Sergeant
Mark Allen
I was injured in January 2009, on pre-deployment training with the Royal Marines in preparation to go out to Afghanistan again. We were in Oman, doing a night parachute jump. I was hit by a crosswind in the last couple of hundred feet of the descent. It slammed me into the ground and shattered my tibia and fibula. I was casevac’d all the way back from Oman straight to Selly Oak Hospital. I had my leg pinned and plated, and then I started rehab at Poole. I originally thought I’d make a full recovery, but as time progressed, the injury was a bit more severe than initially thought. I was given the option of either fusing the bones in the ankle or amputating the lower leg below the knee. It was eighteen months after the injury that I decided to have the leg taken off. After that, I was at Headley Court for physio for about a year.
There’s a great sense of humour at Headley. Some people might think it’s a bit harsh the way the lads take the mick out each other but it’s probably the best way of coming to terms with some of the really severe injuries. Some people feel sorry for you, but none of the lads ever wants sympathy. We just get on with it. You have to take your hat off to some of the most severely injured lads—they just get on with it. Whatever has happened to them, it’s happened. There’s nothing you can do about it, so just enjoy your life and crack on. I think that attitude comes both from Military
training and from within.
I’m still the same person. I just understand that, to do what I used to do now, I’ve got to adapt. So, I can’t just go for a run, I’ve got to make sure I’ve got my running legs on. My injuries restrict me slightly but being a below-the-knee amputee has less impact than losing other limbs; I can still pick my kids up. For me, if I lost a hand, it would be worse. I can still run, I can cycle, I’m very lucky. It’s just adapting and overcoming really. I don’t see it as a hindrance, I just adapt to it. Now, I’m working full time for a company who do protection work on super yachts and that type of
thing. I think you’ve got to live your life and enjoy it. Everything happens for a reason in my world, so make the most of it.