Mother-of-two, 34, left paralysed after falling off of a cliff was told her pain was due to her anxiety before a 7-inch CYST was discovered in her spine
- Genevieve Lopez had an 8-foot drop on a hiking trip with her friends in 2015
- She immediately developed tingling sensations in her leg and intense pain
- But doctors put her discomfort down to symptoms of a mental disorder
- They eventually found a cyst on her back which had left her partially paralysed
- Surgeons removed it and a section of her vertebrae in an operation last June
- However, the 34-year-old was only able to take her first steps unaided recently
A mother-of-two who was left with a seven-inch cyst on her spine after falling off a cliff has relearnt to walk after doctors misdiagnosed her with anxiety.
Genevieve Lopez, 34, had an eight-foot drop when she misplaced her feet during a hiking trip with her friends in 2015.
She immediately developed tingling sensations in her leg and intense pain - but doctors put the latter down to a mental disorder.
Sometimes the discomfort would be so much that she couldn't move one side of her body, causing her to seek medical attention.
When the pain worsened, a scan eventually showed a large arachnoid cyst had grown on her spine, leaving her partially paralysed.
Surgeons removed it and three of her vertebrae last June, but it was only recently that she was able to take her first steps unaided - despite being left with extensive nerve damage.
Genevieve Lopez, 34, suffered an eight-foot drop when she misplaced her feet during a hiking trip with her friends in 2015
Ms Lopez, from Los Angeles, said: 'When I fell off a cliff I still didn't think anything was seriously wrong.
'All I remember is waking up in a pile of blood but a few months later I started to develop pains and it took ages for doctors to diagnose my cyst.
'At the beginning I started having tingling feelings in my legs and I felt panicky all of the time.'
She added: 'The doctors thought I had anxiety and I also thought that was the case until the pain started to worsen.
'It would be so bad that sometimes I couldn't move one side of my body, I knew I needed some kind of scan to reveal what was wrong with me.
'I still don't know if I'm going to fully recover and I feel like I have half healed, the nerve pains in my arms are sometimes intolerable.'
When the pain worsened, a scan eventually showed a large cyst had grown on her spine, leaving her partially paralysed. Surgeons removed it and three of her vertebrae last June
But it was only recently that she was able to take her first steps unaided (pictured in hospital with her two children)
Immediately after the incident, she was unable to move her fingers properly and any pressure on her back would leave her in agony.
She eventually decided to go the hospital after the symptoms were still present a month after.
Doctors kept her in for 10 days, before telling her she needed a brain scan to get to the bottom of what was causing her pain.
Despite initially believing her pain was being caused by severe anxiety, an MRI scan showed an excess of spinal fluid in her brain.
She found out the impact from the cliff fall damaged an area of her vertebrae, which enabled the cyst to grow and cause her constant pain.
However, because it was so large, they were unable to drain it away and instead had to remove a section of her vertebrae. In its place, they used metal plates and screws.
She has since had a further operation to remove the cyst, but was warned it may have caused permanent nerve damage.
Ms Lopez added: 'I had never heard of this kind of cyst before but it made so much sense, due to the amount of pain I was getting from my back.'
Due to everything that has happened to her body, she now suffers from fibromyalgia - causing her to be fatigued and more sensitive to pain.
And she is forced to use a heating pad for four hours each day to help her body keep functioning.
She added: 'I am so grateful for the help from my parents, they have fought for me the entire way.
'I know that my life will never be the same, but I'm thankful for the overwhelming love and support that I have received.'
Ms Lopez, from Los Angeles, said: 'When I fell off a cliff I still didn't think anything was seriously wrong' (pictured front-right with her friends hiking in Malibu)
Immediately after the incident, she was unable to move her fingers properly and any pressure on her back would leave her in agony (pictured on her hiking trip before the accident)
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