Caring Crunchie is helping Connor heal
Incredibly, his catastrophic injury came five years to the day since Nick Watt, his former prefect at Merchiston Castle School, Edinburgh, was paralysed in a rugby match.
Connor was initially treated at the Queen Elizabeth National Spinal Injuries Unit in Glasgow, before a journey across the globe to re c e i v e expert treatment.
Last September he went to Bangkok, Thailand, where he was fitted with 16 electronic implants along his spine.
They can be switched on at the push of a button – sending electrical pulses to the nerves he uses to control his legs, allowing him to feel, despite being paralysed.
es Devoted Crunchie is definitely Connor’s best friend. Connor also uses an Connor, who hopes to return to exercise bike which sends university within the next two electronic signals to his legs years to study astrophysics or – allowing him to pedal – at astronomy. the gym he has created at home “I just need to keep working with mum Fiona, 49, and on it with less and less support. stepdad Gavin, 53. Then maybe I will be able to
They have been amazed by walk with a walker in front of his improvement since the accime. That’s definitely the goal.” dent – and Connor’s progress Connor’s sister Sarah Hughes, has given him hope he may one 30, said she was “incredibly day walk again. proud” of her younger brother’s
He said: “Before I got the achievements. stimulator, the movement was The mum-of-two added: “His absolutely zero. Then, after it accident was such a life-changwas fitted, I could raise my ing thing to happen to someone knee. It was absolutely crazy. so young but he’s shown
“The first time I stood up in remarkable maturity. He’s been Thailand was so bizarre so brave and worked so hard to because I could feel my weight get as much movement back as going through my hips and possible.” knees. She said of Crunchie: “She’s a
“At that stage, I hadn’t been big part of the family but standing for over a year and to Connor is her number one!” go from that to actively standFor updates on Connor’s ing is pretty incredible.” recovery, read his blog at
And the sky’s the limit for www.lindeanlore.co.uk