COLUMBUS, Ohio — In November, Leah Weiher had a terrible accident while hunting. As she was climbing up a tree to reach a tree stand, she slipped and fell nearly 15 feet, landing on her crossbow.
Weiher became paralyzed from the waist down and doctors told her in November that they weren’t sure if she would ever walk again.
“He said it was a 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 movement back,” said Weiher.
Just a few weeks ago, she took her first steps. But she didn’t do it alone. She did this with her 1-year-old daughter Laken by 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,” she said.
Weiher has been doing physical therapy twice a week. It’s those exercises and 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 right now. A lot of times it was hard to get out of bed in the morning even mentally, physically. All I could do was think about her and that she needed me,” said Weiher.
Her journey to recovery has been long and she has a ways to go. But she knows she can do it with her daughter by her side.
“Never give up and always think about walking or whatever it is you are trying to accomplish,” said Weiher. “I know she’s my reason, she is the reason I’m walking now,” she said.
Weiher said her ultimate goal is to be able to run again. She hopes to achieve that goal in the next few months.