Last year, Emma Davies Jones was the victim of a hit and run accident whilst on the way to the Manchester Velodrome. Our hearts went out to Emma and her family when we heard that she had sustained serious spinal injuries.
Initially Emma was taken to Manchester Royal Infirmary where she was assessed and then transferred to the Spinal Injury unit at Hope Hospital, Salford.
Emma has shown huge strength and determination on the road to recovery and refused to lose hope that she could get to the Melbourne Commonwealths this year.
Emma has just been given the all clear by her consultant neurosurgeon, so as she is able to look forward to The Commonwealth Games we wish her every success in completing her emotional journey.
Here's Emma's account of the last few months.
How did you feel when you were in hospital - were you kept well informed on your injuries and the likelihood of getting back on your bike? How much support did you have around you?
Everything happened so fast to me. One minute I was lying on the ground and the next I was being told I had a broken back. It all seemed a bit surreal to start with. I thought that I would be discharged and told I had just badly bruised my back which was why initially I was so keen to sit up and just ride off to the track and complete my gym session. It only hit me about 2 days later when I was just lying there and it dawned on me what I had done.
The medical team took great care of me and kept me informed straight away. I was really lucky as the A&E consultant was a keen cyclist and he recognised me straight away and I think he was keen to help and reassure me that it was not the end of my career. I was fortunate as well that my orthopedic surgeon who has seen me through numerous injuries in the past was in theatre that day and the A&E consultant knew him. Phil Hirst (orthopaedic) came down straight away and dealt with the situation and referred me directly to a neurosurgeon at Hope Hospital.
"When you lie on your back and can not move, going out in the rain training sounds like fun"
My medical team around me grew to three people who were all reassuring me that although initially things were bad (there was a sharp fragment of bone dangerously close to my spinal cord) if the treatment was right now then nothing was out of the question. I kept asking about the Commonwealths and initially my neuro just said 'if there is a chance, we will get you there, but I am not promising anything.'
My mum was a nurse and so she took good care of me and she managed to decipher a lot of what I was being told into language I could understand. It was frightening, as I had to go for several scans in the first 12 hours and surgery was an option depending on the bone fragment. Surgery was discussed at length and I was told of the positives and negatives.
I made the decision to let it all heal naturally, for the time being the bone fragment was safe so there was no need to get that out of the way of the spinal cord. If I had an operation there was a chance that I could be inflexible and where the fracture is it would be the end of cycling for me and so we decided that the back should be given the opportunity to heal naturally first.
"The nurses really helped me, and my parents and husband were amazed one day when I showed them my party trick - walking from one end of the ward to the other unaided!"
Riding my bike was always in the back of my mind but after the first few days it became less in my mind. I had to focus on what I could control and that meant first sitting then walking, then getting out of hospital. My family, husband, hospital staff and medical team were all supportive and I received excellent care. I just had to remain positive.
How far do you think your positive mental attitude and determination has helped your recovery?
I think it has helped tremendously. I have had bad days and have just wanted to go to sleep and just stay there. There is no pain when you're asleep and you can dream away, but when you wake up and you're still on your back with pain, being sick and not eating, it's hard. I let myself have bad days but I didn't let them become bad weeks. I had a phone on my bed and although it cost a small fortune I just rang my friends. They were positive and I just tried to surround myself with positive people. There was a lady opposite me and she had been there for 3 months and she was so negative, it was like she had given up and couldn't be bothered to get better. I just vowed that I wouldn't be like that. I am determined, if I wasn't I wouldn't have got where I am today. But all the support from cycling and friends and family just made me stay focused.
I was determined to get out of hospital. My husband and I had only been married a month and it seemed hard on him that I was in hospital. I wanted to get better for him. 'In sickness and in health' - so true!
As an incredibly fit athlete, did you amaze medics with your rate of progress and recovery?
There was nothing I could do until the neuro said I could sit up and had a back brace fitted, but once I had that I became determined. I was pretty adamant every day with what I wanted to achieve and always asked to do more but I had to be patient. It took me three days to actually sit up for more than 5 mins without fainting with pain. But once I started to walk I progressed quite quickly. I amazed them with what I did but it was easy as I just set targets every day and tried to achieve them. Certain things meant other things could happen so it was like building a jigsaw. The nurses really helped me and my parents and husband were amazed one day when I showed them my party trick - walking from one end of the ward to the other unaided! It was difficult not to push it, as an athlete you are used to pain but my problem was I pushed it too far on occasion and then had to take a step back. It amazed me how much I slept. I would walk the ward, or have a shower and then that would be it. I would be asleep for the next 2 hours!
