Gordy was admitted to hospital a little over five years ago, at 43-years-old, when he wasn’t feeling quite right. The next day, he woke up a quadriplegic.
“I was fine one evening, then a tumour grew on my spine, and I woke up a quadriplegic,” Gordy said.
“I went into hospital, I ate my dinner by myself, I was breathing by myself, and then literally next minute, I woke up in ICU with all these doctors around me and was intubated with a big tube down my throat to breathe,” Gordy explained.
“They did an MRI and said I’ve got all these tumours up and down my spine.
“One of the tumours had just moved a couple of millimetres on my C1 and C3, basically rendering me a quadriplegic.”
Gordy was diagnosed with a spinal cord injury from the benign tumour, which was caused by Type 1 Neurofibromatosis. Due to the tumour’s proximity to his spine, doctors determined surgical removal was too risky.
Gordy spent one year in Sir Charles Gairdner hospital, then one year in Fiona Stanley hospital, before eventually securing his own home that would accommodate his new accessibility needs, as Gordy now uses a wheelchair.
“I’ve been at home for three and a half years now, and I’m pretty much independent, but with 24-hour care,” Gordy said.
Gordy then started working with physiotherapist, Julie Magner, who said that Gordy noticed positive effects on his legs overall health after he started using the clinic’s MOTOmed cycle.
“Gordy found that the MOTOmed cycling was really helpful for reducing spasm in his legs, which was sometimes so severe it would bring him to the point where it felt like he was coming out of his chair,” Julie said.
Gordy explained the MOTOmed is an adjustable, automated cycling machine that enables him to exercise muscles that he wouldn’t be able to otherwise.
“Being a quadriplegic, I’ve lost a lot of muscle tone, so the MOTOmed does the cycling for me,” Gordy explained.
“I found it made me feel really good afterwards… I’m exhausted, but I just feel so much better.”
Gordy’s support team decided to apply for a Youngcare At Home Care Grant on his behalf, to get him a MOTOmed cycle in his own home. A few months later, it has already made a world of difference to Gordy’s quality of life.
“I really feel the physical benefits, but also the mental, because I can challenge myself to go further and further each day,” Gordy said.
“After an hour of that, I’m exhausted and usually doze off in the afternoon, but I feel like I’ve achieved something.”
Gordy is also a big fan of working out to his favourite 80s music, like Metallica and Bon Jovi, and other heavy metal from that era.
“I’m an 80s boy— I crank it up and it sort of helps me go faster!”
He also has the support of two cheerleaders, his Maltese Shih Tzus, Fiona and Charlie, which he named after he two hospitals that cared for him so well.
Gordy expressed his sincere thanks to Youngcare and its supporters for making this all possible for him through the grants program.
