Swinging my leg over the back of RAF Flight Lieutenant Carl Harding's motorbike as he picked me up for our first date, I gripped his waist and held on tight.
Back then, in 1990, Carl, then 26, was a bit of a bad boy, but I knew I could tame him. Six years later, while Carl still loved his motorbike, we were happily married with our first baby on the way.
Only, one evening in February 1997, when I was three months pregnant, Carl called to say he'd be working late on the base. ‘I’ll keep your dinner warm,’ I said. Hours later, his baked white fish was drying out and there was still no sign of him. Then the phone rang. It was Carl’s boss.
Shock accident
‘Carl's been in an accident,’ he said. I rushed to the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham where Carl was having life-saving surgery. He'd been riding his bike home when he was hit head-on by a car driving on the wrong side of the road and thrown into a ditch. The driver was prosecuted and received a two-year sentence but Carl came off worse. He’d fractured his spine, wrists,ribs, suffered two punctured lungs and a head injury.
‘He’ll never walk again,’ a doctor said, and I just remember sobbing, feeling like our life together, which was only just beginning, was over. Carl was transferred to Stoke Mandeville Hospital where, devastated by his injuries, he faced a long mental and physical recovery.
I bumbled through the next months in a haze, moving back in with my parents, Steven, then 54, and Diana, 52, and spending every day shuttling to and from hospital. That was when I first began to comfort-eat. I’d always been proud of my size 12 figure, but with my husband paralysed from the chest down, my appearance was the least of my worries.
This story is from the August 03, 2020 edition of WOMAN'S OWN.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the August 03, 2020 edition of WOMAN'S OWN.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
MIND OF MY OWN
The Woman's Own columnist has her say on the gender gap, cats and timed hugs
Check out CHICAGO
With a spectacular skyline, sandy beaches and great food, the Windy City is calling, says Zoe West
LET'S EMBRACE OUR CHRISTMAS TAT!
Becky Dickinson explains why she'll still be rocking around her tinsel-strewn tree this year
BURIED SECRETS
We look at the shocking cases of celebrities posthumously accused of being sexual predators-and how they got away with it
FESTIVE NO-BAKES
Pop on the Christmas tunes and whip up a batch of these easy sweet treats
PROTECT YOUR SMILE
Are you doing enough to look after your teeth and gums?
'TIS THE SEASON TO SHINE!
At last, Hayley McCrossan, 39, feels fit and healthy
FOR THE LOVE OF TOM
When Deborah Mitchell, 57, lost her son, she vowed to help other families facing the same heartbreak
THE NURSE WHO LEFT MY GRANDAD FOR DEAD belict
Rachael Fealey, 31, had one question for the woman who killed her beloved Grampa - how could you?
Coleen's MONEY WORRIES
What are the reasons behind her financial and marriage fears?