IamA 21 year old paralyzed guy, tetraplegic AMA!

Do you walk around like before in your dreams?

This is actually weird. I start of being in a wheelchair and as my dream progresses I can walk better and better.

Had this discussion the other day with friends at a bar My friend told me she had a dream about me and I could walk fine. What is kinda weird is she's never known me to walk fine. I can't remember the last dream I had where I could walk around.

Did you get injured or are you born with it? The concept of walking in a dream is a bit weird cause pre injury I was mostly kinda floating around, or i just took walking for granted :P

How did you type?

I use the knuckles on my thumbs =)

What languages do you code in? I imagine that would give me a strong preference for ones that are lighter on punctuation out of sheer practicality.

Well I just code in whatever language my classes are on ^{^} but so far I have covered java, c#, assembler, prolog, haskell, sql, html, css, JavaScript, go

Awesome to hear that they're teaching stuff like Haskell and Go these days!

can't say those were my favourites xD

Hah, well either way keep at it, it's a super rewarding field. And as a bonus, probably one of the last ones that will get automated out of existence.

They even seem to be lacking people in the field

It seems like you lead a very active life, what changes have you made and what has stayed the same? Do you still have the same group of friends?

What stayed the same is my drive in training. I never miss a training session, only if I am sick, still train with the same mentality as when I was a swimmer. What changed though was my socialness. I became sort of an introvert. I rarely go out to hang with people and I enjoy being by myself. I still have my closest friends from many years ago but a lot less people I hang out with.

Whats the story behind your accident?

It was a normal day in school. I was 16 y/o and during a break me and a couple of friends were just hanging around. There was a window on the bottom floor that was open and I don't remember what triggered this idea but basically I was like yeah I totally could make a nice parcour jump out of that window. Next thing I know I run, I jump and my feet got stuck in the bottom edge of the window and I fell 2 meters straight down onto my head and the parcour jump i did, where I take off with my hands, put my arms in a position where I couldn't catch the fall with them

When all was said and done how did your family react?

I've never really known their thoughts about what happened. They were really supporting and never showed me any other emotions. I guess they were really sad though because they tried their whole life to protect me from something like this.

If you eat too much can you feel how full your stomach is?

I can feel hunger and fullness which is weird since I can't feel anything else in that area

What was your "Ohh shit" moment like? When you realized that something definitely wasn't right after your accident?

I was laying face down on the ground and I was like damn that was a bad hit. I opened my eyes and tried to move my arm. It looked like my shoulder was dislocated and I was like damn this is gonna hurt. Actually it was just that i couldn't move my arm muscles. Next thing I tried to roll over on my back. I thought I was laying straight put apparently I was curved up like a ball and when that image didn't match how I felt I was like oh shit this is really bad.

Are there any chances that some of the damage can be recovered long term? Like making use of your fingers again?

Also, what could the world do a bit differently to make the life of people with disabilities such as you better?

well over the past 5 years I have gotten a little back, nothing major though. Hmm, I would say building things accessible. I would love to go to any restaurant or bar or something without having to worry about if I can get in or not

isnt it required by the ada that all restaurants and businesses are wheelchair accessible? what is the main constraint? stairs, narrow doorway type stuff?

In USA yes , which is why I go there on vacation every year, but here in Sweden most parts of town were built during the years 1800-1900. Also everything new that is built is supposed to be accessible but it rarely is perfect.

Definitely stairs

Since you are young and were more fit than average before your accident, have you considered seeking out any radical medical trials, like Stem Cells?

I would definitely have tried it but I have no idea where this is done and tbh I never bothered searching for it. I figured if it was meant to be the opportunity would show itself to me.

What was it like when you landed? Did you feel any pain or nothing at all?

at first nothing more than a damn that was a hard fall but slowly I started feeling extreme pain in my shoulders and neck

How did your friends react after the accident ? Any changes in their attitude towards you after the accident ?

People were really sad, like even people I barely knew. Felt so bad for them since I was never really sad myself. But no their attitude never changed. I stayed the same in their eyes

You look fairly young, how old are you?. I'm sorry to hear about your accident.

21 right now =)

Would you go back to your old life even though you've built a new life for yourself?

I would for one very specific reason, I wanna know how good I could have become in swimming. Somehow though I feel like this was meant to happen one way or another

How do you pleasure yourself?

I can't rub one out, or at least I don't get pleasure from it which sucks since I did it like 3-4 times a day before. Neither is there anything that can compare in that kind of pleasure.

Can you still get hard?

Yes I can :D morning boners and Viagra :P

I still feel bad that you cant feel anything down there that would be my biggest fear (is that weird?)

