Alex’s Story

Hi there, I’m Alex’s mum and would like to tell you of my sons “story “ of the last 17 months.

On the evening of Wednesday 25th March 2020 2 days after lockdown I got a phone call that no mother wants to receive.

Alex had been involved in a motorbike accident while on his way to work.

I couldn’t attend the scene of the accident or go with him to hospital due to the pandemic.

Alex was in a critical, life threatening condition sustaining multiple injuries to his neck and spine partially injuring his spinal cord.

He spent the next few months in the Queens Medical centre in an induced coma on a ventilator fighting for his life after a 10 hour operation to save his spine.

The outcome was very bleak and I couldn’t be by his side to help him through it all.

Alex was later moved to the Spinal rehabilitation unit in Sheffield which was not at all plain sailing as due to COVID restrictions most of the help he needed was not available to him.

Alex is here today to tell his story but his diagnosis is a rare condition called “Browns Sequard syndrome “.

This means that half of Alex’s body is not responding properly due to the partial injury of his spinal cord.

He cannot move his left arm, his left leg is severely weakened and he cannot detect touch and temperature on his opposite side.

His left leg is also affected due to the spinal cord injury and causing him walking difficulties.

In Alex’s words “it’s like carrying half a dead body around all the time”

He cannot walk any distance and relies on a one handed wheelchair to go out for the day.

I’m pleased to say my son came home on the 1st August 2020 and is due to celebrate his 21st birthday next month (September) but life’s struggles continue as he has had only 6 physio sessions. My fear is Alex will require further operations to help his left foot but in the meantime we desperately need to get Alex help with Physio.

I would like to get him to the Matt Hampson foundation where mentally and physically he could get the help he requires.. This costs approximately £45 a session (1hr) in Melton Mowbray and I do not have the resources for the amount of time he needs.

He is waiting to be seen by different clinics but 12 months on after coming home we have been told it’s still a further 3 months.

Had we have not had a pandemic things would have been very different I’m sure.

Please help me raise some funds so that I can get him the help he deserves.

This would make a huge difference to Alex’s full rehabilitation to living as normal life he can and that he deserves being so young.

Thank you in advance.

Fran x