Smiling broadly and looking sharp on his vintage Vespa, Alex Mitchell seems the picture of health.
Just four
weeks ago, however, he was in hospital fighting for his life having suffered a
highly rare but devastating reaction to the Covid vaccine. After developing
blood clots so severe that doctors had no option but to amputate his left leg
above the knee, Alex is now recovering at home.
His priority
is the battle ahead and ensuring no one is discouraged from getting the vaccine
due to his ordeal. Alex, 56, said: “It has been quite a surreal few weeks. I’ve
experienced the most horrific days of my life but I’m still here and just need
to keep fighting and keep being positive. That’s all I can do.”
He is
literally one in a million, or thereabouts, having suffered a side effect of
the AstraZeneca jab so rare there is no reliable data on it yet. He said: “This
is so rare it isn’t going to happen to many other people so it shouldn’t deter
anyone having the vaccine. I had it because I want things to go back to normal
as soon as they can. And the only way we can do this is by being vaccinated.”
Alex, from
Cambuslang, Glasgow, had his Covid jab on March 20 and, aside from a sore arm
and tiredness, seemed fine. But 12 days later, he was struck down with sore
calves. The scaffolder said: “The nature of my job is heavy lifting, so we do
get aches and pains sometimes. Sore muscles are common. I had a hot bath and an
early night. I didn’t think much of it.”
The pain
continued over the next few days and on April 4, Alex collapsed at home. “One
minute I was doing the ironing and the next my legs buckled,” he said.
With wife
Michelle in the kitchen and unable to hear him shouting, Alex dragged himself
downstairs and told her to call an ambulance.
“I knew
straight away something wasn’t right,” he said. “And when the sweat started
pouring off me and I began hyperventilating, I knew I was in trouble.”
Alex was
taken to hospital where a CT scan confirmed multiple blood clots in his lower
abdomen and in both legs. Rushed into theatre, surgeons removed the clots which
thankfully hadn’t moved into his liver and kidneys.
“It was a
worrying time,” Alex said. “The doctors were speaking to consultants all around
the world about me, because it was unheard of for someone with this level of
clotting to survive.”
Alex’s
daughters Jennifer, 24, and Sophie, 20, and Michelle waited anxiously for word.
During the operation consultants warned them his life was at risk and that
amputation needed to be considered, with the loss of both legs a possibility.
Alex pulled through but had to come to terms with how his life would change and
a week later underwent amputation surgery.
“I asked if
they could amputate below the knee, just so that there were more options when
it came to getting mobile again,” said Alex. “But unfortunately it had to be
above. Every vein in my left leg was collapsing.
“But they
saved my life. I should not be here, but I am. It had to happen and I just have
to adapt. Thankfully it was just one leg.”
Alex was
advised it could take up to a year for him to be fully mobile again, with the
help of a prosthetic leg. But he’s determined to prove doctors wrong and do it
in three months.
“I was out of
hospital last week, just a few days after the surgery, and I’m already
determined to get better as soon as I can,” he said. “My attitude is – bring it
on! I always try to be the best person I can be, and see the positive, so I’ve
already decided losing a leg won’t define me. It will alter my path but I have
so much determination and fighting spirit that it won’t stop me being Alex
Mitchell.”
Alex faces up
to six weeks in a wheelchair to build up his strength before being fitted with
a prosthetic leg and then intense rehabilitation to learn to walk with it.
By late
summer, the lifelong Mod hopes to be out on his “new” 50-year-old Vespa, suited
and booted, doing a charity run to Hairmyres Hospital, to raise funds for
Finding Your Feet to enable the charity to buy a new training leg.
“It has given
me a whole different perspective,” Alex said. “It has changed my life. I’ve
lost my leg and my livelihood. I won’t be able to do scaffolding again and
there will be challenges ahead but I believe it will change things in a
positive way. Before all this happened I loved nothing more than dancing to
Northern Soul. I’m a terrible dancer so it’s no great loss – but I will dance
again.
“I wouldn’t
want to discourage people from having the Covid jab. From what they know, what
happened to me is rare. It’s only going to affect maybe one or two people, so
don’t let it put you off.
“It’s a big
thing, but the fact that I’m here is an even bigger thing. I’m not going to
feel sad or angry. Life four weeks ago was normal and very different, but now I
have a ‘new normal’. I’m fully aware that I will have down days – but I had
down days when I had two legs.
“I consider
myself very lucky. I have family and friends, support and love – and a whole
lot of determination. It’s important to be thankful for what you’ve got – and
to remember there is always someone worse off than you.”
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