This Way Up is the newly released book by Rhett Brown who suffered a fall on a construction site in 2004 which left him with tetraplegia and the use of only 14% of his body.
Living with Tetraplegia
“I landed directly on top of my head. I remember seeing my feet pointing up at the sky, and the tools falling out of my apron. And I heard the crunch as my neck broke.”
We see tetraplegics (quadraplegics) in wheelchairs and spare them a small thought for the constriction they must suffer by being forced to live in a chair, but This Way Up takes us all the way. What happens when you're paralysed from the shoulders down and your bowels no longer work? How do your lungs cope with paralysis? What happens when your heat receptors can no longer convey the information they collect and you overheat?
Surmounting Obstacles
Rhett has surmounted extraordinary obstacles to become the human being that he is today. He is a sought after speaker in New Zealand who regularly speaks to construction site workers about site safety and what they face if an accident such as happened to him should happen to them.
This Way Up spares nothing of the detail of the emotional trauma and the black depths to which a life-changing accident such as Rhett's can bring you to. It turns out that men do cry, and not just once, but many times. Losing the use of your body when you are an active hunter, sportsman, and fisherman is not only tragic but calls into play the necessity to find alternative ways to enjoy life, and to make that life meaningful.
Rhett was 52 when he had his accident. It cost him his marriage, his lifestyle and for a time, his confidence in who he was. Suicide was a viable option in the beginning - it's just that when you're paralyzed, how do you do it? A knife in the chest would be easy - there's no pain to worry about, but how do you get a knife?
Beating Morphine Addiction
This book is an important read for anyone who has become wheelchair bound. It is full of heart and inspiration. It should also be read by anyone dealing with addiction, particularly morphine-based addictions. Rhett became addicted through the controlled legal administering of morphine for pain over a period of four years. Reading how he beat this addiction not only brings to life the realities of how addiction works, but also offers assistance in ridding yourself of an addiction, and talks about the demons encountered on the way. There was nothing easy about it, but Rhett proves that with support, it can be done.
The strength in this book is the raw vulnerability that Rhett has had the courage to express. Nothing is hidden, and in hiding nothing, an inspirational human being has been exposed. This Way Up is available through Rhett's website at rhettbrown.co.nz
Title: This Way up - Where Would I Be Without A Good Set of Wheels?
Author: Rhett Brown
ISBN: 978-0-473-20392-4
Publisher: AM Publishing New Zealand
