HONOLULU, Hawaii (KGMB/CNN) – A yoga instructor who got lost in a Hawaiian forest for more than two weeks says she survived on berries and river water.
Amanda Eller had a broken leg and had no shoes. But she refused to give up, saying she had to choose life over death. “The last 17 days of my life have been the toughest days of my life and it’s been a really spiritual journey that I was guided on,” Amanda explained.
It was a voyage Amanda described with her ecstatic boyfriend in her hospital bed. “There were times of total fear and loss and wanting to give up and it did come to life and death and I had to choose. And I chose life,” she said.
Eller was spotted by rescuers in a helicopter and hoisted out of peril in a lush Maui forest Friday.
Eller lost her shoes which were set out to dry in a flash flood. She lost her ability to walk properly when she broke a bone in her leg. But hope was not lost.
Amanda said, “Seeing the way that the community of Maui came together, people that know me, people that don’t know me all came together just under the idea of helping one person make it out of the woods alive just warms my heart.”
The yoga instructor and physical therapist shed almost a pound a day for each day she went missing. 15 pounds total.
Her doctor expressed surprise and relief at how well she looked. “Tears came down because we have all been following her story,” Dr. Zora Bulatovic said.
The physician explained how the model patient survived on river water and what food she could pick. “eating Fresh fruits from the trees, trying to keep her nutrition up so she was very well educated in that so she knew exactly what to take and managed to stay well hydrated.”
Julia Eller is Amanda’s mom. She said, “She’s a trooper, man. She’s a real warrior and I had no doubt that if anybody could make it through it, it was her.”
Amanda Eller fought for her life and won, armed with undying spirit and true grit.
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