Headway — Three Extraordinary Individuals Who Survived Traumatic Brain Injury

David Watts on Mix 93.8. Mix 93.8, legendary radio on a Monday evening. It is as we do each and every Monday at this time. What's involved? An absolute pleasure to be with you. I'm going to be chatting to three rather special individuals. And it's a story of perseverance. It's a story of success, of motivation, and of what the human body and mind actually are capable of doing. So we're looking forward to that as well. Right now, though, we're talking magical miracles, fantastic stuff, the power of the human mind and the human spirit. And I've got three gentlemen in the studio with me. From my left, we've got Brian Hull. Hello, Brian, how are you? Dave, thank you for having us here. It's an absolute pleasure. Thank you for being here. In the middle, Anton Fanekeach. How are you, Anton? I'm wonderful at you, David. Good, good, good. Always good. And to my right, the man with the long-running legs will get into that. It's Bevan Ushka. How are you, Bevan? I'm great, thanks. I got it right. I got the Ushka part right. Yeah, Ushka, but it's fine. Ushka, Ushka, Ushka, potato, potato. Anyway, all right. So you guys are here for a reason. And the reason in my mind is I've had the privilege of meeting all of you through Anton.

I've known Anton for a good few years. And to me, you're absolute walking miracles and you're an absolute inspiration. The reason for this in one way or another, you've all suffered from a traumatic head injury. And that could be a number of things. We'll discuss that. So, Brian, let's start with you. What actually happened? Where was Brian before the injury occurred? What happened? I was a partner in a courier company and I had a stroke four years ago. Okay. But before that, I worked very hard and I had a successful family and home life. Yeah. And business, sorry. Okay. So very successful business. And you've certainly sort of kept up with a lot of those contacts. But you had the stroke and then what happened? I mean, you know, people think about stroke and I've seen from sort of, you know, a mild stroke where there's just a little bit of paralysis to really, really bad strokes. Where did you fit in that scale? Well, I think it was a very bad stroke. Okay. You know, in the first year, you don't know what's wrong with you because you're trying to survive and revive and recover. So you're in your wife's hands and you're in God's hands in the first year. So I think it was a bad stroke and then slowly, slowly you get better.

Okay. And the thing you guys have in common is you all attend the most amazing organization, which I've actually, I hadn't heard of until Anton mentioned it to me and that is a nonprofit organization called Headway. And the work they do there is brilliant. Do you attribute a lot of that work that they did at Headway to your recovery? I do. I've been there for three years, coming up for three years. And I think a lot of the stimulation one gets mentally and physically. It contributes largely to your recovery. Fantastic stuff. Well, that's prior. Next up, Anton, I know some of your story, but let's hear from your own mouth, Anton. What happened with you? Three years ago, I had a brain aneurysm and arterial venous malformation that started bleeding one night. Subsequently, I had a melagic stroke in ICU, in rehab. You're glossing over this because, I mean, I heard about it when it had just happened and I saw what you looked like in hospital. What was the prognosis then? Because I know there were people that were taking a look at you going, "Mm-hmm, he's going to be having to have dinner through a straw and won't walk, won't talk, won't do this, that, and the next thing." What did the doctors say at that stage?

My neurosurgeon was amazed to see me because he said somebody that loses consciousness, that has a hemorrhagic stroke, a bleeding on the brain, doesn't wake up again. So, number one, he was amazed to see me there and it was a miracle for him to see me there. And I mean, you literally also, I mean, there was times it was very much touch and go with you. And at that stage, I mean, I saw you shortly after you'd gotten out of hospital before you'd started any of the hectic rehab and everything. And I kind of went, "Wow!" Because before you had the stroke, what did you do? What worked? You were in the financial industry. Yeah, I was in a government institution, semi-government institution, in charge of human resources, IT and facilities management. So, I mean, a very, very high-powered job, and suddenly one day, bang, there it was. Okay, so we'll get on to more of your recovery. And then on my far right, we've got Bevan. How are you, Bevan? I'm okay in yourself. Good, man. It's so nice to have you here. Bevan, what happened with you? Explain your story to me. I was involved in a hit-and-run. I just met my parents for a lunch, a pizza, and on my way home, a hit-and-run. I've got no memory of the accident or half my life.

