Terminally ill sailor 'nearly died at Christmas'

A terminally ill sailor from East Sussex who completed a solo voyage around the British Isles has said she almost died over Christmas.

Jazz Turner, from Seaford, lives with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, a debilitating genetic condition that affects connective tissue.

She became the first person living with disability to sail around the British Isles solo, completing the 2,070 mile (3,331km) trip in 27 days.

Looking back at her feat, Turner said there were times she thought about "giving up".

But it was her determination to achieve Project Fear, which is her goal to raise money for the charity Sailability, that motivated her to carry on, she said.

She added her partner, Lottie, who was her friend at the time of her voyage, also supported her throughout the journey.

"She was on-call for 24/7 for the full 27 days. She sent me supportive messages and songs to get me through the hard times," Turner said.

Following her return her health started to deteriorate, she said.

"I almost died at Christmas, it was a very scary time but it brought Lottie and I together," Turner said.

"That experience just highlighted life is too short, so it pushed us to get engaged earlier."

She said there was not "any way of coping", adding that at the time, she had a sense of "peace".

"I didn't have a lot of unfulfilled wishes left," she said.

Turner said then her health improved and she was "glad to get a second lease of life".

"I am still recovering, I am starting to do more and trying to get back to sailing," she added.

She said their wedding, which was "still at the planning stages", as well as Project Fear, "gave her something to live for".

Turner said she would continue to sail and support Sailability, a charity that supports people living with disability to sail.

She added she raised nearly £58,000 in her British Isles challenge for the organisation, which funded new equipment and their first team to compete nationally and internationally.

"Sailing has made a huge difference to my life," Turner said.

"But there's still a lot of barriers for people with disability to access this sport, and we hope we can give them opportunities to pursue their dreams."

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