After 11 failed rounds of IVF, Jessica Hepburn knew she had to make a change. “I was desperate to feel alive again,” she says. That drive took her from a decade of heartbreak to the top of the world—literally.
In 2021, at age 51, Hepburn completed a life-defining challenge by reaching the summit of Mount Everest. But her triumph quickly turned to trauma when, during the descent, another climber accidentally dropped an oxygen bottle. It struck her leg, knocking her into the snow.
“I can’t get up,” she recalled, terrified and in pain. Her leg was severely injured, and the group was too high for a helicopter rescue. Hepburn had to crawl and limp for two days to reach Camp Two, where she was finally airlifted to a hospital.
Despite the injury, she had completed the final leg of her self-created “Sea, Street, Summit Challenge”—swimming the English Channel, running a marathon, and summiting Everest.
A Life Far from Adventure
Years earlier, Hepburn’s life looked very different. She spent her evenings on the sofa, recovering from long days as Executive Director of the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre in London.
“I wasn’t the adventurous type,” she admits. But in her early 30s, she and her partner began trying to start a family. After a year of failed attempts, doctors diagnosed them with unexplained infertility. They turned to IVF.
Over the next ten years, the couple faced multiple miscarriages and an ectopic pregnancy. Hepburn says the period was the most painful of her life. “I was desperate to be a mother,” she says. But after the eleventh IVF cycle failed just after her 43rd birthday, she knew it was time to stop.
Rediscovering Purpose Through the Sea
With her dream of motherhood fading, Hepburn decided to focus on a new goal. She remembered a childhood promise she had made to her father—to swim the English Channel.
She began researching and found a coach named Jon who offered open water swim training in Formentera, Spain. Months later, she arrived on the island and dove into cold, unforgiving waters for the first time.
“It was freezing and horrible,” she says, “but it marked the start of my new life.”
After months of preparation, Hepburn was ready. At 1:30 a.m. on September 2, 2015, she entered the dark waters off Dover and began swimming toward Calais.
The 21-mile journey tested every limit. She was violently ill and stung by jellyfish across her body and face. Still, she pressed on. After 17 hours, 44 minutes, and 30 seconds, she reached France.
“It felt like my own version of labour,” she says. “Nature hadn’t given me a child, but it gave me this.”
Turning Pain Into Motion
The Channel swim was a turning point—but not the end of her heartbreak. Soon after, her relationship ended. Emotionally devastated, Hepburn looked for another goal.
Running a marathon had always been on her bucket list, and in 2017, she signed up for the London Marathon. She ran for Fertility Network UK, a charity supporting those affected by infertility. The training process gave her a new focus, and running through the streets of her hometown brought a sense of renewal.
While training, she listened to her favorite show, Desert Island Discs. In one episode, comedian Jimmy Carr said, “Working out what you want from life is the most important question—and once you know, getting it is comparatively easy.” The words struck a chord.
Hepburn decided she wanted one more adventure: to climb the world’s tallest mountain.
Summiting Everest and Completing the Challenge
She trained for years. In 2021, Hepburn reached the summit of Everest, becoming the first woman in the world to complete the Sea, Street, Summit Challenge. But she paid a price. The accident during descent led to serious injury and trauma.
Still, she has no regrets. “Even the difficult moments taught me something,” she says. “I wouldn’t change a thing.”
Redefining Fulfillment
Hepburn now reflects on her experiences with pride. “For years, I felt ashamed that I couldn’t do what so many women do—become a mother,” she says. “But my journey showed me that life can still be extraordinary.”
Adventure, she believes, is for everyone—whether it’s climbing Everest or simply trying something new. “You don’t need a big trip to feel alive,” she says. “Micro-adventures count too.”
She hopes others will be inspired to live fully. “We all have limited time on this beautiful planet. Let’s live our biggest, bravest, best lives.”
From Memoir to Motivation
Jessica Hepburn shares her story in her new book, Save Me From the Waves: How Adventure Changed My Life. Set to the soundtrack of Desert Island Discs, it chronicles her evolution from couch-lover to record-breaking adventurer.
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