'Freak' fall before nap paralyses mother-of-four in 'worst possible injury'
'It's been horrendous for her, having to go from a soft, nature-based life to the hardness of a hospital'
A mother-of-four from Cork has spoken about how a simple nap after a hard day's work resulted in her being paralysed from the chest down.
Fiona Foley, 54, experienced a random fainting spell which caused her to bang her head on a wall in January, damaging vertebrae in her neck, Cork Beo reports.
At present, she is undergoing intensive rehab at the National Rehabilitation Hospital, while her friends and family have launched a fundraiser to help pay for home adaptations and a trip to a cutting-edge rehab centre in the US.
Considering the "super fit" and "independent" character she is, her husband Aidan is struggling to adapt to what he described as a "horrendous" lifestyle change for the West Cork woman, who may never be able to walk again.
"It's like someone designed the worst possible injury for someone like her," Aidan said. The couple, together for four years, got married just three months before Fiona's life-changing accident.
Aidan explained: "She had felt cold all day so she crawled into bed to get some heat in her. When she got up she passed out, fell forward, and hit her head on the wall, twisting her neck on the way down.
"Our two dogs were up there with her and she woke to our Cocker Spaniel, Cleo, licking her face. Fiona was struggling with her breath and she just said 'Help me, Cleo.'"
Aidan was originally alerted to the awful accident by the howling of the dogs. He ran to the bedroom to give out to them for making a racket before spotting Fiona on the floor. He called the emergency services immediately but he says they did not show for another five hours. In the meantime, "a good neighbour" was able to track down a retired doctor who assisted until paramedics attended the scene.
Fiona underwent a life-saving operation before spending two-and-a-half weeks at Cork University Hospital. Tragically, as she was being transferred from CUH to the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dún Laoghaire, their beloved Cocker Spaniel Cleo developed pancreatitis and had to be put to sleep.
"The circumstances have just been cruel," Aidan said. "I had to see her in hospital and explain that the dog that saved her life had passed away."
Fiona is "deeply embedded" in her West Cork community, working at the Skibbereen Family Resource Centre as well as Caring Hands Therapies, which offers therapeutic treatments including massages. Shortly before her fall, Fiona had also launched a new business, West Cork Wellness.
Aidan said: "It's been horrendous for her, having to go from a soft, nature-based life to the hardness of a hospital." Aidan, who works for a climate action company, visits Fiona in hospital in Dublin every day - "whenever they let me in".
Fiona is set to be discharged from hospital in July. Aidan said: "The staff at the NRH are incredibly skilled, incredibly talented. It's a major step in Fiona's treatment, but not the final step."
The next step for Fiona will be the Beyond Therapy Centre in Atlanta in America. Aidan said that friends living in the States were able to recommend treatment centres on the cutting edge of medical progress. In order to pay for a stay in the US, as well as renovations to make their home in Ireland more accessible for Fiona, friends and family - led by Fiona's brother Anthony - have started a GoFundMe page with a target of €125,000.
Speaking on the fundraiser, Fiona said: "I have very limited use of my hands which means I can’t wash, brush my hair or my teeth, use a phone, or even sign my name - I’m totally dependent for everything. However, there is hope. As it was an 'incomplete' injury, recovery is uncertain, but there’s always potential. My life has been completely changed. Going from a healthy, fit independent woman to a dependent, chronically-injured woman."
She added: "We now need to adapt our house, get a car that’ll take me in my wheelchair, and try to get to a specialised ‘Beyond Therapy’ intensive rehabilitation centre in Atlanta, USA."
Aidan said that, despite the circumstances, Fiona has been "going at her recovery with gusto" - and the close-knit family unit, including her four daughters, aged between 28 and 34, has been incredibly supportive. Writing for the fundraiser, Fiona said: "I feel so lucky to have such wonderful, supportive family and friends. At the moment this financial burden seems impossible. I would be so grateful for any and all support you might be able to give, so that this can be overcome.
"I love being alive and, while my future might now be different, I feel I have so much more to give."
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