Pride of Guernsey: Veterinary nurse wants to show you can achive your goals

Sophie Veron, 24, has been nominated for the Guernsey College of Further Education-sponsored Overcoming Adversity Award.

At the age of 13 she developed scoliosis. After the problem got worse and her breathing was affected, she had a 12-hour operation to fix her spine with metal rods.

After returning to Guernsey she developed chronic fatigue syndrome and missed two years of school.

After going back to school part-time, she achieved nine GCSEs and then four A-Levels, after managing to attend sixth form full-time.

However she then began to lose the use of her legs and after months of tests was diagnosed with hydrocephalus, water on the brain.

She had a shunt fitted which drains excess fluid from her brain into her abdomen, reducing the pressure, and was able to walk out of hospital three days later.

She was desperate to get better because she was going to university to study to become a veterinary nurse.

When at university, her time there was not straightforward.

Over three years she had 10 lots of brain surgery as her shunt kept failing and she suffered a haematoma and an infection on the brain.

However she has now not had any surgery in nearly three years and has achieved her dream of becoming a qualified veterinary nurse.

Miss Veron currently works part-time at Isabelle Vets and was nominated by director David Jefferey

She also wants to raise awareness of hydrocephalus and in connection with that, Miss Veron plans to cycle from London to Paris this September. She will be using a three-wheeler because her balance is not good enough for a normal bike and she will be raising funds for Shine, a charity that helps people who suffer with hydrocephalus.