LOVE BROUGHT ME BACK TO LIFE
Crash victim William’s delight as his devoted girlfriend Rebecca accepts marriage proposal
A CRASH victim who was on the brink of death suddenly woke up from a coma – and claims his fiancee’s love brought him “back to life”.
William Webster, 28, lost consciousness when he was in a car accident involving a bus last summer.
Medics feared he would not survive and he was rushed to hospital by helicopter for emergency treatment.
Doctors at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow told his family he would “not make it” and they hoped for a miracle.
William was induced into a two-day coma as he had suffered multiple injuries.
He had fractured his jaw in three places, had missing teeth, multiple broken ribs and needed his scalp stitched back together.
He had also suffered collapsed lungs and a triple broken arm which doctors feared they may have to amputate.
In addition, his shoulder and scaphoid were broken and he had a double fractured ankle, fractured tibia and patella.
His devoted fiancee Rebecca Doig, 29, was at his bedside each day in the hospital’s intensive care unit. And when William came out of the coma, he mistakenly asked nurses if he could speak to his “wife” – despite Rebecca being just his girlfriend at the time.
William said Rebecca’s dedication and love helped him make a recovery – and made him pop the big question once he was stable.
The school learning assistant said: “I woke up in hospital and didn’t know what had happened or why I was there.
“I was obviously in a coma and was on morphine. I couldn’t respond because my mouth was wired shut, so I could only do hand gestures.
“The only thing that I had wanted to see when I opened my eyes was Rebecca.
“When I saw her, Rebecca gave me a reason to get better. If she wasn’t there then there would be no reason. I was doing it for her.
“It was her love that brought me back to life.
“I wouldn’t be doing this well if it wasn’t for her. Having someone to talk to who believes in you is special.”
Rebecca struggled to face William at first because she didn’t want to see him in such a terrible condition.
She said: “I couldn’t look at him. Seeing him like that was just the worst thing ever. It really did upset me, I had to keep a brave face for him.
“Doctors had said he may not be able to reply but there was still a chance he could still hear me.
“I kept holding his hand and speaking to him and, at times, he would reply using a hand gesture.”
William, from Dumbarton, added: “One time when I was high on morphine, I asked the nurses if I could see my wife. They went to the waiting room and asked for my wife.
“Rebecca said, ‘I’m his girlfriend, not his wife.’ She came in and I started calling her my ‘wife’.
“We started talking about getting married when she was at my bedside and I couldn’t walk.”
The couple originally met through dating app Tinder in 2016 and it was love at first swipe for Rebecca.
She said: “Seeing how quickly things can be snatched from you made us realise that we wanted to move in with each other and get married as soon as we could. And we now have a wee kitten called Kendrick.”
William popped the question on his birthday, December 15, with an emerald ring.
He said: “At six o’clock in the morning, Rebecca was still in bed.
“I’d ordered flowers the day before and hid them so she couldn’t see them. I gave her the flowers but she gave them back and asked as it was my birthday why should she get the flowers?
“I then gave her a little card which said, ‘There’s only one thing I want for my birthday and that’s for you to be my wife’.
“The fact that she said yes meant the world to me.”
As William has made a remarkable recovery he is keen to raise awareness about the emergency services who helped him.
He is particularly grateful to Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance, who helped him in the aftermath of the crash. The service provide critical life-saving help across Scotland.
William will take part in a 10k in August to raise funds for the SCAA.
He added: “If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be here. I am so grateful for what they have done. I feel this will help them.” ● Readers can donate to William’s fund at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ william-webster3