Her.ie meets Lisa Bradley – a mum of three from Cork who took her personal fitness journey into her own hands. Here Lisa tells us how she went from being bed-bound with a serious back condition to running down the aisle…
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In my late teens and early 20’s I suffered with bulimia, went on every single diet craze going, was addicted to quick fix diet pills and laxatives. My whole concept of losing weight was out of control. Thankfully after a long struggle and with the help of my now husband I was able to change my ways. Unfortunately shortly after seeing what this crazy diet pattern was doing to my health I was diagnosed with a rare spinal cord disease called syringomyelia.
Syringomyelia is where a cyst forms in your spinal canal causing extreme pain and loss of sensation and movement in parts of your body.
The most difficult part for me was seeing the worry on my family’s faces when we realised the extent of what I had been diagnosed with. I had been in and out of A&E for months before my diagnosis only to be sent home each time with pain killers, knowing they would not give me any relief. My GP thankfully never gave up on me and without her recommendation to seek a private MRI scan I don’t think I’d be sharing quite the same story.
I met with my neurosurgeon a few days later and he went through the results of the MRI, explaining that I had idiopathic syringomyelia. This meant there was no known reason or injury that caused the cyst to form. He also told myself and my now husband that I would have to undergo major spinal surgery to relieve the cyst and to have a permanent shunt placed in my spinal cord to drain the cyst.
My world was turned upside down. Two weeks after my diagnosis I had the surgery which was a success and with minor damage to my nerves we thought I’d be up and going with no problems but unfortunately I still suffered with severe back pain.
In December 2009 and July 2011 we had our son Olan (4) and our daughter Allayna (3). Both pregnancies came with their own complications and I was put on a lot of bed rest but thankfully both planned c – sections went perfect.
After Allayna’s birth I had extremely bad back pain and was referred to a pain management specialist where I was put on more medication, tablets, medical patches and had numerous facet joint injections – none of which seemed to work.
My life consisted of weeks of bedrest at a time and I was cared for by my family. I had to be washed and cared for by my husband, he had to days off work and my mam also moved down with us to help mind the children. I also had a public health nurse come out and check on me as this was a very emotional and hard time. I thought after my operation I’d have my life back. I’d have good and bad days so I kept strong and tried my best to think positively.
My parents were due to get married in March 2012. The day before the wedding I drove from our home in Cork to Stradbally, Co Laois, but on the way up I started to feel a burning sensation in my legs. I rang my Godparents and instead of meeting my mam in my Nana’s house as planned, I met my Godparents in their home, where I was carried into the house because my legs were still in spasm. Every thought went through my head, and most importantly, would I make it to the wedding? Thankfully after a few hours the spasms stopped and I was able to walk up the aisle as bridesmaid on my parents’ amazingly special day.
When I returned home a few days later thinking about what had happened and the fact it came on so suddenly, I was worried knowing my own wedding was only nine months away. I was so unhappy. Already suffering from depression I didn’t want my life to be like this forever. After a weekly check-up, my doctor suggested that I take one hour a few days a week to myself. She suggested I take up walking or a gym class knowing that I was very self conscious and upset about the weight I had gained over the previous few years. I agreed with her but I knew I had no intentions of doing anything!
About a week later, flicking through a local paper, I came across an advert for a gym that was doing personal training packages. I’d joined so many gyms before but after a few weeks I’d stop going. I signed up for a 12 week package in Dennehy’s Health&Fitness in Ballincollig where I met my trainer Eoin Fehily. Eoin really took good care of me. It wasn’t about losing weight for him; it was about strengthening my back enough so that I could exercise comfortably and correctly.
My goal was to walk down the aisle on my wedding day. I didn’t want to be worrying that I might not be able to move the morning of the wedding.
I trained 3-4 times a week with Eoin beside me for every session. I got stronger, I was able to add weights into my sessions and for me that is where my love for fitness started. I never felt so good – I was more energetic, I was able to come off all my prescribed medication and I was getting healthy eating six times a day (more than I’d ever eaten on any plan in the past).
I was never intimidated by exercise. I was more scared about having to eat so much food and worried that eating so many times a day would trigger my bulimia but I stayed strong and never gave up. The feeling I got from lifting weights was like nothing I’d had before. I felt like I was the one in control of my body. I felt strong, confident and amazing.
My wedding day was so special. I married my best friend and the person who had been through it all with me. I practically ran up the aisle to Derry! All my training had paid off and we could not have asked for a more magical day.
My family have been so supportive of me and I could never thank them enough for what they done and still do for me. It is my family who really got me through this.
I took this experience as a positive and I am now going to pursue a career in the fitness industry. I’m enrolling on a personal training course and also a nutrition course. I also set up a fitness page to help inspire others who are starting out on their own fitness journeys where I share motivational posts and also clean food recipes from breakfasts to desserts.
I love when I receive messages of support from people or receiving stories of their own personal experiences – for me that is what makes it all worthwhile. If I can help one person, whether it’s someone who struggles with a disability or someone who suffers from depression or an eating disorder, well then I would tell my story a million times over.
There is no better feeling than the feeling of confidence and happiness. That’s what changing my lifestyle has done for me. My motto in life is “never say never” and if you give up before you try you will never know what could have been.
It’s not about being the perfect size or looking like the girl in the magazine – it’s about living a healthy lifestyle. A diet is there to be broken, a healthy lifestyle is for life. 
If you need some of Lisa’s inspiration, or for a chance to nab some clean eating recipes, follow her Facebook page here.