I was taking, well, my phone was on me, and Anj got the call saying, "He's..." I don't know. He's not in a good way. He's not in a good way. Whereabouts was this, though? Where did this hit-and-run happen? And when you were hit-and-run, were you walking, riding, cycling, motorcycle? What was it? I was on my motorbike. It was about 200 metres from where we left, and it was a hit-and-run. I took my motorbike up to Hootstrait. It was a road out of Hootstrait towards Bushbuck Ridge. I took it up there because it's quiet and beautiful up there. Nothing's going to happen to me up there. And the next second, somebody... And then you ended up lying in a ditch next to the road? Well, I ended up on the road. Arthur was in a ditch, but it was on the road, and people found me and called the local farm watch. And they called... They found my phone and called Ange and said, "He's alive but unresponsive. You need to get you." And they did. Three in the morning, they were on their way. And then you ended up also, but I mean, you are... And I think all three of you just about have had that experience. I mean, you were clinically dead a couple of times. Yeah. They elevated me to Mill Park, and I think the doctors on the helicopter thought, "Ooh, a nice trip." But they said it was the hardest trip they've had. It was, "Bring me back all the time." And then once you'd gotten to hospital then, what happened? I mean, what was the prognosis?

I think maybe I'm going to have to call the ladies in just now. Anyway, I mean, what did they say? Was it also one of those, very much like with some of the other case I've heard, "Well, sorry, he's probably never going to walk, talk, or be able to do anything again." Well, my neurosurgeon said, "It's not very often that a person like you can walk back into my office. I've had so much damage in my brain." And he says that it's a fighting spirit. It's your heart that gets you through. So I'll take that. Okay. Well, we're going to get back to you in just a little bit as well and have a bit more of a chat because the one thing I've noticed about the three of you in particular, and you're not the only people that attend Headway. I mean, I've met some amazing people there and the people at Headway that kind of doing the programs and everything is also an absolutely unbelievable bunch of people. But you are very modest because I've done some of my research and everything. And I know that in your case, Brian, for example, from a stroke, more often than not, it's not something you walk away from. And if, I mean, meeting you for the first time, I would not have said that you'd had a stroke. I really wouldn't. Anton, having known him, he actually became nicer.

I have to say this. I'm on radio. I have to say it. He became nicer after the aneurysm, you know, because I don't know something that happened in that whole thing. You've got a sense of humor, which is fantastic for me. Bevin, I don't know that much about your background, but I mean, you had not just the head trauma, but you had other bits and pieces that were broken and battered and bruised as well. Yeah, I counted 12 parts, which was pretty smashed. Yeah. And I heard them saying that probably there was a chance we're going to lose body parts. Yeah, my arm was very bad and they wanted to amputate it a few times. And my brain must have said no. I was sizing my comb and said no, that's a challenge. Okay. Well, he's still got all of his arms and there's quite a good story there. We'll be back in just a bit, having a chat to the three guys about their experiences. And the reason I wanted to chat to the guys is not only to give some sort of publicity to headway, the organization that they're with, but to give you an idea of the human spirit and fighting spirit and what you can do. And also this thing that is becoming more and more mainstream these days called neuroplasticity. And we might talk a little bit about neuroplasticity in just a while.

Monday night, what's involved? Chatting in studio with me, we've got Brian Hull, Bevan Oskar and Anton Fenicak. Each of them in their own way suffered a traumatic brain injury. I was chatting because they do have the significant others here with them. But the ladies are sitting in the couch in the corner going, we're not talking nothing tonight. And I did say the one thing I said is you guys have been, and I suppose part of it is the memory side of the actual events. But I mean, you guys have been very casual about the kind of injuries and what actually happened to you. Brian, you were saying now or there, obviously, you know, a stroke is not something that you start feeling a little ill one day. And, you know, it happens and it happens quickly. And you were saying on the night of the stroke, they were saying you're not going to make it. Well, my partner told me only the other day, and I'd never heard that before. And Robin hadn't told me that Robin had called him to come back to the hospital because the doctors felt that I wouldn't make it. OK, then then you kind of, you know, you did. And did you then move into obviously you had you had some rehabilitation, et cetera, et cetera, while you were there and then got involved with with headway.

