RICHMOND HILL, Ga. (WSAV) — Nearly six months ago, a life-changing accident turned Richmond Hill middle school teacher Valerie Feske’s life upside down, leaving her paralyzed from the chest down.

After five months away while she received rehabilitation treatment in Atlanta, the wife and mother of two is now back home in Bryan County to continue her journey to recovery.

WSAV NOW shared Feske’s story in May, after a Memorial Day weekend celebration at a friend’s home took an unexpected turn.

For the first time, Feske opens up in her own words about enduring those initial frightening moments in the water, and what lies ahead as she works toward the possibility of being able to walk again.

‘I was just really scared’

On May 23, she was on an inflatable waterslide when someone came down the slide behind her.

“There was a collision, and I was hit in the back of the neck,” Feske told WSAV NOW.

“Immediately, I was submerged underwater and realized I could not get up with my legs,” Feske recalled of the moment disaster struck.

“Somehow, I think I pushed myself up with my hands and arms and said, ‘I need help,’ and then I was just really scared,” she said.

Feske remembered not being able to feel her body or any pressure from rescuers touching her legs in the water.

EMS workers from Richmond Hill quickly responded to the accident and transported Feske to Memorial Health.

She says one of those same EMS professionals later accompanied her on the four-hour journey to Atlanta’s Shepherd Center, a spinal cord and brain injury rehabilitation clinic.

That’s where Feske spent five months undergoing occupational, physical and recreational therapy while re-learning how to do the basic things most people take for granted.

“I had to learn how to brush my teeth, feed myself, sit up again,” Feske said.

“From the chest down, I’m not able to kind of move those extremities, so I had to learn how to do that myself, basically using my arms and my shoulders to support myself from the waist down to move my legs,” she said.

It was a slow process for Feske to regain her muscle strength. “For the longest time, just reaching my hands up to my head, I wasn’t able to do,” she recalled.

‘It’s just the little things that you can’t do anymore’

Feske says the emotional toll of her road to recovery has been hardest on her. Her husband, Brent Feske, was only able to stay with her briefly at the Shepherd Center due to COVID-19 restrictions.

“I wasn’t able to see my kids unless they stood on a fence that was about 10 feet away from me on busy Peachtree Street, so that was the hardest part,” she said.

She says she’s also struggled with the loss of her ability to take care of herself as she once did.

“Not being able to hold yourself up or relying on people all the time to get stuff for you, I think that’s hard, too,” Feske said. “You don’t realize how much you just do for yourself all the time.”

She recalled having to go three months without flossing her teeth during her stay at the Shepherd Center.

“It was horrible!” Feske said. “The first day Brent was able to come [visit], I think I was like, ‘floss my teeth, please!’ So, it’s just the little things that you can’t do anymore, it made it really hard.”

‘I have come a long way’

After months of recovery, Feske has shown great progress following her spinal cord injury. She’s able to feel some sensation in her legs, stomach and torso.

“I’m getting some abs that are firing back, so that’s good and will help a lot when it comes to trying to sit up,” she said.

Two weeks ago, she became able to move and wiggle her right thumb.

“When I got to the Shepherd Center, I mean, I couldn’t take a sheet and cover myself up; that’s how weak I was, and now I can roll around in the bed,” Feske said, adding, “It takes a lot of work, but I can do it, I have come a long way.”

As of now, medical experts are uncertain whether Feske will ever be able to walk again.

“That’s the tricky thing with spinal cord injuries is that every person is different,” Feske said. “They can do scans, but they don’t know what will come back and what doesn’t, so we’re not sure.”

She shares that she’s taking her progress one day at a time. “I would love to walk again, but I would love to be able to use my fingers again, or just be able to fold my torso up, so even something like that would be great,” Feske laughed softly. “Walking might be on the bottom of the list now, to be honest.”

‘Being able to hug my kids again was a big deal’

Feske has been back home from Atlanta for three weeks and says it feels great to be reunited with friends and family.

She received a warm welcome and applause from neighbors in the community as she and Brent drove by. 

“[I was] ecstatic, I got hugs forever,” Feske said. “Just being able to hold my kids was a big deal, and my mom was able to visit for two weeks, so that was great.”

The middle school teacher will continue therapy at home. She says specialists with Richmond Hill-based Cora Rehabilitation visit her two to three times per week for occupational and physical therapy with them.

“I’ll continue that in the new year, and then possibly go back to the Shepherd Center, maybe late in the summer, to continue rehabilitation,” Feske said.

‘It’s inspired me to fight and keep going’

Since the early days of her injury, Feske amassed an astounding outpouring of community support from family, friends and even total strangers.

On May 28, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp extended his well wishes, tweeting, “Our family and your fellow Georgians are with you in this fight!”

“It’s been so overwhelming, I would get stacks of cards an inch thick somedays,” Feske smiled. “I was like, ‘oh my goodness, that’s so many!’ and then also, ‘how and when am I gonna open all of those?’ because I was so limited with what I could do.” 

She said the Shepherd Center’s nurses and therapists gladly assisted her with opening them.

Meanwhile, the Val’s Village Facebook page, which chronicles updates from Feske’s journey,  has gained over 6,500 likes and 7,000 followers since May. 

Donations to the Val’s Village Fund and fundraising efforts have helped cover costs for Feske’s manual wheelchair, a bath chair and a garage lift.

On Wednesday, AMBUCS is providing her with a handbike, allowing her to cruise her neighborhood with her children.

“It’s helped me, it’s inspired me to fight and keep going,” Feske said. “I’m doing this for me, but I’m doing this for all the people that have supported me throughout this whole ordeal.”

Feske says the love and support of Brent has made the journey a lot easier.

“He has to do a lot for me, and it’s hard sometimes because I’m the mom, I’m used to doing so much, but he does it without complaining,” Feske says of her husband.

“He’s also just been there emotionally for me; he’s so positive and he keeps reminding me that we’re going to have a great life, and it’s going to be harder doing things. but we’re going to be able to get through them together,” she shared.

Looking to the future, Feske says her biggest focus is on getting stronger and one day returning to teaching.

“Just getting back to normalcy, going back to work, providing for my family like I was before, those are my goals,” she said.

Stay with WAVY.com for more updates in this story.