A hiker who fell 60ft down a Scots waterfall described it as a "miracle" he survived - but feared he would be left paralysed.
Dad-of-one Gerry McLelland, 39, slipped on rocks at Grey Mare's Tail, Moffat, Scottish Borders, on January 14. He plunged down a waterfall, but remembering to use cold water therapy breathing techniques, he managed to survive.
Gerry said he believed his "time was up" and he was going to die, after being submerged in the freezing cold water. He narrowly avoided plunging down a second 60ft drop - saying he isn't sure he would have survived a second time.
Gerry, who planned to run three marathons in 2023, suffered a fractured back, and shattered his right leg and ankle, but initially feared he was paralysed as he could not feel his legs after he was winched into an air ambulance.
Medics who operated at the major trauma unit of Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow said he was lucky to survive, and he believes it was a miracle.
Gerry, who works as a maintenance engineer, is recovering at his parents' house in Wishaw, North Lanarkshire, and his daughter Erin Doyle, 20, is his main carer.
During his five-night hospital stay, Gerry would wake up in the night screaming, the sound of the air con unit reminding him of the sound of the rushing water.
The keen hillwalker, who cycled around Palestine to raise money for charity in 2019, said he is now virtually bedbound and can sit up for only 30 minutes at a time. He expects it to be six months before he can work again and hopes to take part in a marathon in the West Bank next year, after doing one a month in 2019.
Gerry said: "The night before there was quite a lot of rain, the water was really really powerful. It was nice to sit and look at and do some meditating. I didn't think there was any danger.
"On the way back down, at the top of the stream, I slipped into the burn. It was that powerful, it took me into the water. I'm 14.5 stone and it was taking me away really quick. The water was submerging me, I have been thinking about that every day.
"I was calm about it when I was in the water. I knew the drop was coming so I covered my head, and hit every rock on the way down. The lucky thing is my head avoided major trauma. My fear since being a kid is drowning.
"The power of the water was pushing me under. I couldn't get my head above the water. I was thinking 'I'm going to die, I'm going to die'.
"I had to accept this was my time, I stopped fighting and let myself go. That saved me because the current pushed me away from the waterfall, it gave me a split second to grab something.
"The noise was overwhelming but it was followed by complete silence. I thought 'this must be me dying'. When I dropped from the waterfall I realised I was still awake.
"If I didn't pull myself out there, there was another 60ft drop. I don't know if I would have been lucky enough to survive."
Grabbing onto rocks Gerry managed to pull himself out the water, he saw his foot was twisted in the wrong direction.
He said: "As soon as I got out, my foot was twisted the wrong way round, my legs were completely gone, so was my pelvis. I didn't know my back was broken. My friend couldn't get to me because I pulled myself out at a cliff."
He managed to signal to a rescue helicopter which was flying overhead after his friend called for help. Gerry said: "The pain was unbearable. They were rubbing my toes and shins and I couldn't feel anything.
"I was thinking I was paralysed. I'm a marathon runner, I love getting out and about, you take it for granted. Because I was in the water for so long, my legs went numb.
"It wasn't until they got me into hospital and they put a heated blanket on me, I was screaming in agony."
Scans showed his pelvis and right elbow weren't broken as he had initially feared, and medics decided not to operate on his back but put plates in his ankle.
Gashes in his head were glued closed but although medics are pleased with his recovery so far, Gerry said even the ordeal of a hospital visit leaves him wiped out.
A fundraiser set up by a friend has raised £2,540 so far. Gerry said: "I have always been terrified of drowning, since I was a kid. Every time I closed my eyes I could see the water and hear the water.
"The air conditioning unit above my bed sounded like rushing water. I couldn't sleep, when I was dozing off I would wake up screaming.
"I'm having dreams about it but nowhere near as bad as in the hospital. Every day is healing, it is like a waiting game.
"I had three marathons booked for 2023, I'm a very determined and stubborn person so hopefully once the cast comes off I can get back to running marathons. Everything that happened that day, it's all kind of a miracle.
"I'm trying my best just to be positive. I'm very grateful for the people in my life, the wee things that you take for granted, being able to put your trainers on and go for a walk.
"I want to make a full recovery. I can sit up for about 30 minutes but then I need to lie down again. I had never broken a bone before, it's kind of daunting. I was getting panic attacks, it is going to be a long road.
"They have said six months, I am having good days and bad days. I'm here, I'm alive, but I've got no concentration, I can't read a book. I just remind myself that every day is going to be better.
"I'm very fortunate to have my mum and dad, my daughter has been a godsend, so has my brother and the friend who set up the fundraising page. It was terrifying for her.
"I didn't think I was ready to be discharged, I was terrified in case something happened. I'm very fortunate and very grateful."
To donate, visit the fundraising page on the JustGiving website.
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