Jill is open to sharing her story and between climbs is available for speaking and writing engagements.
Sharing her experience from the lowest of lows to adventures among the highest of the Himalayas and her change of perspective after a traumatic brain injury, Jill’s story of losing sight yet gaining vision will resonate with audiences, live or virtually, around the world.
Her positivity and resilience, coupled with the humor with which Jill tales the chapters of her story, will leave any audience feeling inspired and is sure to trigger tears of laughter, heartache, and gratitude.
A compilation of Jill’s media features is summarized here.
To connect contact: jillewheatley@gmail.com
Featured
Explore Magazine Feature
2023
Explore Magazine features a feat far bigger than any mountain.
If there’s one thing JIll Wheatley knows, it’s that life does not always go according to plan.
Pursuing Peak Perspective
2023
Impact Magazine has featured a short story that moves high above a fight for life to the Himalayas
Moving Mountains: Perspective and Possibility from Brain Injury and Vision Loss to the World’s Highest Peaks
2023
Thankful for the Canadian Concussion Legacy Foundation who asked me to share as part of their Inspiring Stories features.
Global News: Visually-impaired Canadian woman sets records on the world's tallest mountains
2023
A Canadian climber is reaching remarkable heights and shattering records along the way but what's more significant is where she was forced to climb out of to get to the top.
Rocky Mountain Outlook: Visually Impaired Mountaineer's Tall Task
2023
Jill's Feature in Canmore Alberta's Rocky Mountain Outlook
Choosing My Response: The National Post
2022
Choosing how I respond to TBI and Vision loss with Canada's National Post
Overcoming Mountains of Adversity
2022
From ParticipACTION Canada, the Active Champions Series is a monthly showcase of inspiring stories highlighting the importance of physical activity and sport in our everyday lives.
Red Bull: Moving Mountains
2021
We dive into tales of internal climbs as well as those in the Himalayas that surround me, from the side of a Khumbu trail, I recently had a chat with the Red Bull team.
Ultrarunner Magazine: From 70% loss of sight to enjoying the trails & mountains
2021
Learning from life’s mountains, Jill shares where she finds strength, sunshine and lessons since traumatic brain injury shifted her trail.
Outpost Magazine: In the Light and On the Trail
2020
From a dodgy descent to igniting another’s fire on a crisp Khumbu night, I find power in perspective and find light on life’s trail.
Podcasts and Interviews
Podcast: Ambiguously Blind
2023
Talking all things change, challenge and choosing my response when life's trail gets rocky... from the Rockies.
Human Triumph: Climbing the Highest Peaks after a TBI and only 30 % Vision
2023
Jill is a former athlete, teacher, and coach whose life took a dramatic turn when a traumatic brain injury (TBI) left her with impaired vision, stripping away her independence and changing her world completely. Yet, even amidst the darkness, Jill's unwavering passion for Mother Nature and her unyielding spirit drove her to reclaim her life and conquer unimaginable heights.
Partially-sighted Mountaineer Climbing the World’s 14 Tallest Mountain
2023
We meet Jill Wheatley, a partially-sighted mountaineer looking to summit the world’s 14 tallest mountains.
Jill Wheatley: Mountains of My Mind
2023
New episode of Let's Take This Outside with @mtnsofmymind - Jill is a mountain climber currently climbing the world’s 14 peaks above 8,000 metres, with only 30% of her vision.
Podcast: Climbing 8000m Peaks With 70% Blindness
2023
On The Mic With Parth: Jill Wheatley is a Canadian mountaineer and runner. A few years ago she suffered a traumatic brain injury causing her to loose 70% of her vision. But that did not stop her from dreaming big. She went about climbing 6x8000m mountains in less than a year and is aiming to finish all 14 very soon!
The Travis Macy Show
2023
Listen in as Travis and Mace lead a fun , educational, and compelling conversation with Jill and Ryan Haebe about living fully after traumatic brain injury.
Freetrail Podcast
2021
My conversation with Dylan includes goosebumps and gratefulness, stretches from dark places to embracing the nature of impermanence and all that inspires us to explore our potential in pain caves and amoung the highest of the Himalayas.
Matt Walker Adventure Podcast
2021
As I prepare for Manaslu, I take a timeout to talk with Matt, a mountaineering guide and psychologist, about the here and now, how I am using the lessons life has taught as I prepare for my first 8 000 m climb.
Ambiguously Blind Podcast
2021
A chat about the chapters that have come between playing in the shadows of the Bavarian alps to where I find myself now, adventuring in those of the Himalayas.
See Through Podcast
2021
Speaking about my traumatic brain injury, vision loss, eating disorder and all the waves that have roared in the wake of my TBI, I aim to break down shackles stigma can hold as a result of labels.
Biographical Articles
Globe and Mail Feature: Conquering Life's peaks and valleys from Kathmandu
2020
Rachel Brady describes how I was up in the Himalayas when COVID-19 shut down Nepal yet far bigger mountains have been overcome.
Wilfrid Laurier Alumni Magazine: Conquering Mountains
2019
From the dark cavernous caves to the highest of the Himalayas, perspective can make challenges appear mountainous or possibilities look infinite.
Included In
Outside Magazine: Rob Krar's Never-Ending Race
2019
Ultramarathons are a form of suffering Rob Krar can control—unlike his struggle with depression. I am a small part of his story yet hugely inspired.
Guest Author
Moving Mountains: Perspective and Possibility from Brain Injury and Vision Loss to the World’s Highest Peaks
2023
Thankful for the Canadian Concussion Legacy Foundation who asked me to share as part of their Inspiring Stories features.
Building My Base Layer
2019
Prioritizing personal needs can feel selfish and indulgent. Like base layers and every single step climbing a mountain, small things matter.
Nourishing Success: Learning What it Takes to Flourish
2018
Only once I moved head in the cycle of acceptance was I able to find my feet and flourish.