Rhianna's story

Around October 2016 I entered the downward spiral of what I didn't know was going to be the hardest battle of my life. After months of being in denial, I finally sought help for my eating disorder, however, this wasn't easy. It involved many doctors appointments and being told by certain doctors "a baby eats more than I was" and to "just cut your toast into so many pieces". Finally, after losing nearly half my body weight in eight months, I was referred to the Derbyshire eating disorder team where things moved faster than I had ever anticipated and two weeks later on the 8th June 2017 I was admitted to a specialist eating disorder ward in Leicester. Here was where I spent the next six and a half months of my life facing my demons 24/7. Along the way, I met some of the most inspirational people I have ever had the honour of meeting and so nearly a year to the day that I was admitted I am doing this skydive. I want to do it show that there are so many exciting things that you can do when you're not in the depths of your eating disorder and that there is a life out there no matter how stuck you feel. I was due to go on holiday a week after I was admitted however was told I was too underweight to even think about getting on a plane, so for me to now be jumping out of a plane, is me truly leaving the past behind.

Daniel's story

On the 2nd of September 2016, I suffered a life-changing accident at work. I was involved in an industrial scale electrical explosion which caused extensive burns to my face and hands. I was placed in an induced coma and put on a life support machine. This was a very difficult time for my family and in particular Rhianna. Experts have told  Rhianna and I that my accident was the trigger to start her eating disorder. Due to this, I feel hugely responsible for what happened to Rhianna. To have to watch your baby sister rapidly deteriorate week by week is something I never imagined I would witness and would never wish upon anyone. She was days away from death and without the help and support of those charities who helped her recover I can't imagine what life would be like for myself and my family. Anorexia is something you only occasionally hear about or read about in the news, you never think it will enter your life and affect the life of someone you love. Rhianna has lost a lot due to anorexia. It forced her to leave university, it cost her a long-term relationship and lost her many friends. I feel there is a stigma attached to eating disorders, people avoid talking about them and acknowledging them, but if by jumping out of a plane I can stop just one other brother from having to see his sister's life slip away from them then its the least I can do. The charities and the staff that support people like Rhianna are pushed to their limits and are in desperate need of any help they can get. I'm eternally grateful for everything they've done for her and this is just my way of trying to say thank you for saving her life.