told about the extent of my injury and the long recovery road ahead.

“The pressure of this being taken away so I can focus on my recovery and rehabilitation means more to me than I could ever describe.”

Casey is a former pupil at All Saints Primary before going on to attend Castlebrook High School and her first school has already swung into action by raising funds for her with a wear your own clothes day held last week.

“I am in here for a few months at least but I want to focus on trying to walk again one day or at least get some movement back,” she added.

“The love and support I have received has left me absolutely speechless and my heart is so full.

“It has been scary and intense since the injury, but I can’t believe how far I have come.

"For this, I am forever grateful for all of the medical team. I have to give special thanks to my surgeons Dr Manning and Dr Sharma, who got me through my first night, and especially my two main physiotherapists, Sian Irish and Luke Chubb, who have been my absolute rocks.

“They have completely helped to transform me physically and mentally and helped me find laughter in every single day. They have truly been my guardian angels throughout my time at Derriford.

“The words and kindness have helped me to feel less alone at the scariest time in my life and for that I can’t thank everyone enough.”

You can support Casey or make a donation by visiting gofund.me/69a029f1