When you were when you started at headway, I mean, were you as as mobile and as articulate as you are now? No, I was I was on a walker, walker one. And then I went to walker two and now I can shuffle along by myself. And part of that, the credit has to go to Antoine because he nags me. He nagged me a lot. He said he would steal my my walker. And I did. But I mean, it's it's this what actually happens at headway. I mean, I've been sort of involved in the periphery, as I said, because of because of Antoine and everything. But it's it's it's a rehabilitation center, essentially. So what kind of things happen, the occupational therapy? It's they call it. It's a brain injury association is mainly to support the people who are injured, brain injured and the families, the extended support system. And we have five sessions a day, lots of sorry, four sessions a day. Lots of the professors can give them hand signals, just give them give them back to you. Oh, they're filming that. Lots of psychological and brain work. And there's some physical work as well by the biokineticists. So the package is wonderful. Now, we were talking neuroplasticity. And I mean, particularly with you, with the strike, in fact, all three of you guys, you know, according to general science or the science of the past, with the types of injuries you guys have had, you shouldn't be talking to me tonight.

I mean, I think, you know, independently, everybody said to me that you three guys and you just see of a good bunch of people, but you should not technically be here talking to me. And with the damage that was done, and Bevin, let's let's let's jump back to you very quickly. The damage that was done to you in that accident, you I mean, okay, to survive is one thing. But I mean, you should have been armless in a wheelchair and not able to to speak, not able to do anything for yourself, essentially. And when did this happen? When did the injury happen? About two and a half years ago, 12th of August, 2015. All right. And then you also came across headway. I actually got to headway because we couldn't afford anything else. So headway was really a place where we could just go. That was affordable. And they could take care of me. They could just do the things that I needed. And it was amazing. Actually, Antoine sitting next to me, he's the guy, the reason why I went back there, because I saw this big man there. I thought, why is he here? And he came out to me and said, please come back. And I thought, and I went back. You thought if somebody that size is can go back, you better actually go back.

I know, but I didn't want to disappoint him. So I went back and I actually I love it. I it's amazing what it does for us. It just completes us. But before your accident, what did you do for a living? I was in construction. I worked for other companies, but I started working for myself. And I went up to Hutzray to do a nice project, which I did. And that is it. Game over. And yet, and this is the other thing that I find amazing because and I've spoken to the respective ladies in your lives about the sort of transformation that has happened. As I said, because I know Anton personally, I've seen that transformation from this man looking like a ghost in a hospital bed with a head wrapped full of bandages and the family going, well, that's it. You know, the Anton we know that said he's going to be also eating through a tube, et cetera, et cetera, for the rest of his life. And now, I mean, he's sitting in front of me talking to me. You, crazy individual, you did something insane in my mind last year. Was your car broken? Oh, OK. OK, I'm working. No, OK, I went, Justin Jeffries is a bar kinetics. So at Rare Matters, I was told it's, you know, that's all they can do for me. So we went to Justin Jeffries and I asked him to get me strong so I can walk to Cape Town.

So I can raise money. I won't be a charity case. And the week later, we came back and he said, sorry, I can't get you to Cape Town. So I thought, I thought you were a strong man. He said, but I'll get you to the New York Marathon. And he gave me that. And I said, you're sure I'll do the New York Marathon. Not thinking, yeah, it's a marathon. I've never run my life. So he got me fit. He got me running, running house with my balance. My left hand side doesn't talk to the right hand side. So I got to New York. I managed to take my wife there. Her whole life, she's dreamt of just having a hot dog in the streets of New York. And she had a hot dog. And I finished the marathon. I mean, that is, it wasn't an easy finish, by all accounts. No, there was two decisions, big decisions in the marathon. The hardest was being taken into the second medical tent, telling me that your run's over. And the easiest decision was getting up and walking out of that tent and finishing this. I couldn't come home and people saying, oh, you tried your best. Not a chance. We raised all the money to get there. And I was going to come home with the medal. That's it. And you do. And you're wearing it tonight as well as the shirt you're wearing.

