Portrait: Stephen

A little bit about Stephen 

I got hit by a car in June 2015. I suffered from 3 brain hemorrhages, a broken neck and an ABI.  I was in an induced coma for 6 weeks during which they discovered that I had a defused Axion brain injury. While I was still in my coma, my parents were told that I would not wake up or that I would be in a wheelchair for the rest of my life, with a 10% chance of recovery.  

My recovery 

I was admitted to the Central England rehabilitation Unit (CERU) in Warwick. Following intensive therapy, I started to emerge from my coma. After 7 months, I was told that I had to leave CERU. Fortunately, I lived with my parents pre accident so arrangements were made for me to continue living there with a care package and rehabilitation from the care in the community team.  

After 2 and a half years, I was told that my rehabilitation funding was ending. Luckily, I had a personal injury claim going through the courts. This enabled me to attend a 2 months private rehabilitation unit using an advancement of the money from my claim.  

When I came home, I was advised to acquire a case manager to oversee my rehabilitation. This was achieved by hiring a physiotherapist and an occupational therapist. These were paid for from my court awards and I am still using them.  

What’s missing from recovery 

Had I not got a settlement, I would not have been able to pay for this treatment. I feel very fortunate as I know of people from CERU that have no financial backing and cannot access the treatment they need.

This is something I feel strongly about and changes within the NHS should be made to cater for people with brain injuries. 

Favourite quote 

A quote that really helped me during recovery is: “Surround yourself with positivity”