As all those with spinal cord injury, I have an AchillesHeel: for some it is tissue viability, others bowel complaints and there are those who struggle to cope with spasms. For me the constant battle is to avoid picking up yet another urine infection – glamorous I know! The North West Spinal Injuries Centre has looked after me extremely well however we are all still baffled by the root cause of my ongoing difficulties – the team will continue to battle on to find an answer!
Archive for category Health
Urine Tract Infection
Aug 6
Syrinx/meningitis
Dec 23
Well, it has been quite some time since I have written a post however I do have a genuine excuse! Over the course of this year I had been experiencing odd physical changes which I could not explain – increased spasms, sweating below the level of spinal cord inury ( T9/10) and pain above the level of my paralysis. After an MRI scan I was found that I had a fluid filled sack ( called a syrinx) in my spinal cord just above the site where the sever occurred 9 years ago. It was decided that an operation was desirable at this stage to firstly try to stop the progress of the syrinx and symptoms and secondly hopefully improve the symptoms and shrink the syrinx by allowing the CSF ( cerebo-spinal fluid) to flow more freely.
The spinal surgery went ahead on 23rd September but there were complications meaning I lost a lot of blood and the original procedure was substituted by necessity for a more invasive one.
2 weeks later I fell extremely ill, the operative wound burst and cerebo-spinal fluid was leaking freely. I found I had contracted post operative meningitis. I was immediately put on 3 weeks IV antibiotics and a drain inserted in my spine for 2 weeks. A second spinal surgery operation was carried out.
I am delighted to say I am feeling much better now, gradually spending more hours work and increasing the time I spend in my wheelchair.
Health
Jul 29
In the past couple of months my health hasn’t been as super as I would have liked. Increased spasms, neurological pain, sweating under the level of paralysis and sometimes fever symptoms have all left me lethargic and unable to train at the intensity I would like. Therefore – with a very heavy heart- I have had to pull out of the England Disabled team for the National Triathlon Relay Championships in Nottingham next weekend and the London Triathlon the week after. This was an extremely difficult decision for me to come to however whilst the North West Spinal Injuries Centre investigate the root cause of these problems I have been advised not to push myself physically and in any event I have not been fit enough to prepare correctly for the competitions. This is a frustration of my compromised functionality but I am sure I will be back in full training in no time.
Well, I did it!
Yesterday saw the the first ever national Disabled Triathlon Championship take place and my own first competition. I shall post photos and video footage hopefully in the next few days but what an event! I came third in my disability category and know I can improve in several areas:-
1) acclimatise to the open water for longer/do more open water training.
To me, swimming in a lake compared to swimming in a pool is like chalk and cheese. I was doing well at the start of the swim but then after 75 or so metres by body just appeared to start closing down, I couldn’t move and dropped to dead last in the race. I was very close to getting in the rescue launch but managed to pull myself together and get moving again. Actually seeing where you are going is also very difficult in a murky lake without your glasses on and my breathing was erratic so more work is needed here!
2) Transitions
It took me forever to a) get out of the lake and b) get out of my wetsuit and I really lost a competitive advantage here. The answer? practice but also a wetsuit with zips on the legs.
3) Cycle
I lost some time here despite putting full effort in so I can only assume that and cycle technology has come on somewhat in the last 10 years! I shall check this out as a priority.
I complete the course in 1 hour 49 minutes and 9 seconds and to break 1 hour 50 mins was I personal target so I am delighted by this. A big ‘thank you’ has to go out to ‘team Fletch’ a motley gang of friends and family who helped me in the transition phases and motivationally generally.
Fish, chips and mushy peas followed by chocolate digestives went down a treat after the day’s exertions!
Right, when’s the next one?!
Great Manchester Run
May 21
On Sunday I competed in the Great Manchester 10km run in support of ASPIRE, a charty raising awareness of , and assisting people with, spinal cord injury. Next year I will have to race with the elite wheelchair athletes as I spent the whole time it took me to complete the race ( just under 40 minutes) shouting at people to ” MIND YOUR BACKS!” and “WHEELCHAIR COMING THROUGH!”. Unfortunately some people could not hear me due to running with their i-pods on and as a result I collided with a number of my fellow runners!
Crisis!
May 15
CRISIS! I woke up yesterday morning with terrible left wrist pain, got lulu ( my wife) to take me to A & E where they confirmed I have tino synovitis ( inflamed tendons)= a repetitive strain injury. The hospital have provided a splint but state the only remedy is rest – I have the Manchester 10K on Sunday and the BIGGIE – National Champs – on 1st June.
What to do? Anti-inflammatories and go for it?! I am the fittest I have ever been, going great guns in ALL disciplines and I need/want to compete!
We shall see.
For training I should no doubt concentrate on swimming – lowest impact, not the RSI action.
Tri Training
May 6
Apologies all, my blog is becoming a monologue on triathlon training – it is taking over my life! Nevertheless if I am to complete, nevermind compete, at the national champs on 1st June some hard work needs to be done!
My swimming is ‘coming on a treat’ now I can swim front crawl with the aid of a wetsuit ( 750 mtrs in 22 minutes). racing chair technique is also coming along, despite picking up a puncture on the weekend.
Transitions
Apr 22
On Sunday, 20th April, I attempted for the first time a transition stage of the triathlon. I chose the transition from hand cycle to racing chair. I am allowed one assistant so I was ably assisted by my wife Lucy. Unfortunately the transition took 8 minutes and certainly placed a strain on matrimonial harmony! The main problem relates to placing my legs – which are long – into the right position in the racing wheelchair and then fastening them in correctly. This weekend is the training camp with British Triathlon so I am looking forward to picking up tips to shave a lot of time off the transition phase.
Ribble Valley Villages Ride
Mar 31
On Saturday I embarked on my biggest cycling challenge to date – the Ribble Valley Villages ride. I am chuffed to write I successfully completed the circuit which takes in such picturesque villages as Downham, Great Mitton, Ribchester, Old Langho, Billington, Whalley, Wiswell, Pendleton and Worston.
It was a beautiful day and the scenery was simply stunning.
The 47kn ride took 3 hours 50 minutes which is a lot longer than I would normally have liked however the terrain was extremely challenging :- up ‘ill and down dale! My companion on the day – Kral – was very patient in waiting for me to struggle up each gradient.
An exhausting but incredibly rewarding day.
Doctors in New York have announced new research which used the body’s own nerves to bridge the gap in the spinal cord left by paralysing injuries.
Experimenting on rats, researchers took an abdominal nerve from the spinal column just above an injury and reattached it to the spinal cord below using a protein ‘glue’. Two weeks after the procedure the rats showed some signs of improved movement as the nerve began to grow and formed new connections. Electrical impulses send down the spinal cord caused twitching in the lower limbs, indicating that connections had been made. Other abdominal nerves compensated for the lost connection so there were no ill-effects in the abdominal muscle. Worries are that this nerve may not be able to cope with taking on the more sophisticated role of the spinal cord, and that whilst the position of the spinal cord injury in the experiment suited the use of the abdominal nerve, if the injury was higher or lower on the spine finding a nerve that could be readily ‘sacrificed’ without creating other problems might be difficult.