Brian's story
Brian Carrington left his house in Barbados one evening to run to the store. He, his wife and son were departing for a vacation the next day and needed supplies.
But the long, relaxing trip with his family wasn’t in the cards for the 38-year-old. Instead, Brian’s quick errand took him down a different path – the longest of his life.
A car collided with his motorcycle and Brian was rushed to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Bridgetown. The impact shattered his pelvis. Surgeons pieced it back together and held it in place with a device called a fixator – a series of pins and rods that protruded from his midsection during the early days of his recovery. During his 30-day stay at the acute care hospital, doctors removed it, but the pain remained. Brian’s bladder had been injured, and the wreck had also taken both arms out of commission. He’d dislocated his right elbow, and both wrists and hands were riddled with fractures -- so he couldn’t slide a finger down the screen of his smart phone or comb his hair. Worse, he could no longer stand up or walk on his own.
“My life has changed ever since,” he said.
But rehabilitation might help him regain some of what he lost, doctors explained. So, after consulting with his insurance company, Brian found an answer across hundreds of miles of ocean at West Gables Rehabilitation Hospital. There, a physician-led team of physical, occupational and recreational therapists joined with nurses to help Brian begin the hard work of reclaiming his life.
When he first arrived, Brian was nervous. “But I was motivated at the same time,” he said. “I knew the road was going to be long and tough. It’s a marathon, not a race.”
His 10-year anniversary with his wife, Rhea, was coming up, and Brian wanted at least a modicum of his old life back – riding motorcycles, cycling and traveling with her and their 16-year-old son. Brian wanted to stop being a burden, get out of the hospital and taste a nice sangria and a decent cup of coffee.
When he first tried standing, Brian was unstable on his feet, so a gait belt – a strap they fit around his midsection they used to hold him upright while he worked on moving from place to place. They also used a harness connected to cords that attached to the ceiling. The harness held most of his bodyweight as he worked on balancing and walking.
Brian slowly began to build strength and confidence and soon started moving around on his own.
Physical therapists took Brian to the hospital’s gym, where we worked with weights and resistance bands to build strength in his hands and arms. He also sweated on the leg press machine and an exercise bike, where he slowly began to rebuild strength in his legs.
Meanwhile, occupational therapists worked with him in a manual wheelchair, giving him strategies for daily activities, such as getting dressed on his own and feeding himself. Rhea joined him, learning how to help him reach his clothes and bathe himself.
Each milestone fueled Brian’s thirst for more. “It gives me the motivation to continue improving,” he said. “I’ve gotten accustomed to my own personal marathon.”
After nearly two months at the rehabilitation hospital, Brian was ready to leave. He’d regained much of his strength. He could comb his hair again. Scrolling on his phone was no longer out of his reach. And he could walk without any assistance.
Brian will need more surgery on his right hand, after which he plans to return to West Gables for another round of rehab.
“My rehabilitation experience has taught me that even though my stakes and chips are low, through hard-work, dedication, perseverance and great support, it is possible to once again get back to where I was before,” he said.