And I got to tell you, all hats off, man. All respect to you for doing that. And to Ange, for putting up -- because, you know, you could have just gone, he's got a brain injury, he's nuts. You could have done that. It was an acceptable out. But no chance. Angie was there as well for you. And I think there's a couple of points that I wanted to get across tonight while having a chat to you guys. Number one, I think first and foremost, is whenever, you know, we sort of -- as a society, we're getting to understand people maybe with physical disabilities, disabilities that you can see. I have a sister who was born with spina bifida. She's in a wheelchair. People used to treat her very, very differently. Now not so much. But when it comes to brain injuries, suddenly, I don't know, people see you as very, very different. And people don't know how to handle people with brain injuries. Anton, has that been your -- I think just from the family to your friends and everything, you know, they don't really -- am I right? Do they not know how to handle you really? A lot of my friends abandoned me. Yeah. I don't think my family understands me. Brain injury is the silent illness. Invisible injury. Invisible injury.

Nobody knows about it. People are so ignorant, they can ask the most stupidest questions, make the most nonsensical comments. But I think it's because it doesn't get a lot of publicity. I mean, you know, I consider myself fairly well informed. I'd never heard of headway until you mentioned it. Brain, how did you find it impacted on you? I mean, business-wise, obviously there was an impact. Well, I had to stop working. But I think -- I'm trying to think. You know, I've been exposed to the disabled world. I hadn't been exposed to that before. Yeah. And headway -- Robin had heard about headway. I'd never heard about it, so I'm very grateful that we are now -- I'm grateful I got exposed to it. But you point out we need more exposure that way because there's a greater need of brain injury than one thinks. Well, there's that. And it's also because it's not so well known. And it's across the board. Brain injury can strike in any way, shape, or form across the board. It's not worried about race, color, creed, religion, or anything like that. A brain injury. You had one chapter that was there. I think -- I can't remember his name right now. He was an African fellow, but you'd also say -- Tabocho.

Tabocho. And he was in the wheel. And also, everybody said he wasn't going to make it. And when I saw him sort of making those first couple of steps there at the golf day -- That was Temple. That was at Temple. Temple. There we go. Okay. You see I'm getting confused now because I've met so many people that day. But, I mean, I just looked at that. And I thought, you know what? That is absolutely amazing. Because, you know, people with brain injuries, very much, it's not something you talk about. You don't talk about it. Let's not talk about it. And then, you know, let's not talk about the special person in the room. Or otherwise, you get people that will come up to you, and then they will talk to you. You know? And they will go, "Hello." And they sort of -- I've seen it with my sister. She's in a wheelchair. You know? She's got spinal bifida. But they still, "Hello." You know? And she's like, "What are you doing?" You guys must feel the same way. If people treat you differently. I mean, yes. Okay? There are people that sort of know you. But, I mean, if I was to walk past you in the street and meet you, I wouldn't go, "Oh, brain injury person." You know? Because you don't walk around sort of, you know, like something out of the zombie apocalypse, hunched over and twitching and everything.

I mean, you guys have made that much of a recovery. Yeah. Anne knows that when she introduces me to somebody new, she does not say, "This is my husband. He has a brain injury." That's... Just don't do it. Because once you say that, the whole... Everyone just looks at you funny. Yeah. And like, "Oops. Sorry. Ooh. Are you okay?" Can you say that? They talk softly. And slowly. Very, very slowly. So, yeah. That just... But now, we touched on neuroplasticity, okay? And this is something Headway believes in quite a lot. So, just to answer, and I haven't managed to make one, okay? Headway have like a sort of friends and family can come through once. And tell me a bit about the visits and tell me a bit about this whole concept of neuroplasticity. Okay. The Headway Friendship Circle is a support group specifically focused on the family members and the friends to educate and inform them and to assist them to better understand the brain injuries and the brain injured persons. Okay. That happens every first Thursday of a month from 6 o'clock onwards at Headway in... Head Park. Hyde Park. Hyde Park. This is an echo. Neuroplasticity, the one psych student that was there the year before said, "Neurons that wire together fire together." So, the aim at Headway is to create new pathways in the brain.

