A woman miraculously survived after being internally decapitated in a devastating car accident.
In September 2011, Rachel Bailey was left in a critical condition following a car crash on Cave Creek Road in Phoenix.
At the age of 23, her skull was severed from her spine during the crash, but she avoided paralysis due to the quick response of firefighters who arrived at the scene.
The collision caused the ligaments in Rachel’s neck to rupture and her skull to detach from her spine, making her survival truly astonishing.
Describing the injury that led to her spending a month in intensive care, Rachel told Arizona TV station 3TV: “I just thought, ‘I’m not going to let this beat me, I’m not going to let this define me.’”
The fact that her spinal cord remained intact was critical for the Phoenix woman, as it enabled doctors to reconstruct her neck.
Following the accident, Rachel was placed in a coma and underwent six surgeries.
This type of injury often involves severe nerve damage or severing of the spinal cord, which usually results in paralysis or even death.
Remarkably, she avoided that fate and regained her ability to walk and talk after an extensive recovery period.
Doctors were astounded by Rachel’s incredible recovery, which she attributed to her physical strength and the muscle around her neck that prevented full decapitation.
She later had the opportunity to dine with the Phoenix firefighters who played a role in saving her life.
Speaking to TODAY’s Jenna Wolfe, Rachel expressed: “I wanted to know who saved me. I wanted to thank them and I wanted to honor them.”
Reflecting on the crash, she added, “I can’t change it. You can’t ever change the past, only the future. My energy level is high. I’m ready to take on the world.”
Rachel concluded, “What I got from this whole accident is to live is to give, so if I’m not giving back, if I’m not volunteering at the hospital that saved my life, I’m not living at all.
“I’m not going to let this beat me or define me.”
Rachel’s story has gained renewed attention after being shared by the Morbid Knowledge Twitter account.
A social media user commented, “The way humans are able to survive is nothing sort of miraculous.”
Another person praised, “Just looked up a video of her on The Today Show and she is an amazing young woman.”