Bride Breaks Leg on First Night of Her Bachelorette. After Surgery, She Bedazzles Perfect Boot for Her Big Day (Exclusive)

Kurstan Hyams made the best of a difficult situation after breaking her tibia amid bachelorette festivities

• A bride-to-be was ready for the time of her life on her bachelorette party, but things took a turn after she broke her leg on the first night out

• Kurstan Hyams tells PEOPLE she learned that not only would she need surgery, but that she'd be in a boot for weeks beyond her wedding date

• Not only did Hyams, with the help of her bridal party, make the best of her trip's turn, but she dressed her boot up to rise to the occasion of her wedding day

Kurstan Hyams knew she wanted an unforgettable bachelorette party. But she didn't have any idea just how unforgettable it would be.

The bride-to-be embarked on a beach trip with friends in August to celebrate the special occasion. The original plan was for the group to enjoy a week at the beach, with themed games and a dinner each night. That plan required some adjustments after the first night, however, when they embarked on a boat trip in the bay.

"The captain stopped to let us swim at the end of our boat trip when my friend and I decided to do the back flip. They told us the water was shallow so we asked to go to deeper water. The captain pulled the boat to the deeper side of the bay and dropped the anchor but where the anchor was the boat could still spin," Hyams explains to PEOPLE.

"We had stood there for about five minutes after checking the depth before jumping in and when we did my one leg hit a sand bar. I’m so thankful it wasn’t both legs, but as soon as I hit I was thrown back forward because my leg broke on impact."

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The bride began to panic, and her friends sprung into action. Her mother-in-law picked her up and held her. When they took a look at the bride's leg, "we knew it was really bad."

"My first response was, 'Will I be able to walk down the aisle?' " she shares.

Once at the hospital, Hyams learned that she would need surgery. She was hopeful that would be the worst of it, until after surgery, when she learned she'd have to walk in a boot for months. Her wedding was just weeks away.

The first 48 hours after the injury were hard for the bride-to-be.

"I was in so much pain and my body hadn’t regulated to it yet, so if I didn’t have pain meds I wasn’t doing well," Hyams explains.

"I actually ended up back in the ER the night it happened due to pain but once we got through the first 48 hours, I knew it was time to make the best of it. The reality was I couldn’t come home because of the risk of blood clots until I was stable enough to travel so, to me, the only option was to have fun and make the best of it. You only get one bachelorette party and one wedding."

With that spirit in mind, Hyams teamed up with a friend to decorate the boot she'd be walking in on her wedding day.

"When I found out I would be in a boot for the wedding, one of my really good friends and I decided to decorate a boot specifically for the wedding," she says.

"She got online and ordered a light gray one, and we went to Hobby Lobby. It was so fun picking out the decorations. When we got back, we sat down on the floor and stared at it, thinking about how we wanted to do this. I just started decorating and we took it step by step. It was completely freestyle and it turned out so perfect."

Hyams credits her bridesmaids for helping keep her spirits up and "doing everything possible to make the rest of the trip as fun and worth it as possible. Those memories will last a lifetime, and they bonded us in ways we hadn't before."

She's also thankful that her husband has been "loving and supportive" as she has navigated this unexpected situation.

"It has been a very difficult time for us because I broke my leg and ankle, had surgery, and then lost my job. But every step of the way, he has been positive and supportive, which has been very important for my healing," she raves.

"He is so quick to help and to find ways to get me through. He would take me out of the house to get ice cream even when I didn’t want to and hold me when I cried — because it hasn't been easy despite the positivity I want to show online."

The reaction from people online has also helped keep the bride in good spirits, though there have been some people who haven't "been kind," she says.

"The reaction online has been insane. I never in a million years expected so much surrounding my situation. It has been so amazing, and some days have truly kept me going," she shares. "With that said, some of the reaction hasn't been kind and that’s been a difficult adjustment, but I try to keep my eyes fixed on the positive because it’s truly amazing."

Hyams and husband Grant tied the knot on Oct. 19, and she was proud to show off her boot as she celebrated the nuptials.

"Rocking the boot the day of was so fun. It made me feel like even though I was hurting on my wedding day, at least I had my boot to make it a little bit better," she says. "It was gorgeous and blended in perfectly. Some guests didn’t even realize I was wearing it until after the fact!"