A Glasgow gran who has been paralysed three times in 20 years is now a a qualified scuba diver, exploring oceans and deep sea wrecks all over the world.
When Margaret Shearer woke up at a friend's house in Miami, Florida on the morning of December 31, 2001, then aged 50, she was paralysed from head to toe.
Medics feared she'd suffered a 'double stroke' and thought they'd found a tumour on her spine.
In fact, her spine was inflamed and, after a series of tests and scans, Margaret was diagnosed with transverse myelitis(TM); a neurological disorder that can derive from infection and causes inflammation of the spine among other serious health issues.
READ MORE: Teenager rushed to hospital after three-vehicle smash on Lanarkshire road
The debilitating, incurable condition varies in severity. Margaret, now 71, lives in 'constant pain' and has endured recurring paralysis three times so far.
But the determined retiree from Shawlands hasn't let the cruel condition stop her.
Every time she's been paralysed, she's battled through rehabilitation, learned to walk again and re-sat her driving test, passing with flying colours.
READ MORE: Teenager rushed to hospital after three-vehicle smash on Lanarkshire road
In a bid to 'prove she can do anything' she took up scuba diving a couple of years ago.
Margaret told Glasgow Live: "The first time I woke up paralysed in Miami I was terrified. I never had any health issues before and all of a sudden I couldn't move and didn't know if I would again.
"TM changed my life. My first paralysis was that Hogmanay morning in 2001, I had recurring paralysis in 2006 and then again in 2007, going through intense rehabilitation and physiotherapy each time."
She added: "I am in constant pain, especially in my upper back area. I I use my wheelchair outdoors as I can fall without warning. My left leg has regained mechanical function, but not sensory. My right leg has no function and feels like its in icy water. My right arm has regained some strength, but spasms when overused. I have a colostomy stoma pouch to empty my bowels.
"But I won't let TM stop me, life is for living."
Despite her crippling ailments and often being bound to a wheelchair, inspirational Margaret got into scuba diving a couple of years ago.
READ MORE: Glasgow Southside cafe can't become Thai takeaway as owners lose appeal
Training in Gourock led to theory exams in Largs before heading to southern Spain to gain her Open Water Scuba Diving Licence and Western Australia thereafter where she picked up her advanced scuba certificate.
"Being in the water makes me feel normal again," she added.
"The fact that I was in a wheelchair made no difference to my instructors.
"I have since dived in Australia, the Red Sea in Egypt, Indonesia, Thailand and the Great Barrier Reef, specialising in deep sea wrecks."
When she's not exploring the world's oceans Margaret likes spending time with her three sons, Blair, Ryan and Ross as well as her two grandchildren.
READ MORE: Glasgow jury told 14-year-old ecstasy death schoolgirl 'gargled, fitted and was rigid all over'
She's volunteered with Victim Support Scotland for 25 years, having just retired, as well as the Glasgow Commonwealth Games. She set up the Scotland Transverse Myelitis Support Group and the Worldwide Facebook Group for Parents of Children affected TM and other similar conditions in 2003.
"The people I have met, the places I've been and the things I've done since TM have been gratifying and joyful.
"My hope is that others with TM will experience as many positive adventures and look back and wonder, as I do, at how much they have accomplished."
Sign up to Glasgow Live newsletters for more headlines straight to your inbox.
Transverse Myelitis Awareness Day is on June 9. For more information visit the NHS website.
