Follow us: hu Improving life after brain injury Need to talk? 0808 800 2244 Donate Home About brain injury Individuals Brain injury and me Gerald Heffernan Share your story Share your story with us to help others affected by brain injury Gerald Heffernan Help that person, because one day it could be you in that position. Watch the story Gerald Heffernan was a professional coach driver, working a busy schedule that involved travelling up and down the country with coachfuls of tourists from all around the world. But a sudden diagnosis of encephalitis put the brakes on Gerald’s career, causing him to experience a wide range of symptoms that stopped him from being able to return to the wheel. “I was living a pretty normal life,” said Gerald, recalling his days from before the injury. “I was working full-time, doing a lot of travelling with busy hours. I was quite active, living life to the full. “I was attending a training session one day and I started getting really nasty headaches. Over the next couple of days, it was getting progressively worse and I was having seizures. Eventually I went into hospital.” After several tests and scans, Gerald was diagnosed with encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain. It wasn’t until he was returning home that the impact of his injury became apparent. “I remember my father driving me home and I started getting motion sickness. For me as a professional driver that was really odd.” At home, Gerald also had problems with communication, co-ordinating his movements and walking. He continued having seizures, which prevented him from returning to work. “When I realised that because of my seizures I wouldn’t be able to drive, my world stopped. “Getting my application in for benefits was difficult. I had to start again due to problems with the login details and registering my details. “When I met the Work Coach, he hadn’t heard of encephalitis. I found it a little patronising; I was explaining about memory issues and he said, ‘oh I forget things, I know what you’re going through.’ I said, ‘no, you haven’t got a clue.’ “I was put forward for a medical review and wasn’t expected to look for work, which was good because it took unnecessary pressure off me. But initially I had applied for ESA, and for whatever reason I was moved onto Universal Credit.” The process of being forced onto Universal Credit was frustrating for Gerald and he felt bullied by the Work Coach. However, after a while, he no longer needed to go to the Jobcentre or have reviews. Gerald still felt that there was some basic training lacking among Work Coaches and emphasised the importance of treating applicants with dignity and care. Try and see the person, don’t be judgemental. Lose the stereotypes, lose the judgements, and if you can help them, help them. That person’s in a bad place, physically, emotionally and mentally. Help that person, because one day it could be you in that position. Back to stories index Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) ESA is a welfare benefit to support people who are unable to work due to a disability or illness. Find out more Right First Time The Right First Time campaign is calling on the government to bring in changes to the disability benefit assessments which currently fail a large number of brain injury survivors and their families. Find out more Encephalitis Encephalitis is an inflammation of the brain, most often caused by infections. Find out more Friends of Headway Individual membership Join/Renew Contact Us t: 0115 924 0800 e: enquiries@headway.org.uk Help us improve life after brain injury. Donate Improving life after brain injury 0808 800 2244 Call our free helpline 9am - 5pm, Monday to Friday. Or email helpline@headway.org.uk Join our online Community 27k Likes 25k Followers 3k Subscribers Privacy policy Cookies Terms & Conditions Accessibility Contact Us Resource centre Find a Headway Approved care providers Charity shops Fundraising comments, feedback and complaints Vacancies Join our mailing list Headway - the brain injury association is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (Charity no. 1025852) and the Office of the Scottish Regulator (Charity no. SC 039992). Headway is a company limited by guarantee, registered in England no. 2346893. © Copyright Headway 2021 - Site designed and developed by MEDIAmaker By clicking 'Accept All Cookies’ you agree to the storing of cookies on your device. This will help us to offer the best possible experience and develop more of the information you need. Accept All Cookies Cookies Settings