‘I lived in pain for so long – finally I’ve found a way to manage it’ 

Having been left with serious injuries in a cycling accident, Ian recovered from the physical impact but continued to suffer chronic pain. Here, he discusses how he has learnt to deal with it and get his life back on track.

“About two years ago, I was involved in quite a serious accident while I was out on my bike. I flew over handlebars and hit my head on the ground, leaving me unconscious.

I was left with an array of injuries, including decompression of two of the disks in my spine, which needed an operation to resolve. But from being in the ambulance after my accident – the earliest point I can remember after coming off my bike – I was in enormous pain.

While over time I have managed to recover my body functions, having struggled in the aftermath of the accident, I continued to experience pain. Most days were pretty tough. I was on a lot of medication, which contributed to my fatigue.

I was sleeping a lot, spending a lot of time in bed, I was very tired all of the time and in a lot of discomfort.

I’d always been very, very active, and enjoyed cycling, motorcycling, tennis, walks with friends and family, I was a very outdoors person – but that all came to a halt. The most I could manage was a short walk, and even then I was very fatigued.

I didn’t understand what was happening to me or why, it was just continuous, unrelenting pain.

By this point I had returned to work and the demands of my job. I was just about managing to keep on top of my commitments, but only just.

With a wife and two young daughters, my life had typically been very busy and very active, but now I was unable to do as much together, or spend as much time as I’d like with them.

This went on for over a year, and was, without doubt, the toughest time of my life.

My case manager helped me to find a solution which has enabled me to rediscover my life, through a programme called RESTORE, pioneered by RTW Plus. 

Through RESTORE, an online learning programme which supports you to understand and manage pain, and take back control of your body and life – which enables access to a consultant and support from health coaches 24/7 – I have been educated in what I can do to help myself.

All of a sudden, from not knowing what had happened to me and feeling helpless, I was supported in understanding what was going on.

Prior to that, what had happened wasn’t described to me that well, and I had so much medication that everything was often quite blurry. The concept of chronic pain wasn’t something that was addressed once my physical injuries had healed.

Through this programme, I was educated as to what had happened to me. As a keen cyclist, I’d had many accidents in the past, but all were short-term tissue damage, which were very painful at the time, but that pain went away. I now was able to understand why this time was different, and to be realistic in my expectations.

I’ve never been good at pacing myself, but now I was able to stop and think what it was I was trying to do, what I wanted to do, and how to manage and achieve that.

Crucially, by understanding my pain, I became less frustrated and less dependent on medication, meaning my life would not always have to be a cloudy blur. I became more confident as a result.

From believing this was how my life was going to be, not very pleasant and full of pain, now I had hope and confidence it was going to get better. There was light at the end of the tunnel.

Understanding more about pain got me really engaged, and I started reading about it and looking for examples. After work, I’d be picking up books and learning more. Having the knowledge about what is happening to you, and how to help yourself, is so powerful.

Having been able to come to terms with my pain during the 16-week course – it’s usually eight weeks, but was tailored around my busy work schedule – I could then get my life back on track, backed by the confidence I had rediscovered.

I’m now cycling every other day, which I haven’t done since my accident, and am getting my life back to what it used to be. I’m doing things that matter and spending time with my family, which is what it’s all about.

I realise I am on an ongoing journey with my pain, and that hasn’t finished and will continue for some time to come, but I’m in a good place now – a place I could never have imagined being a few months ago.”