In 1999 Roger Dyson was standing in the footwell of his fire engine whilst responding to a call. The driver had to brake hard and Roger braced himself sideways on. Roger recalls: “I didn’t realise anything was wrong at the time besides reporting the jolt to my neck and shoulder, however some weeks later my daughter pointed out that l had developed a limp. I managed to carry on in work until an incident in 2006 resulted in me going off sick for six weeks. The pain in my back and legs had now worsened and I visited a specialist at Warrington General. I received physiotherapy and podiatry through Greater Manchester FRS.”
Roger continues: “I returned to work on light duties in fire safety at Stretford Fire Station where I enjoyed this new challenge and spent my last 20 months of duty there achieving a promotion to the rank of temporary crew manager.”
“I would recommend the Charity to others. I never thought I would have to use the facilities. Now that I have, I really do appreciate the service.”
Roger Dyson
Roger on the rehabilitation programme
February 2015 was Roger’s first visit to Jubilee House. Roger says: “Since the initial incident my leg and back have always troubled me. Generally my muscles are tense and most nights I have to stretch as I always have discomfort.
“At the time I was given some lower back exercises but I don’t think I do them as properly as I should. I want to be supple and active in retirement, so eventually I thought I would apply to the Charity to get more helpful exercises so that I can continue to be mobile.
“I knew of the Charity through my service but I thought I wasn’t that bad and there would be more deserving people out there, that is why I left it so long to get in contact. I never considered it when I was in the job as I was younger and more able to do things. It was still a troubling injury but being that much older it has become harder to deal with.”
Roger remembers: “I was at Jubilee for 12 nights and even after 2 days I knew it was the right decision. I didn’t know what to expect when I first arrived and it was quite physically demanding; normally you don’t spend an hour in the gym and then the pool for example. I really appreciated the fact that someone can spend the time and look at your injury and design a physiotherapy programme that is specific to you. You don’t get that at the NHS, where they give you print outs and tell you to go away and practise. At the Charity it is completely different. “My goal at the end of the programme was to leave with a new fitness routine that would be easier to manage with my condition. Now that I have this I am equipped to remove some of my discomfort out of my back and make my muscles a lot less tense. Now I am on the right road.”