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<\/p>\nA Nelson woman is learning how to walk again after a cycling crash earlier this year left her pelvis “shattered like glass” \u2014 injuries her orthopedic surgeon described as some of the worst he’d seen. <\/p>\n
Angela Herbert, 50, has spent more than 100 days in hospital after she was struck by a van while cycling through a busy Nelson roundabout on February 8. <\/p>\n
“I remember screaming in pain on the road, and then stopping after a while because I started to lose consciousness,” Herbert told 1News. <\/p>\n
She had suffered six pelvic fractures, including devastating damage to her left pelvis. <\/p>\n
Doctors initially considered surgery, but the injuries were so severe that they could not operate. Months later, Herbert’s orthopedic specialist described her injuries as the worst he had ever seen. <\/p>\n
“I was told that my left pelvis resembled shattered glass, and then I was told not to run or walk,” she said.<\/p>\n
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Herbert has spent over 100 days in hospital. (Source: Supplied)<\/p>\n
Scans later confirmed she would likely never run again \u2014 devastating news for the former distance runner, who previously trained up to 50km a week.<\/p>\n
Herbert admitted dealing with that reality had been “very distressing”. <\/p>\n
“It’s been very difficult to accept,” she said. <\/p>\n
“I have no idea when I’ll walk again, or if I can run.”<\/p>\n
Before the accident, Herbert lived a busy life dedicated to helping others.<\/p>\n
A former police officer, she worked as a kaiwhakaako and remote kaitiaki for Te W\u0101nanga o Aotearoa, mentoring students in te reo M\u0101ori and tikanga M\u0101ori throughout the top of the South Island and West Coast.<\/p>\n
She was also a medical herbalist, life coach, artist and active member of the Tribal Nations Motorcycle Club.<\/p>\n
A long road to recovery <\/p>\n
The journey to recovery since Herbert’s crash had been far from straightforward. <\/p>\n
Alongside her extensive pelvic injuries, she had developed functional neurological disorder (FND) \u2014 a condition affecting how the brain sends and receives signals throughout the body. The condition left her unable to move her left leg at all. <\/p>\n
“I’m having to drag my leg along with a band on a walker and support myself with my arm,” she said. “I can only walk five to 10 steps, really.”<\/p>\n
She had also experienced PTSD, anxiety, hearing loss in her left ear and severe pain since the accident. <\/p>\n
“It’s all been very, very painful,” she said. <\/p>\n
Herbert’s recovery was expected to take up to nine months, with hydrotherapy and rehabilitation now forming part of her daily routine.<\/p>\n
“Normally in my line of work, I help a lot of clients with life coaching and overcoming big problems in their lives,” she said. <\/p>\n
“This is different. I feel like it’s a lot easier helping others than trying to help myself.”<\/p>\n
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Herbert was an avid motorcyclist prior to the accident. (Source: Supplied)<\/p>\n
‘I will never be the same’ <\/p>\n
Herbert said she had been “blown away” by the volume of support from the Nelson community.<\/p>\n
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