Determination and courage helps Bailey overcome challenges.
Bailey was a typical 19-year-old who enjoyed spending time with his friends and playing sports. He excelled at Lacrosse and played on a Minor ‘A’ team just outside of Edmonton. On a cold winter evening, Bailey was sitting in his vehicle in a friend’s driveway, with the engine running, when the unimaginable happened. Bailey’s car filled with carbon monoxide and he lost consciousness. When he was found the next day he was rushed to the hospital where he spent 5 days in a coma and 3 weeks in the Intensive Care Unit.
Then his rehabilitation journey began. Bailey had suffered a brain injury, memory loss and most of the function of one side of his body. He was in a wheelchair and didn’t know if he would ever walk again. Throughout his recovery his Mom, Chancy, was by his side. She remembers finding out that he was being moved to the Glenrose for rehabilitation and the sense of relief she felt knowing he would be receiving the best possible treatment.
During the 4 weeks that Bailey was an inpatient at the Glenrose he underwent physical therapy, hand and arm therapy as well as group therapy. With the help of state-of-the-art rehabilitation equipment, like the CAREN (Computer-Assisted Rehabilitation Environment) he went from sitting in a wheelchair to using a walker to running through the hallways unassisted. The staff kept him engaged in his recovery by incorporating the things he loved to do; his physical therapist had him bring in his lacrosse stick and they used it during his therapy.
After his discharge Bailey continued to come for outpatient visits for both his physical as well as his cognitive difficulties. He was even able to use the driving simulator to help prepare him to return to driving. Bailey’s sheer determination and courage in the face of adversity has helped him to overcome the challenges of his accident and to reimagine his future.
