At 16, Megan King experienced a life-altering injury during a football game that led to a rare condition known as internal decapitation—where the skull disconnects inside the body from the spine. This injury has a grim survival rate and often results in death.
Megan fell while jumping for the ball and hurt her ankle and spine severely, along with large muscle tears. Although she had many surgeries, her body resisted healing. In 2015, she was diagnosed with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a genetic condition affecting her joints and collagen. This condition made her body stiff instead of flexible.
Emergency neck surgery followed, and she was fitted with a halo brace. But when doctors removed the brace too soon, her skull slipped from her spine internally. She described the terrifying moment when her neurosurgeon held her skull in place because she was falling apart physically, unable to move her head or control her body.
Despite 15 more surgeries, Megan’s spine is now fully fused, rendering her immobile from head to pelvis. Though she feels like a “human statue,” her spirit remains unbroken.
Megan recently celebrated a milestone by returning to bowling, striking on her first try with friends cheering her on—not just for the game but for her incredible strength.
Her journey is a powerful reminder that even when physical freedom is lost, the will to live and celebrate life endures.
