A Lanarkshire veteran is repaying an Armed Forces charity for their help after his wife suffered a life-changing brain injury.
Larkhall’s Andy Lockhart is thankful for all the help the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA) gave his wife Linda after a stroke and he is repaying the charity by taking on the Glasgow Kiltwalk at the end of this month.
Andy retired in 2015 from the Royal Artillery a WO1 Regimental Sergeant Major, the highest rank before Late Entry Commission, with a view to a life at home with Linda, his childhood sweetheart and wife of 36 years.
In February 2022, Linda suffered renal failure and went into a coma. She then had a seizure and a stroke, which left her with a severe brain injury, and has led to life-changing and debilitating problems.
She suffered cognitive, behavioural, and physical disabilities and will remain dependent on the care of others for the rest of her life.
Andy said: “It was like someone ripping my soul away. I didn’t know where to turn, who to talk to or what to do apart from put my 27 years of military service back into play and try my hardest for my wife, daughter, and son and hopefully to come out of this with some sort of meaning in life.”
As the weeks and months followed, Andy never changed his daily regime of being at Linda’s bedside every day, talking to her, bathing her, exercising her joints, and reading to her hoping that she would continue to fight this second downturn and come back to him.
“I was robotic,” says Andy, now a mobile crane instructor.
“5.30am rise and head to work – I needed to work to continue to pay the bills – then finish work at 4pm and head straight to the hospital where I would sit and work with Linda until 9pm before returning home ready to start the whole regime again the next day.
“Being stubborn, I ignored their advice to slow down and continued to care for my wife and best friend hoping that she would return to me in some sort of shape or form where we could just get on with our lives.
“Gradually, with medication, perseverance, and damn hard work at times, Linda started to make progress. I managed to get her up and out of bed with daily exercise in her wheelchair, then her speech started to return rather than just a distant glare from her eyes.
“Through time Linda did ‘come back’ to me, but with permanent and irreversible brain damage, but we’ve not allowed this to get us down and fight it daily.
After what Andy describes as “10 months of blood, sweat, and a lot of tears”, Linda is back in her home with full-time care during the day and Andy as her carer out of hours – all while holding down his day job.
Inevitably, this placed a financial burden on them. Andy decided to approach SSAFA for support.
He said: “I never thought that I would be asking for help in a time of need myself, but with Linda falling ill, I swallowed my pride and asked for help from SSAFA, and I am lost for words on how to express my feelings when you responded with your help.
“The help that SSAFA has given Linda and me is outstanding.”
So far Andy has raised over £1000 for the charity including accepting a cheque for £200 from RWM James Hamilton from Larkhall’s Lodge St Thomas 306.
To support Andy on his 23-mile Glasgow Kiltwalk, on April 30, and to continue SSAFA’s life-changing work, visit here.
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