Skydive fundraiser planned by Athlone man coping with brain injury
It was just over eight years ago - on March 28, 2014 - that Stephen Byrne's life changed forever.
A young member of the Defence Forces, he was on duty that day in Portlaoise prison when he fell backwards in a lookout tower, causing his head to collide with a metal bar.
The impact of the fall knocked the Athlone man unconscious.
"When I came around, I was asking for a paracetamol. I just thought I had a headache," he recalled.
But he then started to get sick, and a doctor in Portlaoise referred him to Tullamore hospital. Stephen ended up spending several weeks in Tullamore, as it was discovered he had suffered bleeding on the brain.
"At the time I didn't realise the seriousness of it. I thought it was just a little fall," he said.
"I remember when I had the MRI, they said there was a bleed on the brain, and I kind of laughed and said 'did you find a brain when you did the scan?' But they were saying, 'no, this is serious.'"
The brain injury has continued to affect Stephen's life and career since, and he will soon be discharged from the Army on medical grounds. He is now planning a fundraising skydive this summer to raise money for Acquired Brain Injury Ireland.
He will be taking part in the skydive from Birr airfield on July 23, having just been given clearance to fly again from his neurologist.
"I wasn't allowed to fly after the fall in 2014, but when the neurologist said I could fly now I decided I was definitely doing the skydive. It's something I always wanted to do," he said.
A father of one who lives in Grotto View, Battery Heights, Stephen came from a family with strong Army connections.
His Dad and several of his uncles served in the Defence Forces, including his uncle, Niall Byrne, who lost his life in Lebanon in 1981.
Stephen joined the Army eleven years ago. After the accident in 2014, he lost control of his bladder and had to have a tube put in through his stomach.
He has also suffered from seizures and had issues with the control of his left arm and the left side of his body.
"Whatever way I fell and hit the back of my head, it damaged what one of the doctors called the 'control panel' for the bladder and stuff like that," he explained.
He went back to work in the Army and was mostly doing light duties and office work, although he did get to take part in some guards of honour, such as one commemorating the 1916 centenary.
But when he subsequently applied to serve overseas this was turned down and he said that, last October, the Defence Forces' medical board determined that he should be discharged on medical grounds.
When he spoke to the Westmeath Independent recently, Stephen was awaiting an official date for his discharge, which he expects to happen in the coming months.
He has experienced a lot of pain as a result of the accident but is determined to persevere.
"There are days when I'm in agony, but I just keep getting up and keep going. I'm on this side of the ground, so I can't complain," he said.
Stephen said his daughter Molly (8) has been a source of inspiration, and he also expressed his gratitude to Tom Silke and Paschal Dillon who gave him bar work on the weekends at The Bounty in Athlone.
Stephen launched an online donations page for his skydive fundraiser last month and at the time of writing €680 had already been raised for Brain Injury Ireland.
* You can support Stephen's fundraiser here.