A woman recounted the terrifying experience of being “burnt” internally after being hit by a lightning strike.
Thalita Teixeira Padilla, 32, was walking her dog when the lightning struck her chest.
Typically, when someone experiences an extreme electric shock, burns are a frequent result due to the immense energy being released.
For Thalita, this led to a cardiac arrest, leaving her without oxygen for 15 minutes.
Additionally, the powerful energy inflicted internal burns on her body.
This caused a spinal cord injury, and the noise from the lightning strike ruptured one of her eardrums, frightening her dog away.
Fortunately, the Australian shepherd dog was located unharmed a few hours later, and they were reunited after the terrifying event.
She detailed her injuries and recovery journey in a piece for PEOPLE.
Thalita wrote: “The lightning burned my chest and my spinal cord from the inside, leaving me with a spinal cord injury, something I didn’t find out about until three months after the incident.”
“The bolt then came out of my right leg, my knee and foot. And I suffered a lot of nerve damage.”
As a result of the lightning strike, Thalita lost her ability to walk and her hearing in one ear.
She had to relearn basic daily activities, such as bathing and texting.
Initially, she couldn’t lift her arms above her head but was determined to recover as much as possible.
She remarked: “There were still small miracles that my husband later told me about. Despite what happened, I didn’t have any broken bones, a brain bleed or brain damage.”
The nurse shared: “Honestly, I was depressed and in so much pain. I didn’t even want to wake up in the morning because I felt pain all over, and it was nerve pain so nobody knew how to treat it or had ever seen it before.”
“It was a very unique pain that I felt from my spinal cord injury. Fortunately, I’ve since stopped feeling that pain. Maybe my body just needed time.”
Despite these challenges, Thalita expressed her desire to continue helping others.
She mentioned that the incident could have happened to anyone, and she was simply “in the wrong place at the wrong time.”