reply to post by infoseeker26754
I was told by the medical staff that if I hadn't been so fit and healthy at the time of the accident I would not have made it, luckily I was keen on
sports and quite competitive so at fifteen years old I was just about as fit as I could have been, the main key was the cycling, I cycled over forty
miles a day, what with my paper round, school journey and leisure activities, which along with playing football and competition weight lifting, my
body was about as prepared as it possibly could be to deal with major trauma. It was ironic that the bicycle was the reason I was on that particular
path that day and also it would seem to be the main factor in my survival.
I think the recovery was so speedy due to a multitude of aspects, I had a lot of friends and a large family, luckily I was brought up to have a
pleasant attitude so I had a lot of love and encouragement around me, this was probably a major factor too.
At that age I didn't want to be in a hospital bed, I had a keen and active social life and wanted to be out doing things with my friends, I felt I
was missing out and I was pushing myself hard to get back on my feet, sometimes too hard, and I put myself back a couple of times through nievity.
I was also missing out on a lot of education just when I was about to take my GCSE exams which further pushed me to get back to my old self as quickly
as possible, I had a lot of sympathy from my school and had hundreds of visitors whilst I was hospitalised but I don't ever remember feeling sorry
for myself, infact I am pretty sure to this day, I never have.
When I was moved from the ICU ward I was placed in a large shared ward with a group of adult males instead of a children's ward because the medical
staff thought it would be beneficial for my recovery time, they were right, some of the people in my ward were very sick and to be honest I really
didn't want to be there too long. On one occasion the gentleman opposite me died during the night, I am positive this was a factor in my recovery
time.
I guess to sum up the recovery I would suggest that because of my age I knew nothing of life, with exception to the way I lived mine, and my mind
wasn't of a nature to change, it was always positive and not willing to give up, luckily my body was just about in a position to keep up with it.
I never managed to get myself back to peak fitness but I was very active, very quickly, and lived fulfilling teenage years, I am not as healthy as I
used to be, obviously over twenty years on! But I am not restricted in anyway apart from the fact it is slightly uncomfortable to kneel, my scars have
healed well and are great for shock conversation along with proving the fact that girls realy do love big battle scars.
I do often think about how cruel the world is when the genius doctor who treated me and gave life back to countless others had to leave us the way he
did, I am sure there are a lot of saddened people, especially those he saved from car accidents, the human race lost a valuable asset that day.
The whole experience and subsequent rippling events did end up changing me, I don't take anything for granted, I would say that I have a lot of depth
of mind philosophically, and that I value life, friends and family a whole lot more than I did before it. I do believe that frequent thoughts of how
the events of that day could have been any different humble me and keep my feet and mind firmly grounded, maybe even a little extra cautious.