MICHAEL'S fight overcoming adversity and embracing change
From an early age, Michael’s goal in life was to never be unemployed and to always be able to provide for his family. A firm believer in continuous education, Michael spentmany years of his life investing in his personal learning and development. He fought to be the top of his field in whatever he set his mind to and his qualifications allowed him to travel extensively, whilst providing a good quality of life for those who were closest to him. Michael had the world at his feet, until one moment changed his life forever. As Michael was commuting to work on his motorcycle one morning, a truck pulled out in front of him and he went right into the side of it. Michael describes the accident as “a disaster” with the impact crushing his “hands, arms, legs, shoulders, knees, feet and toes.” The next four years would see Michael in the fight of his life. During this period, Michael was in and out of hospital, and as he recalls had “well over 50 general anaesthetic surgeries” to put him back together again.
“At the time, there was no NDIS, there was nothing like that. I went to the Commonwealth Rehabilitation Centre to see if they would help me get better so I could be employable again, but they refused to help me because there was ongoing surgery. So, their stance was come back and see us when the surgeries are finished, and the surgery is still going on today. That was in 1999.” Michael continued to explore avenues to become employable again, but with multiple surgeon reports stating ‘home duties only’, he had no luck in finding a job provider to help him. After exhausting all options, Michael took it upon himself to find a job, on his own. Despite receiving multiple interviews, Michael couldn’t pass any of the medical exams, which put him back at square one. The next few years would see Michael’s family breaking down, and despite receiving a pay out from the Government, his “lawyers and Centrelink ended up taking almost half of it”. After the pay out, Michael was put on a 10 year preclusion period which prevented him from claiming any expenses or benefits through the government, which complicated matters further, as he had two children to raise. “I managed to scrape through with only a few hundred dollars left to my name. By the end of the ten year period, I had nothing left. I went nowhere. I did nothing.
8 Rural Lifestyle Options Australia Magazine
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