Yawn of doom: UK woman snaps neck in bizarre mishap

WEB DESK: In what might be one of the most unexpected medical emergencies of the year, a 36-year-old mother from the UK found herself in a life-threatening situation after, believe it or not, yawning! Well, with a yawn too enthusiast to be exact.

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According to a website titled Oddity Central, the said mom, named Hayley Black, was up early one morning tending to her baby daughter, Amelia, when she saw the infant let out a sleepy yawn. Naturally, mum followed suit. But instead of a relaxing stretch and sigh, Hayley was hit with what she described as an “electric shock sensation” that left her arm frozen mid-air.

“I knew straight away something was wrong,” she said. Her husband, Ian, quickly called for an ambulance, and soon Hayley was rushed to Milton Keynes Hospital, doubled over in pain and confusion. Initial scans came up empty, but a closer look at her neck revealed a truly freak accident: her C6 and C7 vertebrae had snapped forward into her spine, all from the force of the yawn.

“It was crazy,” Hayley later said on TikTok. “They told my mum it was 50/50 whether I’d walk again, or even survive.”

Emergency surgery saved her life, but not without lasting effects. Doctors removed two discs from her neck, leaving her with permanent nerve damage and a tracheal scar. She spent six months in a wheelchair and had to relearn how to walk, and now lives with fibromyalgia, a chronic pain condition that affects her daily life.

Even today, Hayley says she can’t yawn without a wave of anxiety, and any missed medication sends painful shocks through her body. “I still get pain down my arms, up my neck, and into my head,” she said. “It’s scary. A yawn nearly cost me everything.”

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Though the ordeal has left her with lifelong reminders, Hayley is grateful to be mobile and alive, and now has a story so surreal, it’s hard to believe it didn’t come from a medical drama.

Moral of the story? Stretch gently, yawn carefully. And maybe don’t try to outdo your baby at it.