Lisa Theris, Alabama Woman Missing For Months, Survived On Wild Berries, Mushroom

Police in Alabama reopened an investigation into the case of a woman named Lisa Theris, 25, who went missing in July. She was reportedly found naked by the side of a rural road Saturday.

Theris told investigators she survived on wild berries and drinking muddy water, reports said Tuesday.

"Oh man, it was the most surreal moment of my life," Will Theris told the BuzzFeed News about the moment he learned that his 25-year-old sister had been found alive. "I was in the mindset that the worst had happened. So when I got word she was found alive, my whole world flipped upside down again."

Judy Garner, who was driving along Highway 82 in Bullock County, found Lisa on Saturday. At first, Garner mistook her for a deer. However, she later stopped by to help after learning it was a human being.

"I started shaking. I was crying, I was scared, and I didn’t know what to do," Garner said. "So I went over to her and asked her if she would stay there while I get water out of my van. She stayed, and I called 911 and told them I had found a girl on the road."

"I gave her a hug and said, 'You poor thing. You’ve been through a lot. I don’t think she could have made it much longer," Garner recalled telling Lisa.

Lisa, who had been missing since July 18, was found naked and covered in a rash of bug bites and scratch marks after having spent a month in the woods and lived on berries and puddle water. Lisa told Garner not to leave her side after which she dialed 911.

Chief Anthony Williams of the Bullock County Sheriff's Department was the first law enforcement officer to arrive at the scene.

"That’s my first time ever witnessing someone in that condition," Williams said.

Lisa was transported to a nearby hospital for treatment but was later released to her family's home in Louisville, Alabama. Williams said none of Theris' injuries were severe, according to BuzzFeed News.

"She's in severe pain but is slowly improving," Lisa's brother Will said. "She was able to eat a slice of pizza on the second day."

Will also said his sister was in critical condition when she was taken to the hospital.

"She's lost at least 50 pounds and her entire body is torn up," he said. "But she is as strong as they come and is handling it all as well as anyone. The doctors said it will take at least a full month to recover her health."

Theris' brother Will wrote an emotional Facebook post along with a picture of his sister. The post read: "28 days stranded out in the wilderness and Lisa is still standing, strongest person I know." In another post, he wrote that having his sister home felt "like a dream."

Police said Lisa was last seen on July 18 when she went into the woods near Midland with two men who broke into a hunting lodge in Midway. After she was found, she said that she did not want to be a part of the robbery and hence she fled the scene. Her family had filed a missing report on July 23.

The two men, Manley Davis, 31, and Randall Oswald, 36, were arrested nearly two weeks after Lisa disappeared and were charged with stealing $40,000 (£31,100) worth of goods including four-wheel drive cars and chainsaws, according to Huffington Post.

"She's not familiar with this area and apparently on the night she ran, she went into the woods at night and got lost," Raymond Rodgers, sheriff of Bullock County said.

Police also said they were not sure if Lisa was a history-sheeter, however, they would question her once her health improved, according to New York Daily News.

"We’re giving her some time to let her body adjust back to normal," Williams said. "And maybe she could give us some insight and fill in the blank spaces." Police are still in a dilemma how she survived physically her month long ordeal. However, Lisa told them it was her will to live stemmed from her love for her family.

"When I asked about what she ate, she broke down and started crying, but she said the main thing that kept her alive was her family," Williams added. "Her mother and her father, she said. That really gave her the will to live. She survived thinking about them."