Shark attack survivor Leah Stewart has shared that she is facing another skin graft, with a stubborn open wound on her leg still requiring treatment almost three months after the terrifying incident.
The 35-year-old was swimming between the flags at Sydney’s Coogee Beach on June 13 when she narrowly survived an encounter with a great white shark. She later underwent multiple operations in hospital, including the amputation of her left arm below the elbow.
In a video posted on Friday, Ms Stewart gave followers an update on her recovery, explaining that the wound on her leg remains covered in plastic as doctors work to help it heal.
She also displayed a portable device she jokingly called her “medical handbag,” which must stay connected to the injury while the healing process continues.
“I’ve had one of these with me for three months. I used to have one five times this size, but I’m very excited to have a smaller one now,” she told her social media followers.
‘It is a little machine that is connected to my leg. My leg is still an open wound at the moment.
‘Hopefully, it will be closing soon with my second trial at a skin graft. For now, this machine is pulling the wound together and collecting the excess fluid.’
The teacher said she was grateful for the device, although it could still be frustrating.
Shark attack survivor Leah Stewart has revealed she is facing another skin graft as the wound on her leg continues to heal
Earlier this week, Fox FM hosts Kate Langbroek, Brendan Fevola and Nick Cody questioned her account of the attack . Pictured, DJs Cody and Fevola with usual co-host Fifi Box
‘If there’s any movement on the leg, it will start beeping at you if you get a bit of air going in there,’ Ms Stewart said.
‘It needs to be charged, which is annoying. I’ll race home and plug myself into the wall.
‘I’m constantly harassed by this machine, but I’m very thankful for it as it’s helped with a huge impact [sic] on the healing of my leg.’
Ms Stewart’s update followed a challenging week after three radio DJs questioned her account of the ordeal which she had shared with 60 Minutes on Sunday.
During the televised interview, she described thinking about her daughter, deciding which arm to punch the shark with, and seeing the predator’s ‘black little beady eyes’.
But Melbourne radio hosts Kate Langbroek, Brendan Fevola and Nick Cody from 101.9 The Fox on Tuesday accused Ms Stewart of putting ‘a lot of mayo on’ – or embellishing – the story.
‘I’ve never been in this position and I wouldn’t understand what would go on, but if a shark was attacking you, you wouldn’t have much time to think,’ Fevola said.
Langbroek said: ‘No, most people say they don’t even know what’s happening.’
Ms Stewart had told 60 Minutes she decided which arm to use to strike the shark as it approached her during the attack on June 13 at Coogee Beach
The trio then replayed part of Ms Stewart’s interview in which she recalled coming face-to-face with the shark and, in the moment before it bit her, deciding to hit it with her left arm because it was the arm she was more ‘willing to lose’.
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Fevola said: ‘I was on the couch with my wife saying, “She’s lying. Too much time to think.” You’re not thinking all that, are you?’
Langbroek attempted to defend Ms Stewart, cautioning that neither of them could know how they would react in the same situation.
‘Mercifully, we don’t know,’ she said.
She pointed to professional surfer Mick Fanning, who famously fought off a shark during a competition in South Africa in 2015, and said his actions were a ‘reflex’.
But Fevola remained adamant that Ms Stewart had embellished parts of the story.
‘Come on, oh right or left? Like bro, you are amazing – you punched a shark in the face and survived – but you’re not thinking all that… That’s a lot of mayo,’ he said.
Ms Stewart, a teacher and mother to one-year-old daughter August, was a regular swimmer at Coogee Beach and said during the 60 Minutes interview that ‘time slowed down’ when she saw the shark approaching.
She said thoughts of her daughter flashed through her mind as she came face-to-face with the predator
Ms Stewart also appeared on the UK’s television breakfast program Good Morning Britain to share her story.
Australian social media users were quick to defend Ms Stewart and accused the trio of DJs of ‘poor form’.
‘Let’s add to her trauma and grief by undermining the magnitude of her experience,’ one listener wrote.
‘How utterly strong and brave is the inner spirit and fighting will in this survivor to will herself to live for her child and loved ones.
‘Why do these utter degenerates have a platform to spout their garbage in the first place? Fire them pronto.’
The Daily Mail contacted the radio program for comment following the criticism.
Ms Stewart later addressed the comments in an Instagram post on Wednesday night, saying she wanted to ‘be a bit vulnerable’.
‘Watching my Good Morning Britain interview, you may have noticed how calm I seemed describing the attack; the host even said it looked like I had no PTSD,’ she said.
‘Truthfully, I still feel disconnected from it, almost like it happened in a dream. I think that’s my mind protecting me while I begin processing it.
‘I’m very early in that process, but wanted to give a snapshot of where I’m at.’
Ms Stewart ended the statement by admitting that making progress was daunting for her.
‘Truthfully I’m a bit scared to move past this current state of mind,’ she said.