"Although my cycling is at the back of my mind all the time I have to realise that my spine is with me for the rest of my life"
Has the accident changed your attitude towards winning? Has it made you more determined to succeed?
The accident has changed my perspective on a lot of things. I used to be really busy and try and fit so many things into one day. I have learnt that things can wait and I have to prioritise things. My cycling is important to me. My desire to win has always been there, but now I am more focused and determined than before. When you lie on your back and can not move, going out in the rain training sounds like fun. I have been racing since I was 14 so I have always wanted to win but it has been strange there has been a shift inside of me and now I know that I can win somehow and also I now have the required focus.
What sort of recovery training have you been doing? Have you been able to focus on a programme to get you back out on the bike or are you purely focusing on your general health and rehabilitation at the moment?
It has been important to focus on just getting better and although my cycling is at the back of my mind all the time I have to realise that my spine is with me for the rest of my life. I have to look after it with the utmost care and make sure it is fully healed before commencing with anything else. My physio and neuro have been good in making sure that I tried to keep some muscle memory by letting me ride a reclined bike in the gym under controlled circumstances. This enabled my legs to keep the action of riding a bike without putting extra stress on my spine. I started off with a 2min ride and am now up to 2 lots of 10mins. It's not the same but it feels pretty good to me to be able to do it. I have also a rehab programme going in the gym which focuses on my posture and core stability, nothing heavy or that will out pressure on the spine just small exercises so that hopefully I won't be too far behind with any fitness when I am allowed out of the brace.
How did it feel to be told that you were on the team for the Commonwealths - is it helping to focus on this?
My focus was always the Commonwealths and it has never swayed. I want to go there and win a medal and I truly think I still can. The day before the ride I will tell you if my determination has paid off but at the moment it still remains my focus. But I am not stupid, things may change, with my injury you never know how the spine will react and I have just got to hope it carries on reacting how it has done so far.
Tell us a bit about your 2005 season. What was the highlight for you?
My 2005 season was a great year for me. I moved from the National team on to the Vlaanderen team based in Belgium. It was a move that I should have made before but never had the confidence to do it. I was anxious about making the move but once I was settled I wondered why I never did it before. All of a sudden the environment change meant that I was hungry to race and win. I had some good results.
I won my first pro race and had some good results in stage races where I found myself in breaks on stages. I had some really strong team mates and by working really hard for them I managed some good results for myself. Also the new team environment and being directed by Eric De Clerq made a huge difference to me mentally and I started to realise some potential. I got 3rd in a stage in the Tour de l'aude (the hardest women's stage race) I was 2nd in stage of the women's tour and 8th overall and also got 3rd in the National Road Race when I was plagued by cramp. For me the highlight was getting married in September but racing wise it was just the feeling of being in a new team where we all supported each other.
Tell us a bit about your achievements on the road - what methods did you try to overcome cramping?
I have never really focused on the road as the track has always been my priority but due to the change in seasons now I can concentrate on the road as well. I have always had some good days on the road somewhere in the season, but just as form has been coming I have had to focus on the track. This year has been my best on the road and for me I was all of a sudden finding myself at the front of major races and actually competing on a regular basis at the front, rather than occasionally.
Cramp has always been a problem for me and I have never found a solution to prevent or stop it. I have tried everything out there and it just seems to be one day races and the first few days of a stage race. So unless I find a miracle cure I will never make my mark on big one day races. Cramp is a subject that very little is known about why it happens, it baffles everyone. It is frustrating like in the National Road Race this year, I was so strong on that day and my head told me where I should attack and maybe get the race down to less people but I had cramp and was rendered useless. I was just fortunate that every time someone attacked in the last 20km they sat up and I could just pedal back.
"Until something like this happens you don't realise what happens on a spinal ward and how vital things are when you are flat on your back 24/7. I just want to help and if by doing this it does then it's worthwhile"
And finally, can you tell us a bit about the charity work you are currently doing?
I launched my charity called Emma's Spinal Hope. It is purely to raise money for the spinal unit at Hope Hospital in Salford. That is where I was admitted to. I realised and was told by the staff how little funding they get and how they try and raise money themselves by raffles etc. It struck me that I really wanted to help. Without that ward and those nurses I may have still being in hospital or not have received as good a care as I did. I am forever thankful to them and just wanted to say thank you. If you ever had a spinal injury in the North West than that is where you would go and they simply don't have enough money. The NHS is a fantastic service but if money is lacking and I can help by simply buying them a new bed then I want to do that. Until something like this happens you don't realise what happens on a spinal ward and how vital things are when you are flat on your back 24/7. I just want to help and if by doing this it does then it's worthwhile.
Links:
www.emmadaviesjones.co.uk
