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Beauty spot (Forward - Winter 2024)
When Maddi Neale-Shankster, 23, from Coventry, took a trip to the beautiful island of Koh Phangan, Thailand she didn’t expect to return weeks later with a SCI.
Maddi shares the story of her injury, rehabilitation, and her determination to help others and continue her career:
Can you tell us about the night you sustained your injury?
I’d been out the night before for the full moon party in Thailand. We’d got back to our room, but I couldn’t sleep, I was tossing and turning so I got up. I went out onto the balcony and facetimed my little brother and I sort of blacked out. I have three memories, one of me falling from the balcony, one of me in the ambulance and one of me in the hospital. My next memory was on the 4 January, four days later.
What happened after you were taken to hospital in Thailand and how long did you stay there?
I was in the hospital in Thailand for two weeks which is when they put the metal in my back. The language barrier was difficult – there was only one person in the hospital who spoke English, the anaesthetist. She was good and came and checked if we needed anything but for everything else, we had to use Google translate. Once you are given your bed there, you are left to manage things yourself, so we were having to ask them for my medication on time. In terms of bowel care, I just thought I wasn’t going to the toilet. It was only when a friend from the UK said I should go to the toilet before I get on the plane that I realised it was an issue. We also didn’t get told anything about pressure sores so by the time I came back from Thailand I had one on both feet and one forming on my bum.
What are your main memories of the weeks that followed in Thailand?
Just waiting to come home. Once I had the operation there wasn’t anything more they could do. I just don’t think they had the resources. My mum and dad flew over – they booked a hotel but spent shifts in the hospital with me, so I was always with someone.
When you realised your insurance wouldn’t cover your repatriation, a GoFundMe appeal got you back to the UK. How did it feel to know so many people were supporting you?
It was really shocking. I just didn’t expect it to happen as quickly as it did. We needed just short of £70,000 to get me home. The money was raised in 24 hours – it was really amazing. I was repatriated back to the UK from Thailand on the 16th January.
Where did you do your rehabilitation on your return to the UK and how was that?
The hospital couldn’t do anything with me until my pressure sores had healed. I was on a waiting list to go to the RJAH hospital for four weeks and once I was there, I was on bed rest until the end of May. So, I missed my biggest chance of recovery because of the bed sores.
You were a beautician prior to going to Thailand. During rehabilitation, what thoughts were you having around your career and how your injury would impact that?
To start with I wasn’t thinking about it a lot but once I was off bed rest I had so much free time I used to get on the bus and go to the hairdressers when I was able to, which made me feel so much better. It made me think ‘I can still do this’. I got my mum to bring all my nail stuff down to the hospital and I’d go round and do the nails of some of the patients. One of them had never had nails before and now she always has them. Being in a wheelchair shouldn’t mean anything – we are all just as beautiful as each other. I’m now renting a nail desk in a beauty room in a salon and want to keep doing my beauty work.
How has your attitude to life changed since your injury and the journey you have been on since that night?
It’s definitely hard with good days and bad – it’s been an eye-opening experience. The way I was raised I would never look at anyone differently for their disability, race, gender etc. It wouldn’t even cross my mind. But since I’ve been the one in the wheelchair, I see the looks people give me for no reason. I find people either go the extra mile to help or they run in the opposite direction.
What do hope for in your future, your career and life in general?
I see me helping people. There’s a lot wrong with the world that I wasn’t aware of before I was in this position. Down to the situation with carers, how people are treated, situations at hospitals with bowel care etc. I think there’s a lot wrong that I would like to help people with.
More information
This article was featured in the Winter 2024 edition of FORWARD magazine
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