...one above the knee, one below the knee and an injured right arm.
I was lucky enough to be invited recently to try surfing for the first time since becoming an amputee. I received an email from BLESMA saying they had a surfing and wellbeing week available.
I filled in the application and was accepted onto the course. The criteria was to be able to swim with and without prosthetics on, and to be able to negotiate sand if using prosthetics.
I drove up from Plymouth on Sunday afternoon, which is about a 90-minute drive.
I could start to feel some anxiety building in my solar plexus, which is normal for me since my injury when travelling to do any activities. I then have some negative thought patterns kick in and go through my mind. All the worst-case scenarios go through my head as I’m driving.
So, I have learnt to coach myself, verbally out loud. I challenge every negative thought and talk to myself as if I’m coaching a friend who might be having a bad day. (It’s a good job I know I’m mad because anyone witnessing it would agree. Ha!)
It soon passes and I’m thinking of how great the week will be.
We all officially met at the Premier Inn, Bude on Sunday at 6pm and there were six of us injured in total. The rooms were sorted out and we were given a brief for the week’s activities.
I was sharing a room with a triple amputee who had been surfing for ten years all over the world but had just recovered from a sports injury to his shoulder.
A typical activity day would be:
-Breakfast 7am
-Yoga/stretching/Pilates starting at 8:15 for about an hour.
-Meet at the beach huts by about 9:30.
-Breath work
-Morning surf
-Lunch at the beach huts
-Afternoon surf
It was a very relaxed vibe though.
Once at the beach huts, on the first day we met our instructors (1:1 coaching) who were all from the Bude Veterans Surf Club. Most of these guys and girls are experienced surfers and also beach lifeguards.
My instructor was a guy called Steve who was ex-Army, we had a bit of banter from the start, so I knew it would be a great week.
The next activity was some breath work, similar to the Wim Hoff stuff. It was really good and very relaxing, and we did this every morning.
We were then allocated wetsuits and surf boards after a coffee. I decided to start with my stubbie water activity legs on. Steve gave me a brief and wanted feedback on my experience in the water. Once we were both happy, we made our way down to the ocean.
As an extension of the conventional rehabilitation pathway, five amputees and four mentors (experienced amputee sailors) were hosted by the Andrew Cassell Foundation from the Cowes Corinthian Yacht Club.