HEALTH & BEAUTY
Regain your confidence
At Liberty Physiotherapy
Everyone looks forward to going on holiday to relax and make happy memories in the sun.
But in 2010, Graham’s dream holiday to Turkey turned into a nightmare when a split-second decision led to a catastrophic spinal injury and the fear of being paralysed forever.
Then aged 43, Graham, from
Bawtry, was holidaying in Icmeler when he returned to the apartment after a boat trip, primarily spent fishing. It was a roasting August day and Graham did what many people would have done to cool down – he jumped in the pool. However, he misjudged the depth and hit his head on the pool floor, breaking his neck in two places.
“Everything went numb and the next thing I remember was waking up in Marmaris hospital,” Graham says. Following an X-ray and CT scan, Graham was told he had both a C3 and C4 spinal cord injury and there was nothing more the doctors at Marmaris could do. He was then transferred to Izmir, over four hours away, where he had surgery to reposition the two dislodged vertebrae which had damaged the spinal cord.
Graham then spent a week in intensive care which he says was not the best of places.
“My brother and sister flew out to take it in turns to care for me as
there was very little nursing support on the ward and the language barrier was a real problem.” Then there was the cost of the treatment. He had to pay to be transferred and admitted to Izmir and even bought his own neck brace. Before he could be discharged, Graham was given a bill for 10,000 Lira which needed to be settled immediately. Fortunately, Graham had a £22 insurance policy which meant everything was dealt with swiftly. “As part of the insurance
procedure, they had to breathalyse me to check if I’d been drinking; if alcohol had played a part in the accident, my insurance would have been void. I’d only had two bottles of beer while out on the boat.” After being discharged towards the end of August, a British doctor and nurse flew out from the UK to accompany him home. On landing in Birmingham, Graham was transferred straight to the Princess Royal Spinal Unit at Sheffield Northern General Hospital where he stayed until January 2011. During his stay in Izmir, he’d developed bed sores from the lack of primary care which needed addressing before anything else and so subsequently delayed his treatment. The first time he got out of bed was in November and that was
to begin physiotherapy. “All I could move was my little
finger, but that showed that I wasn’t going to be paralysed – there was hope I’d walk again.”
After five months in the spinal unit, Graham then spent a further four months in the Magnolia Lodge Rehabilitation Unit at Tickhill Road Hospital in Doncaster where he received NHS physiotherapy Monday to Friday until May 2011. Progress was slow and Graham did start to regain movement but his family decided he needed further self-funded physiotherapy for his quality of life to change. They were recommended Liberty Physiotherapy due to their specialist work with neurological cases.
Since 2016, Graham has been having weekly one-hour sessions with Tamar which have changed Graham’s life in more ways than one. “Tamar just knows what she’s doing. When I first came she could tell I’d had physio but not to a satisfactory level – it needed to be more in-depth. At the beginning, I was still having 30 minutes of NHS physio a week but they discharged me once they learnt I was going to Liberty; they said they’ll do more with you than we can and to me that speaks for itself.”
Since coming to Liberty, Graham has worked with Tamar to retrain his brain to do the basics such as sitting and standing correctly. Thanks to the right treatment, Graham is finally able to walk unaided – a huge step in just three years when he was
assisted by a carer to each session. His injury has affected Graham’s upper body more than his lower, particularly his right side, so they have been working on lifting his arm and reaching to regain movement and strength.
“The main difference with Tamar is that I can talk to her openly about my progress. One huge goal was that I wanted to drive again – I’d been an HGV driver for 22 years before the accident. Tamar kept telling me there are worse people than me driving and encouraged me to reapply for my license at the beginning of 2018. I picked my car up in the August, eight years after the accident, and do use a claw to hold the wheel with my right hand but I’ve got my freedom back.” Graham lives at home with his mum who helps cook for him but he also has help from carers who come to get him up in a morning and put him into bed at night. “I’ve gained much more
confidence since I’ve been coming to Liberty. They say don’t run before you can walk but I’ve got the determination to keep improving. I can climb the stairs, get myself in the shower, brush my teeth and have a shave. I go swimming twice a week and have a scooter when I go out shopping.
“I still go to hospital once a year for a check up and they’re pleased with the progress I’m making as it reaches a decade since the accident – they always say I’m doing better than they ever expected.”
Have you been told you have plateaued in your rehabilitation? Let us help you take the next step along your rehabilitation journey
Specialists in the following neurological disorders: • Cerebral Palsy
• Spinal Cord Injury • Traumatic Brain Injury
• Stroke • Multiple Sclerosis • Parkinson’s
• Chronic neck and back conditions
Revolutionary Neuromuscular - Energising Therapy (NET)
A hands-on treatment technique that can open pathways to aid recovery, many years after the initial trauma.
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aroundtownmagazine.co.uk
Hollowgate House, Hollowgate, Rotherham S60 2LD
Tel: 01709 837752
email:
admin@libertyphysiotherapy.co.uk www.libertyphysiotherapy.co.uk
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