Help Ant: Spinal injury rehab & his return home!

On Sunday 15th January, Ant took his motorcycle for a brief post-maintenance test run on the bush block behind his parent’s farm.

 

Devastatingly, he had a collision with an electric mountain bike rider on a blind corner. Ant sustained spinal injuries and paralysis, was unable to move at the scene of the accident and was airlifted to Royal Perth Hospital.

 

MRIs have revealed that he has sustained compression to his central spinal cord at C6/C7, resulting in debilitating nerve pain and damage. He endured complete loss of mobility in his arms and hands, impaired motor function and was reduced to being able to only wiggle his toes.

 

He has spent the last three weeks in RPH undergoing medical treatment with his partner Stelle constantly by his side. Ant has had to learn how to stand and walk again. He is currently in a neck to waist full body brace and is slowly and arduously regaining these abilities.

 

Daily, he sees small improvements, has regained some feeling/ mobility in his left hand, and is fighting hard to rewire communications to the right. He is attempting to keep his mental pillars strong but the road back to normal, or Ant 2.0 as he has stoically coined it, will be slow and uncertain. He’s all in and positive, but he needs YOUR help and support!

 

Presently, he awaits a transfer to Fiona Stanley hospital to the state’s rehabilitation centre where he will work intensively on getting dexterity back to his hands and regaining the ability to walk normally again. Availability of beds/resources in this unit and the very nature of this injury render timeframes for major rehab and recovery uncertain.

 

Ant’s journey back to health and functionality will be some time. It will involve significant time away from work and loss of income for both he and his partner Stelle who has assumed an essential support and caregiving role these last few critical weeks and will ongoing. Ant and Stelle have just recently purchased their first home together. They wish to get him through rehabilitation and back to the southwest- resourced and supported to continue the journey- as soon as they can.

 

Ant has given much to the community in the south west of WA and beyond in his watery/ outdoors networks and has been there for many with a smile, wisdom and a good deed. We, his friends, water tribe and colleagues, seek to take some of the stress out of the equation and extend to the broader community an appeal to combat the loss of income and enable coverage of costly medical bills.

 

We aim to raise enough to support him in his recovery so he can focus solely on getting better; getting back to us all and to his full and active life!!

 

Ant sends a massive thanks and love to those who have heard the news and sent messages of support. Please keep these up! Tee up a visit in person to keep his spirits up: give him hugs, get him outside and smuggle him in some real food and enrichment! ;)

 

From us: Thank you for helping this legend meet the challenge! We’ll update you as a collective (and Ant will!) on progress and rehab milestones.. and, of course, on when he meets the sea again!!!

 

Xoxoxoxxo PLEASE SHARE as widely as you can!!! xoxoxo