Man lost part of skull during ill-fated day out with friends

When David White slipped after a day paintballing, he woke up to find he had crushed his skull and may never walk again.

He was in a critical condition after hitting his head on a rock and would spend weeks in intensive care isolated from family because of Covid restrictions.

But it was only the start of more than six months in hospital where, facing the prospect of learning the most basic of tasks again, he told his mother he wished he had never woken up.

Now the 33-year-old from Rogerstone, Newport, says he enjoys his life more and, after five years of gruelling physiotherapy, he is helping others by volunteering on a brain rehabilitation unit.

Looking back to the dark days that followed the accident, he said: "At that time I wanted to be dead.

"I said to my mum I wish I'd never woken up."

It was in September 2020, the engineer set out with friends for a day paintballing in Cowbridge, Vale of Glamorgan.

After this activity passed fairly uneventfully, the group was packing up to go home, when David had what seemed like a minor fall, which left the right side of his skull crushed.

He said when he left critical care and his memory started to return he remembers wondering what the doctors and nurses would tell him about his injuries.

The bombshell news that he would need surgery to reconstruct his skull and may never walk again left him in an "atrocious" state mentally.

His brain injury exacerbated his previously mild obsessive compulsive disorder symptoms, and he described being in hospital as "unbearable".

He was also coming to terms with his new situation alone, as he was only allowed to see his mother and partner a few times over the first month in hospital because of Covid restrictions.

But from the depths of despair, he has rebuilt his life – and recently got engaged.

"There are bits and pieces of my body that don't work properly, so I learned to compensate in some way so I walk funny," he said.

"It's getting those muscles to work properly again.

"I'll never been the same as before but I'm getting as close as possible."

Unable to do his old job, he said he started to think what a help it would have been to have been able to talk to someone else recovering in hospital from a brain injury and decide to volunteer.

At Llandough Hospital, he tells people there is hope and a future out there.

His enthusiasm and bravery means brain injury charity HeadwayUK, external has nominated him for an award for his contribution.

One thing he points out is that the recovery can be very slow – explaining that he is still having physiotherapy now, five years later.

"There are times when I see other people moving around so much more easily than I can and I wish this didn't happen, but at the same time, I'm happy with my life," he said.

"If my accident hadn't happened I wouldn't be going out to help people like I do now and that is what I love to do."