So, obviously, we all have brain damage. My frontal lobe is non-existent almost. But this is the part that amazes me about all three of you. And as I said before, you just said the cross-section. But you should not be sitting here talking to me, you know? And it is. So, neurons that fire together wire together. So, basically, what does that mean? That you can be taught your brain can learn? With repetition, it will find a new pathway in the brain. And on repetition, that will be the new norm for you. Because, I mean, again, and we glossed over this. Brian, I don't know because I haven't had a much of the chance to chat to you, but I mean, you literally had to learn how to eat again. Knife and fork. Brian, you as well, yeah? Talk and swallow. Yeah, talk, swallow. When I got to Headway, I saw Brian, sorry Brian, hobble from our breakfast place into the class. Took him 20 minutes and I thought, "Wow." You know, Brian, do you know? And then a year ago-- It's a special needs child. A year ago, I watched the beautiful smile on his wife, Robin's face. When Brian got out of that car with his golf club and walked onto the tee and hit a ball down the drive. I mean, that's amazing that this guy I met a year ago couldn't do much and now he's like playing golf on his own, walking on his own.

That's Headway for you. That just, we just, it completes us. It makes us strong. That's what you guys do. But now, Brian, we touched on it as well and we've got three incredibly special ladies that are sitting in here tonight as well, your respective significant others. The impact on family specifically and friends-- Anton mentioned that he loves friends. It must be huge. I mean, you guys, as much as, I mean, all of the three gentlemen in front of me, to you ladies as well, I take my hat off to you. I have the deepest, deepest respect for you and I stand in awe of you because it's amazing to be able to do that. I think that life changes. But it must do because, I mean, am I right in saying, you guys have experienced the brain injury, so there's chunks of stuff that maybe you don't remember, whereas they've lived every single second of that. And Headway helps with that. They support the ladies as well. And I think there's a telephonic support service to them as well. When we first joined Headway, Robin received a lot of phone calls from the therapists and the counsellors who were then not only supporting us, they were phoning and supporting our support structures as well. I must say, again, I'm in absolute honor.

I cannot convey the magnitude of how far you guys have come and what you have done. It's largely up to the family, it's up to places like Headway, but also to you guys to have that sheer will and determination and that kind of, I don't know, I always, you know, when people sort of talk to me and they hear my story, which is different from yours, you know, and they ask me, how did I manage to do what I did? I was like, I guess I was just too stupid to give up. You know, I don't know. Where do you feel? I mean, do you have this burden? Because the one thing I notice with you guys as well is that there's this incredible passion and lust for life, you know, where somebody would go, well, that's it. No, I'm confident. You guys are always happy. I mean, I hardly ever see you sort of, you know, being unhappy or I'm sure you go through those times, but you come out with this positive outlook all the time. David. I see people crying about, oh, there was no coffee or the coffee machine was broken at work, or they bitch about little things. You know what? I was knocked down, I was in a coma. Do you want to, what are we going to do? Sit and cry in a corner? Not a chance. We're going to live our lives.

We are alive. We are here and we are alive, and we breathe just like you do. So why should we sit in a corner and cry? We're going to stand up and fight. We're going to fight harder. We're going to love harder. We're going to live harder because we can, because we've been there. We've got the T-shirt. In your case, literally, you've got the T-shirt. You know what I'm saying. Gentlemen, the time has flown to the ladies as well. Thank you very, very much, guys. Thank you. If there was a message that you could give, and I'm going to ask each of you to do this, if there was a message that you could give to people listening tonight, what would that message be? Brian, what would you say? Don't give up. Don't give up. Okay. Anton, your message, what would you say? A day without laughter is a day wasted. There we go. Very good. Bevan, come on. When you think it's really getting too hard, it's never hard enough. There we go. Gentlemen, I wish you to go from strength to strength. To everybody, the ladies here as well, I wish you nothing but the best. Tell us if somebody knows somebody, or maybe they have people in their family with brain injury of whatever way, shape, or form. How do we get hold of Headway?

Are they on the interweb? Interwebs, listen to me. I sound like a Jeremy person. Headway Karting. Headway Karting, is it .org? Headway Karting. .zeros. Hang on. Let's ask the people that know .com. Headway Karting.com. Okay. And I've got a Facebook page as well. Because I'm sure Bianca's going to message me any moment now and tell me, because she's been on my case. Bianca's like the boss lady there at Headway. And you've got some fantastic guys. So to each and every one of you, thank you so much. And thanks for listening tonight. And you guys, thank you. I wish you all the best. And strength to strength. I want to see some other wonderful things happening. And next time I think we bring the ladies in. What do you say? Yes. Absolutely brilliant idea. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. It is Mix 93.8. This has been What's Involved as we do each and every Monday night. David Watts on Mix 93.8.