Edited from the Preface of Richard's Book  'Reflections of a Chair Man'- Richard P. Eason.
In 1983 a motorcycle accident left me with a severe brain stem injury. Five years on, after many courses of physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy and all sorts of rehabilitation I have regained the use of about a third of my body, mainly on my right side. This is just enough to allow me to live a reasonably independent life in a ground floor council flat. I have a terrific home help, who comes to clean and cook and generally set me up for each day during the week. She is the backbone of my support. I also have a small nucleus of loyal friends who lend a hand, when I need it. I depend on an electric wheelchair for my mobility and can't move about the flat without it. It takes an hour to get out of bed and get dressed and most of the tasks I perform are on that time and effort scale. I'm fairly weary at the end of the day, but it's worth it to have my precious independence.

Selections of Richard's 'Reflections' will be extracted from his book and featured in SCAN's future newsletters