A woman who was left paralysed for nine hours after being struck by lightning says her eyes have now changed colour. Carly Electric, as she’s coincidentally known, has always been fascinated with lightning – even going as far as having three tattoos dedicated to the weather phenomenon.
So when a storm happened she immediately rushed outside for a better view. But then, as she was recording it, the 30-year-old was struck. She recalled: “I had goosebumps travelling up and down my arms in waves. When I went to look at myself in the mirror, I saw that my pupils were massive.
“It felt as though I’d been drugged. I was covered in sweat, light-headed and almost euphoric. Then suddenly, I lost all feeling in my limbs. I couldn’t move, not even an inch.” Carly, from Queensland, Australia, asked her roommate to call an ambulance right away in December 2023 and was soon rushed to hospital, completely terrified.
She said: “By the time I got into the ambulance, my feet and hands had gone completely blue. All I could move was my head and neck. Although I was awake, I was struggling to breathe.
“And soon enough, I only had the ability to swallow and gulp air. Doctors swarmed around me, and I felt myself drifting away.”
After a few hours of going in and out of consciousness, she had feeling back in her fingers and toes. Medics diagnosed her with keraunoparalysis, a rare neurological issue causing temporary paralysis, with Carly left unable to move for nine hours.
She said: “My speech was still slurred, though they could see how shocked I was. I showed them my tattoos and joked that I had always said how ironic it’d be if I was ever struck by lightning. I guess the universe already had my fate written out for me.”
After two weeks, she was almost back to her old self – but the lightning strike has left her permanently changed. She added: “My previously green eyes are now dark brown.
“When I looked it up online, I discovered it wasn’t uncommon for this to happen in people who had been electrocuted. The top of my head is very sensitive, where I was hit – it’s hot to the touch, so I have to avoid it when brushing my hair.
“It’s also helped within my dating life, with men intrigued to hear more about my near-death experience. I genuinely think it was a lucky bolt, as my life has gotten so much better since.
“I’ll always get goosebumps whenever there’s a storm. And statistically, I’m more likely to get struck again now I’ve already been hit. I’m certainly not going to take any chances.”
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