Milly Pickles

Nearly eight years after losing part of her leg in a life-changing accident, Milly Pickles has built a career helping others see what's possible after adversity. Through social media, sport and broadcasting, she has become a source of inspiration for amputees around the world. But her journey began with a challenge that changed her life forever.

In 2017, Milly was working at Chelsea Football Club on a placement year in Marketing as part of her degree at Bournemouth University. Having secured what she considered a dream internship, she felt her future was heading in the right direction. "At the time I was so happy that I had got this internship. I thought to myself that my life was made and I was on the career path that I wanted,” said Milly.

Just two months into her placement, Milly was involved in an electrical accident that left her fighting for her life. Over the next two and a half months, she was treated across three hospitals and underwent more than 25 surgeries. Initially, it was likely that Milly would lose both of her legs. However, her surgeons were able to save one leg and part of the other, and in October 2017, she underwent a below-knee amputation.

Despite the life-changing nature of her injuries, Milly remained positive throughout her recovery journey. While in hospital, she spent time reading, learning Spanish through Duolingo and finding ways to keep her mind occupied. It wasn't until around eight weeks into her stay that she began to feel frustrated by being confined to hospital and unable to be as active as she wanted.

Receiving a wheelchair gave her more freedom and allowed her to spend less time confined to her bed. She also developed close friendships with hospital staff and even found herself supporting other patients who were facing amputation.

After leaving hospital in December 2017, Milly spent the next month continuing to learn new skills, completing online marketing courses and teaching herself to DJ before receiving her first prosthetic leg in January 2018.

She adapted quickly and progressed through rehabilitation faster than expected. During this time, she met Abdul Hakim, now a prosthetist at Dorset Orthopaedic's Amersham Clinic. A few months later, she was introduced to Natalie Heaton, another prosthetist at the Amersham Clinic, who continues to support her today.

Returning to everyday life was not without its challenges. As she continued her recovery, Milly was adapting not only to life with a prosthetic leg but also to the physical and emotional changes that followed her accident. While rebuilding her confidence took time, she remained focused on what she wanted to achieve next.

Determined to move forward, she returned to work at Chelsea Football Club in February 2018 before going back to Bournemouth University later that year. She went on to graduate with a First-Class degree in Marketing. “I've always been focused on moving forward. Setting goals and having something to work towards has always motivated me,” explained Milly.

After first sharing the news of her amputation with friends and family in December 2017, Milly spent time documenting her recovery and searching for others with similar experiences. In January 2020, she began posting publicly in the hope of connecting with other amputees, but her first TikTok video unexpectedly received nearly two million views. Encouraged by the response, she continued sharing her journey, helping to increase the visibility of amputee life online and building a supportive community around her content.

Today, one of the things she is most proud of is helping others feel more confident in themselves and encouraging them to share their own experiences. "I'm so glad that I posted that first video and I'm very proud that I've been able to inspire so many people to feel confident enough to show off their amputation and prosthesis,” said Milly.

As her audience grew, so did the opportunities. Within months, Milly was approached by Gymshark to become a brand influencer. This was a particularly exciting moment for Milly as she had written her university dissertation on the company's influencer strategy and had ambitions of one day working for the company.

Having always been active, Milly was later fitted with a running blade and set her sights on competing at the Paralympics as a 100m sprinter. For several years, she trained up to four times a week with a running coach, while continuing to document her fitness journey online and inspire others through her content. Reflecting on this, Milly said: "I used to tell myself all the time that I was going to be involved in the Paralympics one day.”

At that time, Milly believed that involvement would come as an athlete. However, the platform she built through social media ultimately led to a different opportunity. In 2024, Channel 4 invited her to present at the Paralympic Games after discovering her through her online content. While it wasn't in the way she had originally imagined, she had achieved the goal she had spoken about for years.

She has since gone on to present for the BBC at the London Marathon and now describes broadcasting as a dream career that grew from her willingness to try new experiences and share her journey with others.

Looking back, Milly believes that every challenge she faced helped shape the opportunities that followed. When asked what her advice would be to others, she said: "What you're going through might feel like the hardest thing in the world, but it won't always feel that way. You can still do everything you did before, you just have to do it differently.”

Reflecting on the mindset that helped her navigate her recovery, Milly adds: "See everything you're going through as part of an adventure. It's an opportunity to learn more about yourself and discover what you're capable of."