Round-Scotland cycle will be no mean feat
A YOUNG man who was left paralysed by a rare illness is battling his way back to health and will be in John O’Groats next week on a round-Scotland cycle.
Kyle Tod (25), from Edinburgh, will be in Groats on Tuesday or Wednesday – six years after being robbed of the ability to move by Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), an acute disease of the peripheral nervous system.
Kyle and his best friend, Ewan Maclennan, are aiming to raise money for the GBS Support Group and highlight the charity and what it does by cycling from the nation’s capital 850 miles around the coast and then back to Edinburgh.
It will be no mean feat for Kyle as he still suffers from occasional muscle spasms.
In 2006 Kyle was diagnosed with GBS. His doctor initially put the symptoms down to a migraine, but his father Des pushed for a second opinion.
Kyle, who had celebrated his 20th birthday just days before, was rushed to hospital where a wheelchair awaited him after he collapsed at home.
"I went from being a normal, fit person playing football the night before to 24 hours later lying in a hospital bed and not being able to move a muscle," he said.
"It was a shock. I did a lot of sport before and I was hoping to progress to being a professional football player, but I can’t do that now."
Nearly six years on, Kyle has almost made a full recovery – although his fitness isn’t quite at the level it was before and even a minor cold can knock him for six.
Following the diagnosis, he spent around six weeks receiving treatment at the Western General and another six weeks undergoing physiotherapy. He was completely paralysed for more than a week, after which he slowly began to regain movement.
It was around three weeks before Kyle was able to sit up in his bed, and around two months before he could walk again.
He hopes he will raise awareness of the syndrome on his journey and also funds for research into the condition. The duo set off from Edinburgh today.