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Jill Wheatley is an athlete and mountain climber currently climbing the world’s 14 peaks above 8,000 metres, with only 30% of her vision.
In 2014, while teaching a physical education class in Germany, a baseball hit Jill in the side of her head, leaving her with a traumatic brain injury (TBI) that took 70% of her vision and nearly her life. Before the accident, she was an athlete, teacher and coach who ran on trails, cycled and competed in duathlons.
“After 26 months in hospitals, I felt lost,” Jill told ParticipACTION. “I emerged from the hospital a completely different person from how I arrived. I lost my eyesight, autonomy, car, apartment, work and residency permit. But one aspect of my life that remained the same was my passion and desire to be outside with Mother Nature.”
Jill’s long road to recovery has brought her to peaks like K2 and the only Canadian female to summit 6 mountains above 8,000 metres.
She aims to break down the stigma associated with traumatic brain injury, vision loss, and eating disorders.
Check out her journey and story at https://mountainsofmymind.com.
