Injured Crewe mum to confront shark fear for charity

Trish Brookes suffered a spinal injury when she fell in the bath

A mother who struggles to walk after a spinal injury is set to swim with sharks for charity despite her fear of the animals.

Trish Brookes, from Crewe, Cheshire, suffered the injury in a freak domestic accident and doctors told her she could lose the use of her legs in the future.

The mum-of-three says the swim will help her overcome low moments she suffers since the injury.

"I am absolutely bricking it but excited as well," she said.

The event is due to take place in a Cheshire aquarium in March and, like a charity walk in October, is in aid of the Spinal Injuries Association.

Mrs Brookes was hurt when she went to wash her hair in the shower over her bath in 2021 and slipped, falling on the taps.

She said she was fine to walk for the next couple of days but then "my legs just went under me. There was just nothing there from the waist down".

Doctors told her an operation would prevent her being completely paralysed but warned she was not certain to get feeling back in her legs.

The mum-of-three said fundraising after her injury had helped her mental health

Following surgery, Mrs Brookes uses crutches for short distances and a wheelchair at other times.

"This was a total gamechanger. I'm trying my best every day to stay positive but the struggle is constantly there," she said.

"Everything has had to change, you do have really bad lows."

She said her fear of sharks came after watching Jaws as a child and swimming with them in an aquarium would take her "totally out of my comfort zone".

She added: "I think it's pushing me, it's pushing me to do something that, before my injury, I might never have got the chance to do."