Chester woman who was told she might not walk again to run half marathon for Wales Air Ambulance
A Chester woman who was told she might never walk again after a road collision in Wales is running the Chester Half Marathon to raise money for the air ambulance crew who saved her life.
Christine Lloyd, 39, was a passenger in a car that was hit by a tractor in Wales in August 2017.
The passenger side of the vehicle took the full force of the impact, leaving Ms Lloyd trapped for over an hour.
Wales Air Ambulance medics treated her at the roadside before flying her to the Major Trauma Centre at University Hospital Stoke.
Her injuries included a major internal bleed, a bleed to the brain, an open fracture to her right arm, three broken ribs and fractures to her back in several places.
Surgeons built a metal frame around her spine during a six-hour operation to give her a chance of walking again.
Ms Lloyd said: “My doctors didn’t know if I would ever walk again so they decided to operate on my spine.
I underwent a further six-hour surgery to rebuild my spine.
Surgeons worked tirelessly to build a metal frame around my spine, with the hope of being able to walk again.”
She still lives with daily chronic pain but has been training three times a week for the half marathon, running 10 miles once a week with her triplet brother Edward and four miles twice a week with her dog Penny.
A shin splint set her back three weeks during training.
Ms Lloyd said: “I live in constant, chronic pain.
Every day is difficult; my level of pain is not for the faint hearted.
However, I remain determined to carry on as usual.
My way of thinking is I’m always in pain so I may as well try and make this pain count.
Pain is my constant companion, but I’ve trained myself and my mind to accept it, using it as additional fuel and channel it into good.”
She has chosen the Chester Half Marathon on 17 May to mark Wales Air Ambulance’s 25th anniversary year.
Ms Lloyd said: “Without the Wales Air Ambulance I would not have survived the car accident, and I can’t put into words how highly I think of them all.
I want my run to be a reminder of what’s possible after receiving such crucial, swift care from my pilot and team that day.
I owe the Wales Air Ambulance everything.”
She has raised over £500 of her £1,500 fundraising target so far.
Debra Sima, Wales Air Ambulance’s Regional Fundraising Manager for the area, said: “To hear that Christine will be taking on the half marathon after everything that she has been through is incredible.
It is remarkable that after being told she might not walk again she is running a half marathon.
Christine knows firsthand how important our service is and I hope people will get behind Christine and help her reach her fundraising target.”
Wales Air Ambulance relies on public donations to raise £13 million a year to keep its helicopters and rapid response vehicles operational.
Since Ms Lloyd’s accident in 2017, the charity has attended more than 26,000 missions across Wales.
Donations can be made at www.justgiving.com/page/christine-lloyd-3
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