Woman left paralysed after being pushed into pool by best friend at bachelorette party
A mum was left paralysed from the chest down just weeks before she was set to walk down the aisle after her pal's 'playful' prank went horrifically wrong.
Rachelle Chapman was just 24-years-old and was excitedly awaiting her wedding to her 'best friend' Chris when she became a quadriplegic, changing the course of her life forever.
Incredibly, she has since gone on to become a mother, a disability advocate, a social media star and continues to play sports - and she still refuses to disclose the identity of the woman who caused her life-changing injury.
Rachelle opened up about how her bachelorette party in Virginia back in May 2010 took a devastating turn when one of her bridesmaids pushed her into a pool.
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The 40-year-old, who was dubbed the 'paralysed bride' in wake of the tragic accident, explained she 'felt like her life was perfect' prior to her becoming paralysed - as she loved her job, was engaged and had bought a home.
"Our wedding was about four weeks away when everything changed," Rachelle previously told Yahoo News. "At the end of the night [of her bachelorette] a bunch of us decided to go for a swim.
"It was still chilly out and I was on the side of the pool, afraid to jump in because it looked so cold. In a playful gesture, a friend came and pushed me.
"I ended up hitting my head in the shallow end of the pool. Instantly, all of the feeling went out of my body. I had broken my neck.
"My friends pulled me to the surface and I remember looking down, seeing my legs dangling in the water and thinking, 'I don't feel that at all'. I was paralysed from the chest down."
Rachelle was rushed to hospital and spent ten days in the intensive care unit, before embarking on a long road to recovery. She subsequently spent two and a half months completing rehab at different hospitals.
Rachelle and Chris ended up spending what was supposed to be their wedding day in hospital and also missed out on their honeymoon, while facing mounting medical bills.
Due to the media attention surrounding the incident, a company kindly reached out to the couple and offered to pay for their big day and to send them off on holiday afterwards, which Rachelle described as an 'amazing' gesture.
The pair finally got their special day and astoundingly, Rachelle even maintained a friendship with the woman who unwittingly caused her life-changing injury.
The mum previously told People that they were both 'there for' each other in the aftermath, explaining her pal was 'distraught and depressed' by what happened - but as the years passed, her effort waned.
"It was just going through the motions and every time we spoke, I just felt like I was remembering the accident and going into the pool and I had negative feelings," Rachelle said. "I didn't feel that way in the beginning."
Following the birth of her daughter via a surrogate in 2015, Rachelle decided it was time to 'cut ties and end the friendship', adding: "I had to tell her that we couldn't be friends because she just wasn't there for me anymore.
"One of the things that happens when you have this kind of injury is that you lose people, and I felt like I wasn't being truthful anymore. It's sad and it's complicated, but she wasn't there for me when I needed her."
Rachelle - who has gained a huge online following after sharing her story on social media - explained that despite initially being devastated by the cards she had been dealt, it 'didn't last forever'.
With the support of her beloved husband Chris, she began 'exploring new activities' - and the pair play a range of 'adaptive' sports. Rachelle is amazingly able to cycle, play tennis, go skydiving and thrived at wheelchair rugby.
She explained that doctors informed 'recommended' she should not try to carry her own child because of the medications she was taking. A college pal then offered to be a surrogate so her and Chris could start a family.
Despite Rachelle receiving some 'ignorant comments on social media about how someone in a wheelchair can't be a mom or that she was selfish for having a child', she adores being a mother to daughter Kaylee.
"My skin is thick, but I hate that there's this misconception for people with disabilities," she said. "These kids have great parents. All of my wheelchair rugby teammates now have kids, and they're amazing. These kids learn compassion so easily, and they're natural helpers. Of course, there were some difficulties, but we had a village to help us. My mom lives with us and would do things like help me change diapers. My wrists work, but my fingers don't, so I have to manipulate things to pick them up. When I couldn't use my hands, she was my hands."
Rachelle has vowed to 'never say the name publicly' of pushed her in the pool and even turned down an appearance on Oprah Winfrey's chat show due to this.
Her and Chris renewed their vows on their 10-year anniversary - and Rachelle said 'just wants people to know that you can be injured and still have a happy family'.
Olivia Burke