‘I wouldn’t change it’: London medical student paralysed by man falling 120ft onto her

A London medical student has written a book about how she was paralysed after an accident in 2019.

Six years ago, 22-year-old King’s College London medical student Grace Spence Green was shopping at Westfield Stratford when a man jumped from a balcony 120 feet above her, landing on her and breaking her spine.

After waking up on the floor of the shopping centre with no feeling in her legs, she was taken to the hospital, where it was confirmed that she had shattered several vertebrae. Grace then had months of treatment, but had to accept that she was paralysed from the chest down.

In the years since the incident, Grace has spent her time working to change the image of disability, returning to medical school 10 months later and working in a London hospital after graduating.

Her new book, To Exist as I Am, tells the story of her recovery, resilience, and acceptance of her disability.

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Speaking to The Mirror, she shared how the incident has changed her life: “As the years went by, what I gained through my disability, how it’s changed me, the relationships that have changed – I can now say I wouldn’t change it because of all I’ve gained from it.”

The man who fell onto her, 25-year-old Amsumana Sillah Trawally, survived with only a leg fracture. CCTV footage later revealed that he was under the influence of cannabis and jumped from the balcony intentionally. He was sentenced to four years in prison for grievous bodily harm and has since been deported. 

Despite this, Grace doesn’t struggle with any feelings of resentment or anger towards Trawally, instead taking comfort in her role in saving his life: “Very early on, I came to the realisation that if I wasn’t there, the man likely would have died because he would have jumped head first. 

“That made it much easier to start navigating all of the emotions I felt because what I was going through was really difficult. But I wouldn’t have changed it.”

Reluctant to dwell on the incident, she instead focuses on making the best of her circumstances. She runs a podcast with five friends about living with spinal injuries, enjoys outdoor swimming and seated water skiing, travels often, and is set to get married next month. 

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Her partner Nathan has been a “constant” throughout her recovery: “It always felt like we were dealing with this together. It wasn’t just my burden to bear.

“He’s had comments like, ‘Are you going to stay with Grace?’ But that was never a question for him. So I was able to maintain some self worth, especially through the really low points in the first year.”

She describes the release of her book as a form of activism, sharing her experience to help other disabled people and encourage able-bodied people to educate themselves about disability: “When I was injured, I felt like my life suddenly became very small and the things I would be able to do fitted into a very small box.

“I always wonder how catastrophic it would have felt if there were more disabled voices out there, if I knew that you could live a good life.

“I wouldn’t want to change the person I am now. But, by sharing my own experience and showing my vulnerability, I hope people will be more open to listening and learning.

“It feels to me like the way I can make a change. Disabled people deserve more than this.”

To Exist As I Am: A Doctor’s Notes On Recovery And Radical Acceptance by Grace Spence Green (Wellcome Collection), £16.99 is out now.

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