THE scar running down Lucy Rivers’ forehead means she will never forget her 31st birthday celebrations.
For, in a horrific end to a low-key knees-up with pals, the mum-of-four had the tip of her nose brutally
BITTEN OFF.
She was left looking “like a monster” and refused to leave her house for months.
Heartbreakingly, her young kids were so frightened by her appearance, they burst into tears whenever they saw her.
Lucy needed plastic surgery to reconstruct her left nostril and septum during SIX operations.
She says now: “My physical scars are healing but the emotional trauma still runs deep. It’s certainly one birthday I won’t forget in a hurry.”
And although Carolyn Sherred was later jailed for the attack, Lucy admits the court experience was horrific: “Carolyn’s family glared at me the whole time as if I was the guilty one.
“Every time I looked in the mirror and examined my injuries, I was reminded of that awful night.”
Lucy had been celebrating with her boyfriend Kevin Brown, 31, and some of their friends in November 2013.
Lucy, from Southampton, says: “I didn’t fancy a wild one. When we left the pub we grabbed some food before heading to the casino for the evening.
“Everyone was in good spirits. Then on the way home, my friends suggested we go to this house party nearby.
“I wasn’t sure. I was ready to call it a night and I didn’t even know the host. But my mates reassured me that Carolyn had said anyone was welcome.
“It was my birthday night out and my friends weren’t taking no for an answer, so I tagged along.”
But Lucy began to regret dragging along her tree surgeon fella Kevin — who doesn’t drink — to Carolyn’s house party in Holbury, Southampton.
Lucy said: “I could tell he didn’t want to be there. I felt guilty I’d dragged him to this party where we didn’t know anyone, so I suggested we leave.”
Kevin also offered Lucy’s friends a lift home and they made their way to the door. But Lucy felt a sharp pain hit her chest — Carolyn had thrown a cigarette butt at her.
Lucy says: “It came out of nowhere. Carolyn followed me out of the door and started yelling abuse at me.
“She was shouting and swearing, asking what I was doing in her house. She had a crazed, evil look in her eyes.
“I didn’t have a clue what was going on but it was clear she was brewing for a fight.”
Lucy says: “I thought she was going to smash it across my skull but, thankfully, her mates managed to calm her down and coax the bottle out of her hands.
“I had no idea why this madwoman was trying to attack me but, before I knew it, she had launched herself at me, grabbing the back of my head and pulling me to the ground.
“I was trapped and terrified. I barely knew what was happening, when I felt her bite me, sinking her teeth down hard into my nose.
“I watched her spit out what looked like blood before Kevin grabbed me and pulled me to safety. I was in agony.
“Kevin bundled me into his car. He grabbed a sheet off the back seat and gave it to me to try to stop the bleeding.”
The pair made the ten-minute trip back to their four-bed council house and Kevin helped Lucy inside.
Lucy says: “I was in a right state. He flicked the light on and turned towards me. I’ll never forget the look of horror on his face.”
Lucy looked in the mirror. She recalls: “I barely recognised the person staring back. I looked like an extra from a gory horror movie.
“This stranger had bitten a chunk of my nose off and left a gaping hole there. I could see the bone inside.”
Lucy was taken by ambulance to Southampton General Hospital where medics cleaned her wounds and gave her a tetanus injection, before being transferred 20 miles to Salisbury to be assessed by the plastic surgeon.
She says: “I was so nervous. I didn’t know if the surgeon could fix my face or not. I felt like a monster.”
Lucy says: “I felt sick when the surgeon described the operation.”
Thirteen days after the brutal attack, Lucy underwent reconstructive surgery. It was a success but she spent the next few weeks recovering in hospital and had to return for a further five operations.
Constantly in and out of hospital, Lucy missed her kids Ellie, now 11, Bonnie, nine, Layla, four, and Alfie, three.
She recalls: “They burst into tears whenever they saw me. They were scared of my mangled features.
“It was heart-breaking. I terrified my own children. But I didn’t blame them — I looked like the Elephant Man.”
In June last year, Carolyn Sherred, 23, was sentenced to 21 months’ jail by Bournemouth Crown and County Court after admiting grievous bodily harm.
Lucy says: “The only good thing to come from all this is that Kevin and I are stronger than ever.
“He’s been my rock. I couldn’t ask for a better man by my side.”
Blinded by stiletto
TWENTY-year-old Sophie Robinson was left blind in one eye after best friend Melissa Causer attacked her following a night out.
Causer stamped on Sophie’s face three times with silver stilettos following a row that started over hairspray.
Causer, 21, of Middleton St George, near Darlington, was found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm with intent at Teesside Crown Court and jailed for seven years in September last year.
Sophie, from Brompton-on-Swale, North Yorks, had told the court she now struggles to trust people.
In another incident earlier this year, drunk girls were seen brawling on the streets of Nottingham — in a row over Chicken McNuggets.
Witnesses said the fight erupted after a food order got mixed up.
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