Kate, Basingstoke, Hampshire, UK

Just over 10 years ago, I was manager of a Chauffeur Company, which also ran a fleet of traditional London Hackney Taxis. On a Friday night/Saturday morning 5 days before Christmas there were over 23 Company Christmas parties going on at various locations in and around Basingstoke. To give extra support to the staff that were on duty that night I went into work to assist them (the owner of the Company was abroad at the time, so I was in total charge). Soon after 1.00 a.m. a young girl collapsed in the Hackney Carriage Office, so I left the Chauffeur Office and run down to the other office, telling to the main office staff to call the Police and Ambulance. When I got there, I saw a young girl, collapsed and not breathing (I checked she had swallowed her tongue). I have always been a qualified First Aider with St John's, so I cleared her airway, and was putting her into the recovery position (she weighed over 18 stone so I was being careful of my back). By this time, she had got air back into her body and started fighting me. Unfortunately, I didn't get out of the way fast enough and her steel cap boot connected with my left knee.
A few minutes after this she decided to get up as she wanted the loo. She had to go past the kitchen facilities and, between there and one of the staff, there was a plate glass window. I stood behind the girl to protect the member of staff and to stop her from going through the glass. She was staggering so much that she fell straight on top of me, making my left knee (the one she had already kicked) over-extend. By this time I was in agony and let out some unrepeatable words! I then made a report to the police, by which time the girl was giving the ambulance people grief; but they eventually carted her off to hospital. By this time I had as much as I could take and decided to go home.
The pain stayed with me, though I tried to ignore it for a couple of days. However, it got worse instead of better and by this time, I couldn't use my leg so I knew I would have to go to hospital. They put me in plaster from hip to ankle and gave me various tests to see what damage had been done. On Christmas Eve I begged to be let out and promised to go back in on the 2nd January. My daughter, meanwhile, was telling everyone I was "well and truly plastered", but I haven't yet been able to laugh at that joke!
The first of my operations was cartilage removal and lateral release. Over the next 18 months I had another 2 operations on the knee, involving another lateral release, washouts and drilling holes in my kneecap. Finally, they removed my kneecap. By this time the pain had become unbearable and. 7 years ago I was diagnosed with RSD (Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy), and put under the care of Dr Jill Hurley, an absolutely wonderful doctor who is the Pain specialist at North Hampshire Hospital. She tried various forms of pain relief, from injections straight into the knee, to the treatment I receive now where every 6 - 8 weeks I have Guanithadine blocks/ nerve blocks under a General Anaesthetic. The pain is so bad most of the time it makes me very nauseous, so I have been taught by my GP/District nurse how to give myself anti-sickness injections (the nurse also suggested teaching my daughter to do them, but I feel she does more than enough for me). I'm doing really well at the moment and have got it down from taking four hours to my actually sticking the needle in to just under one; I haven't yet managed to open my eyes while I'm doing it, but these things take time!
For pain relief I take Co-Dydramol, Temgesic, Diclofenic Suppositories, and Diazepam when back or leg/foot goes into spasm. In addition to the RSD/CRPS, I have spinal stenosis, degeneration of the lumbar region of the spine and osteo penia in my left femoral hip. I also sometimes have to take pethidine, and now am trying Fentanyl patches for the pain, though these are not the only pain killers I have to take. To help with the sickness I have Cyclysine tablets and injections, and Domperidone suppositories. Not surprisingly, with such a soup of medications flowing round my body, I have reactions to many painkillers, anti emetics, and various other drugs.
We have the Tens machine, but I am allergic to all of the patches you have to use to stick the contacts onto your body. I have become brilliant at relaxation exercises and breathing rates, and I wouldn't want you to think that I don't exercise, I do special physio exercises for up to 2 hours a day to build up some muscle on the leg. When I am really on form I go swimming, though the nearest pool with a hoist is fifteen minutes drive away.
My daughter maintains that I am a "walking accident" looking for somewhere to happen, but it's not my fault that the floor and walls keep moving!
By the way - the Police lost the G4 report, so the girl couldn't be prosecuted; that meant I couldn't claim from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board. For all that, this tale has just become a part of my history, and I don't feel any anger or bitterness about what happened to me.