School Bullies Left Me Paralysed | BORN DIFFERENT
180,263
Published 2023-08-12
20-YEAR-OLD Chelsea was the victim of severe bullying all the way through high school - and it was often physical. Chelsea was first attacked by "two boys who were older than me" at the age of 14 - they punched her in the face and broke her jaw. A year later, while walking her dog in the park, Chelsea came across a group of teenagers and was confronted by a girl who accused her of "flirting with [her] boyfriend". As Chelsea turned to walk away, she felt the girl jump on her and remembers feeling "her elbow going into the side of my face". Both incidents resulted in jaw surgery - with doctors fixing screws and wires into Chelsea's jaw to hold it in place. Worse was still to come though, as the attacks had left her jaw weak and vulnerable. Just a couple of years later, when Chelsea went to spend time with her best friend Katie and the two started play-fighting, Katie's knee accidentally caught Chelsea in the side of her face. She immediately headed to hospital to prepare for her seventh surgery on her jaw - but she could never have predicted how "all Hell would break loose" post-surgery. Chelsea remembers how she woke up in her hospital bed and "couldn't feel my legs, it was like nothing was there" - and soon she was paralysed from her neck down. She was diagnosed with Functional Neurological Disorder (FND) - a life-changing condition that affects how the brain sends messages to the rest of the body. Chelsea underwent months of grueling rehabilitation and gradually regained mobility, but with some lasting symptoms. She continues to experience seizures, fatigue, chronic pain and her left wrist is affected by functional dystonia, leaving her with the use of only her finger and thumb on that hand. And when Chelsea took to TikTok to post about her situation and quickly gained a following, she was once again on the receiving end of negativity, with people accusing her of "faking it, attention-seeking". Through it all though, Katie has stuck by Chelsea, who feels that the "whole experience has made us closer". However, even after all these years, Katie still feels guilty for her part in Chelsea's life-changing diagnosis - and Truly filmed the pair talking about the accident for the first time on camera. Does Chelsea blame her friend at all for what happened, or will she finally be able to put Katie's mind at ease?
Videographer: Max Thurlow
Producers: Hannah Beaugeard, Tom Buckman, Georgia Embling
Editor: Dalene Low
Truly is on TikTok! www.tiktok.com/@truly_show
Now you can watch our videos in Spanish!: bit.ly/Suscribirse_truly_ES
Click here to follow your favourite Truly shows on Instagram!
Truly - www.instagram.com/trulyshow
Born Different - www.instagram.com/borndifferentshow/
Shake My Beauty - www.instagram.com/shakemybeauty/
Hooked On The Look - www.instagram.com/hookedonthelookshow/
Love Don't Judge - www.instagram.com/lovedontjudgeshow/
Beastly - www.instagram.com/beastlyshow/
Ridiculous Rides - www.instagram.com/ridiculousridesshow/
Dog Dynasty - www.instagram.com/dogdynastyshow/
For more amazing content, click here!
Beastly: / @beastlychannel
Barcroft Cars: youtube.com/user/BarcroftCars/featured
00:00 Intro
0:35 Meet Chelsea - Learn About Her Bullying Experiences
1:06 Chelsea Speaks About Bullying Becoming Physical & Her Surgeries
1:53 Speaking About Her Best friend - Who Caused Chelsea's Paralysis
2:48 Chelsea Was Diagnosed With FND
3:42 Meet Chelsea's Best Friend - Katie
4:17 Chelsea And Katie Speak About The Incident
6:30 Outro - "If you are thinking of picking on someone, my story is an example of what can happen!"
All Comments (21)
-
That's not bullying, that's assault. Charge those kids.
-
The fact that her bullies are probably out there just enjoying life forgetting they ruined someone life and changed it forever angers me. This goes to all bullies even if it verbal insults it can effect someone forever while the bully never remembers it makes me so mad.
-
I hope karma is real. Those bullies deserve the worst
-
Well in her case she wasn't "born different," but was a victim of bullying . It wasn't something that was simply caused by horsing around with her friend either . Her jaw was already vulnerable from multiple insults as a result of being bullied in the past and the paralysis sounds like a complication of her most recent surgery. I'm sorry that the bullies who started this we're never brought to Justice and that maybe her parents didn't have alternative options at the time like private school or homeschool . What happened to her is unacceptable and school's not always a safe environment for everyone .
-
Whoever bullied her will get their karma
-
It is called assault, not bullying. I'm not familiar with UK law, but did the minors who assault her face criminal punishment? Even if they aren't treated the same as adults because of their age, make sure to squeeze them dry in a civil case from their parents. Don't forget to expose their names on social media as well.
-
How absolutely heartbreaking... the boys that initially jacked up her jaw are 100% responsible for the additional surgeries and paralysis. She and her best friend playing around, with no ill intent, will cause Katie tonalways harbor some guilt even though it was honestly an accident. I was bullied and physically assaulted by classmates and it still hurts decades later. I still do not know why I was targeted.
-
People suck, this poor girl never deserved that.
-
I hope she presses charges against the bullies! This poor girl! People are so cruel and they need to pay!
-
This isn’t bullying, this is assault that needs prison time
-
What the hell is wrong with people??? This was assault, why haven't anyone been brought to justice? This young woman is so strong, what a beautiful soul!
-
This is devastating! She’s such a beautiful sweet girl, I’m guessing jealousy was the cause of her being bullied
-
I was bullied relentlessly as a kid and later as a teenager. I was beaten up, spat at, kicked, pushed around, called every name under the sun, threatened and chased after school. All because I looked different from other kids. When I was 6, I was prescribed a medication for my bad allergies which made me gain some weight. When I was 11 I entered the classroom and accidentally tripped on my classmates backpack for which he slapped me in the face in front of all the other kids and called me a fat pig... teachers never cared and I didn't tell my mom fearing the bullying would only get worse... I feel so sorry you had to go through all that and are still going through so much. You're so strong and an inspiration. Much love from Finland ❤
-
I seriously hope those boys who broke her jaw were severely punished. I'd sue for medical expenses ect. Also if my child went in for jaw surgery and was paralyzed that would be a massive lawsuit for that. That poor girl can't catch a break. Why must kids be so cruel. Karma to them all!
-
Bless her. Her friend is not to blame. The boys who originally did this deserve to never see the light of day again. Anybody who doesn't the harmed this woman on purpose should never see the light of day. I also was bullied and beat up my groups of boys. As a survivor of bullies myself my heart goes out to this girl..
-
Beautiful friendship between Chelsea and Katie. Her injuries and the FND were caused by the bullies hurting her and the friend incident was just an accident unfortunately as a repercussion of the physical bullying. Absolutely not her friends fault though completely normal to feel guilt though she's learning with time it was an accident. I'm glad they are so close and can continue supporting each other and have each other.
-
This is why bullying should be punished with jail time.
-
she has such a nice articulation, im surprised her speaking hasn't been affected by her accidents. she definitely has a radio voice
-
Wishing her all the good things in this world. She is brave and strong. ❤
-
My dad would be in prison if anyone hurt me......and yes he defended me when teachers did nothing but keep me locked up in a closet or office. True story 😅 all because I fought back against bullies.
