At three years old I caught measles. Since then I have always had some breathing problems. But I have always been active! I had a boat and grew up outdoors, I‘ve been a canoe instructor and my husband and I have always enjoyed being out and exploring. We even had motorbikes!
15 years ago I got a severe chest infection. This turned into pseudomonas and I was confined to a wheelchair, being supported by an oxygen tank. The doctor at the time told me I would most likely be in the chair for life. I might never be able to be active and adventurous again.
Being stubborn, I wasn’t having any of it. I refused to believe that that was my lot. How could I go from being that active and healthy, to get a chest infection and then just doing nothing?
I guess in those days there wasn’t the same treatment and anti-biotics there is now. But just like me, my GP wasn’t willing to accept that this was it for me. He sent me to a colleague on the mainland. This doctor told me that if I was slow and did things in stages, I could get some mobility back.
