W
L
BEN'S JOURNEY BACK...
A car crash seven years ago has helped one Wirral man inspire
others with his journey to recovery.
Ben was involved in a road traffic accident in June 2012 which
resulted in him suffering a traumatic brain injury and being
placed in a coma.
He was asleep for 10 days at Liverpool’s Walton Centre until he
finally woke up not remembering the accident at all.
Ben had suffered a closed head injury, causing swelling on his
brain, meaning that he had to be placed in a coma to allow
the pressure to subside. He had suffered physical injuries too,
dislocating and breaking his shoulder, breaking his jaw, his ear
canal was crushed, and he was unable to swallow for a period
of time.
Ben worked for 18 months to fully recover from the physical
injuries sustained in the accident, but he never really
contemplated the damage to his brain and the impact this would
have on his life.
He started to suffer with extended periods of being irate, short
tempered, as well as suffering with anxiety and panic attacks on
a daily basis but was determined to prove people wrong and to
carry on with life as normal.
The arrival of his daughter in the summer of 2015 changed things
for him. Up until this point, Ben had never asked for help and
he had not told anybody about how he felt. He was put in touch
with a brain injury team based in Chester who diagnosed him
with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Neuro Fatigue.
With this diagnosis, Ben tried to manage them with techniques
he had been taught and what he had read about. But then three
years after the accident, in 2015, Ben’s brother Tom, was attacked
outside a night club and suffered damage to his skull, resulting
in a bleed on the brain which meant he too had to be placed in
a coma.
Ben then started to write things down about his accident, how he
felt and how he tried to piece things together. With the help of
his wife and his family, he was able to get a clearer picture. Tom
was kept in a coma for around two and half weeks and has now
made a full recovery, despite having to take daily medication for
seizures.
Ben decided to send off what he had written to various publishers
thinking that it might help others in a similar situation. One
agreed to commission him to write a book and "An Unexpected
Journey: Surviving a Brain Injury," which was published in
March 2018.
He has received many messages from fellow brain injury
survivors who it has helped on their journeys to full recovery.
Following its success, Ben has become involved with different
charities, including Head Injured Persons in Cheshire (HIP),
where he attends events and delivers talks. He has recently given
a talk at "Me Again", a breast cancer charity and he is delivering a
talk at the Storyhouse Theatre, Chester in October 2019, as part
of the Kaleidoscope Festival 2019.
Ben now works as a chartered accountant but has recently
completed qualifications in Neuro Linguistic Programming,
Well-Being Coaching and Mindfulness Coaching. He now takes
on clients with a view to improve their well-being and general
happiness.
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