Paul Hughes - ABI survivor – tells his story
My aneurysm troubles began when I flew to California in 2004 to meet up with old friends in Los Angeles and San Diego with my sons Jamie and Aaron.
On the flight over I sustained a slight headache but thought no more of it. We stayed for 10 days in LA before driving down to San Diego where I met up with my sister and booked into the Bahia Resort Hotel.
Overnight my headache worsened and my sister sent for a doctor, who in turn sent me to Mercy Scripps hospital where I was diagnosed with having a brain aneurysm.
I had not seen my friend in San Diego for the best part of thirty years (we come from the same town in the North of England), so the first time we met again was in the hospital in the intensive care ward and remarkably I recognised him immediately.
My wife informs me that my treatment in Mercy Scripps was excellent – I was insured for once.
As my brain began to recover from the surgery I began confabulating wildly and was apparently a great source of amusement to the nursing staff as I regaled them with tales of my adventures up the Amazon, kidnapping the queen of England and accusing an eminent brain surgeon of being a member of the Israeli Secret Service.
But I finally relaxed and knew I was in good hands when while being examined I looked down and saw my doctor was wearing cowboy boots. The cavalry had arrived!
The operation would appear to have been successful and I am extremely grateful to all at Mercy Scripps for the good care they took of me.
My wife flew over the day after the aneurysm to be with me and apart from taking a shine to my cowboy doctor was a wonderful support.
On leaving the hospital we were taken by chauffeur-driven stretch limo to the airport in LA (insurance again) and flown back to Ireland and on to Beaumont Hospital where I stayed for another 2 and a half months recuperating, while my wife struggled long and hard to get some after care for me.
Eventually we were blessed to find Acquired Brain Injury Ireland (formerly the Peter Bradley Foundation) through her efforts at an opportune time when they were expanding their services into the community. Their advice and help has proved invaluable – both to myself and the rest of the family. Not only have they given me tremendous support but they have also come to the aid of my wife on several occasions when the going got tough for her. Unfortunately she could not be here today, but she wants me to sing the organisation’s praises on her behalf. They have been a life-line for her on numerous occasions.
When they first began their support programme with me, I was visited four or five times a week and over the years as I have improved this was reduced and we are now down to once a month and they continue to keep check on my progress.
I would like to thank the Rehabilitation Assistants and all the others from Acquired Brain Injury Ireland who have helped me move on and restart my life after what it quite a life-changing and traumatic experience.
It goes without saying that I can never repay my family for the love and patience they have shown me in what has been a trying and testing time. I love them more than I will ever be able to express.
All of this love, effort and patience has allowed me to reintegrate myself into a working environment and this is proceeding apace with my son Jamie now talking about joining me in the carpentry/joinery business.
My work so far has consisted of general carpentry work – fitting kitchens, repairing furniture etc. But we have longer-term projects in mind such as producing rocking horses, and we have six of these on the go at present.
The challenges I have faced since resuming work have been varied. Memory is still a problem. If I am on my own I have to make sure I make a note of everything –down to the last screw, or the job will slow down.
Confidence is on the up. Initially I was wary of taking too much on and worried about my own ability to complete tasks. This is improving however.
Friends reactions have been much better than I feared – not at all negative or wary, but caring – giving me small jobs, taking me to concerts and the like.
As far as getting back to work again, planning and making notes is imperative and Acquired Brain Injury Ireland has been instrumental in instilling this into my daily routine. Where I would once have been able to rely on my memory as to what I needed for a job the following day, this is no longer the case, so again, note-taking is important to ensure flow and continuity, particularly if I am working alone.
This was particularly difficult initially after my youngest son Aaron stopped working with me, as he would act as the company memory for the both of us. Again, strategies such as work sheets, diary and phone reminders have come into their own.
I am also determined in myself to move on. My skills are still extant and if I use my memory aids that they have drummed into me, I see no reason why I – we – shouldn’t be able to move onwards and upwards – and if our rocking horse business takes off, that will be a positive to have come out of all the negatives. The Children’s Hospital in Crumlin will certainly benefit, as they will receive a horse in return for treating both of my sons when they were small.
A further positive was that I passed a driving test again – I had to go through this to prove to the insurance company that I was capable of driving safely.
Just one last thought again about my wonderful family – Chris, my partner for the last 30 something years (I know I probably don’t look old enough for that to be the case!) has taken over as head honcho like a duck to water – doing her job, looking after the house and me in her wonderful, cheerful fashion (most of the time anyway) and I love her to bits – my sister and my sons have also been wonderful and supportive and I am so proud of them.
So that’s it. I would like once again to thank everybody in the various hospitals and Acquired Brain Injury Ireland who have got me to where I am at this time.
Thank you.
Paul Hughes, ABI Survivor
Presentation made at ABI Information & Education Event Dublin , November 2007
