Matt’s Story

In June 2019, Matt and his wife Sarah set off on a group cycle ride with six others. Going downhill, Matt took a left-hand bend, and all Sarah heard was a smash. She came around the corner and saw him on the floor face down and not breathing.

As he cycled round the bend, his bike skidded and collided with a car. The driver of the car, a retired doctor, called 999. Soon, critical care paramedic Katy and doctor Stewart arrived at the scene. The crew administered strong drugs for the pain, put Matt into an induced coma and airlifted him to the John Radcliffe Hospital. As Sarah watched the air ambulance take off with Matt inside it, she had no idea that their lives would change forever that day.

Now Matt is fronting our charity’s Summer Raffle, where every ticket will go on to raise money for patients like him.

When Sarah first visited Matt in hospital, he was still in a coma. The team told her that he might be in hospital for quite some time. It turned out it would be more than two months. Matt suffered from multiple traumatic injuries including a traumatic brachial plexus injury, a spinal cord injury where there is damage to the nerves that control movement and sensation in the arm and hand. This paralysed the left side of his body and arm.

I could not have endured what Sarah went through over those weeks and months while I was in hospital. Her strength and resilience were amazing. She helped me in every way possible.

At the end of August 2019, Matt was allowed to go home. In the initial stages of his recovery, he was taking lots of medication and was trying to adapt to life with my injuries, but the spinal cord injury caused horrific pain and was proving to be the hardest thing to cope with.

My arm was just hanging in its socket. It was very painful and dangerous. I thought: ‘it’s not coming back.’ I decided to have my arm amputated in December 2020.

Following the operation, Matt re-learned to drive an adapted car, which gave him some independence back. Sarah and Matt also met the critical care paramedic and doctor who treated him at the roadside that day.

Thanking someone for saving life is an emotion like nothing I’ve ever felt before. Without them, I wouldn’t have had the last five years with my wife. No words will ever be enough. There are hard times in recovery, but now my sunny days outweigh my dark days.

Adam, Head of Aftercare, supported Matt and Sarah through tough times. One thing Matt knew he wanted to do was to get back on a bike, it was always his goal. A goal that he achieved by riding an adapted bike.

If I could tell myself something in those early months, I’d say: ‘your life isn’t over. There is a way forward.’ With Sarah by my side, I know we can conquer whatever life throws at us.

Matt hopes that by sharing his story as part of our Summer Raffle campaign, he will be able to offer a glimmer of hope to anyone else who may be going through dark times. The sparkle will come back.

Your support could make the difference between life and death. Please give what you can and enter the Summer Raffle today to help more people like Matt.