August is Road Victim Awareness month. To highlight the importance of road safety, we wanted to share the story of one of our clients, Theo*. His partner has recounted the story of his accident and the impact this has had on Theo and their whole family’s life.

Theo’s story

“How our family’s life was turned upside down. When you hear road traffic accident you think of the casualty, bur reality is it effects the whole family. Let me tell you our story.

It was a hectic family morning. Theo left to go to work as normal and I called him once his shift had finished and told him I was going to bed. That was the last normal conversation we had.

Fast forward to 2:30am, there was a knock on the front door. There stood two police officers asking to come in. My heart felt like it stopped for a few seconds. Theo had been knocked down by one of their own. It was a race against time, they didn’t think he would make it. At the scene he was breathing eight breaths a minute and had a GCS score of 3. He was incubated at the roadside and on arrival to the hospital I was told the next 24 hours were critical. Survival was slim, he has already had eight pints of blood and more needed, he had a severe brain injury, fractured skill, his right eye had blown, he had fractured his spine in several places, broken ribs, collapsed lungs, perforated liver, broken arm with the bone out of the skin, broken pelvis in three places and internal bleeding. He had deep cuts and bruises over his body and his body was swollen. Theo had to have chest drains put in.

The start of his recovery

I sat telling him he needs to pull through this and fight for his children who were eight and thirteen at the time. Three and a half weeks he was in intensive care and had many operations. This included major brain surgery, where they had to remove some of his frontal lobe. In June he came off the ventilation and I knew this was going to be the start of recovery together. We would prove everyone wrong who said he would always be in a vegetated state.

Two days later the kids visited, they would be his inspiration to fight to get to his best ability. From intensive care he went to the major trauma ward, then he moved to a neurology centre. That is where the hard work began with physio, occupational therapy and speech and language therapy. He began to make small improvements moving limbs and would whisper the odd word. From here they said they would move him to a complex rehabilitation unit, where he remained until April 2020. During his time here he had daily therapy sessions with me by his side all the way. When he wasn’t in sessions, I was doing my own therapy with him.

Before covid hit, he gained the ability to put a few words together and worked his way up to a normal diet and normal fluids. He would go to the café in the hospital his kids and try to be a ‘normal’ family. He would make me a cup of tea with support from therapy staff. The determination was there, he wanted to come home.

Covid hit and he was forced out of the rehabilitation unit into a care home. I didn’t want him here, but he remained here until August 2021. Finally, after a battle, we got him out. During covid and whilst in his home, after a few months he started to regress. Theo didn’t want to be there, and he became behavioural. He was put on multiple sedatives, disengaged with therapy, stopped speaking and made vocal noises. He dropped to level five diet and level two drinks. It was the longest sixteen months speaking over facetime and having no visits. This had a huge impact especially when he said he hates it there and spent most of his time watching TV in bed.

In August 2021, we got him out and into another care home. I could visit again and felt the journey to recovery could once again start. He did it before and he can do it again. Over time, he started to make small improvements and went up to level six diet and started to take some steps with a special walking frame. He enjoyed seeing his kids again.

This wasn’t enough.

The search was on for a property to bring him home. He stopped engaging again and was spending most of his time in bed watching TV again. He had home visits twice a week and he was like a different man. The home visits provided a few family trips for us which he loved. These moments made the determination to get him home as soon as possible even stronger.

Looking to the future

We bought a property which was adapted for him, and he finally came home in December 2023. This is where the most progress has been made. Seven months on he is on a normal diet and fluids with restrictions and is supported by staff to walk around the house with his walking frame. With the support of two staff, he has helped cook and has baked with the kids and he can tie his own shoelaces.

Theo goes out daily with two carers in his wheelchair and he has enjoyed a holiday for three nights, where he rode a go-kart with his son, the first time since the morning of his accident. His own goal is to walk without support hopefully in the future.

This is not the end of the story; it is only the start. I believe with his new found determination he will continue to improve to the best of his ability, our own superhero.”

*The client’s name has been changed for their privacy