My first thought after the surgery was , fuck I can't feel it, so no this is probably every mans biggest fear

No joke references to the thread about the guy with broken arms getting hand jobs from his mom yet? I'm... I'm surprised by this.

Edit:This was a thing so here's a link http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/nmmjr/iama_man_who_had_a_sexual_relationship_with_his/

lmao xD

I'm glad you got it and have a sense of humor, I'm getting down voted like a mofo. I like the way you roll, you seem like a positive guy

Ye dunno about the down votes but this was hilarious af xD I never mind people making jokes, find them funny ^{^}

What advice would you give to people (mostly young men presumably) who like to take physical risks for a thrill?

Trust me no advice will stop someone from seeking that thrill but something that might make them more careful: Less people get paralyzed today than 10years ago because our activities have become so much more dangerous that when things go wrong, they don't injure themselves, they die

Have you considered putting (soft) velcro on your fingertips and (pokey) velcro onto things you want to grab?

(This question is half joke, half serious)

This is hilarious xD I just imagine velcroing your entire home

I provide home care for a tetraplegic veteran, and I previously cared for a 22 year old tetraplegic. What you said about your dreams absolutely fascinates me. Just wanted commend you on your outlook and attitude!

Easy question- what's your favorite meal?

Me aswell xD Thank you sir! A good plate of pasta always makes my day :D

I'm definitely gonna ask my home care client next time I work with them about his dreams. I'm sorry, but I have a little tougher questions this time! My client has lived over 50 years in his current condition, and I wish the same for you! With that being said, and with the progression of technology and medicine, do you maintain hope that you'll be able to gain more mobility one day? Or is it easier to come to terms and just live?

I just got accepted to medical school for next year, and getting a perspective on patients' mindsets is important to me.

It's very different from person to person. Some people would do anything for the slightest improvement. While others are kinda just fine. Personally I think I manage my everyday life just fine with my care workers. If they figure out something that will give me more function, sure, as long as there is no risk involved. Like if there is a 10%risk I might get worse, fuck no! Also if getting more function meant walking in a robot on a treadmill 3h/day for 2 years and then daily physio, it would interfere too much with my daily life and I don't think it would be worth it

Would you rather fight 100 tetraplegic duck-sized horses, or 1 tetraplegic horse sized duck?

More seriously, as a young person in a situation like this, what are your plans for the future? Any hopes and dreams that you want to accomplish?

The horse sized duck, seems easier to handle 1 :P

I want to get a paralympic medal and maybe be voted mvp in a big championship. Career wise I hope I managa t finish un and get a nice job. No special dreams here, as long as I get by and have fun too

I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors!

Thank you sir :D

Do you have people helping you around the house?

Yes I always have someone at my place to help me with whatever I would need, cleaning, grocery shopping etc.

Do you play quad rugby in Birmingham? If so, how do you like the city?

I live in Stockholm Sweden and haven't been there unfortunately

What thing most people are surprised that you can do just as well as you did before your accident?

Have a girlfriend

Drive a car

Type fast on phone/pc

Do you get to lose your virginity before your accident?

I have quite a lot of experience pre injury which I am extremely happy for

So... How's that going?

And my real question, does your penis still work?

It does work, poorly though

If you could restore feeling/movement to just one part of your body that has lost it, what would it be and why? What would be the first thing you did after that?

movement: fingers, not being able to move my fingers makes everything 10x harder

feeling: dick, rub one out :P

You're amazing to me. Your attitude in all of this. You didn't even let becoming a tetraplegic stop you. That is incredible to me. Do you have any advice on how to deal with hard issues/life and also, what is your MBTI personality type?

Thanks a lot :D No idea what MBTI is sry =/

I would say that don't stress about stuff that has already happened and is now beyond your control. Just makes you feel bad, focus and stuff you can change =)

Loose head here- what's your position in wheelchair rugby, and how does wheelchair rugby work?

• you get classified from 0.5-3.5, you more muscles you can move the higher the point

• 4 players/team on court

• maximum 8 points total/team

• 40 sec to score a goal

• 12 sec to get over 1/2 court

• bounce or pass every 10 sec

• you score by pushing your chair in between 2 cones on the end of the court

These are the most basic rules. I'm a defensive player

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSzFmlWgVsM

Follow up- do you guys drink as much/sing the songs at the pub after? Are there wheelchair rugby specific songs?

Hahahaha I just know you are british from your question xD after tournaments there is definitely a pub round, no songs though, however I wouldn't even be surprised if the british had some. t

American, actually. Started playing for the drinking culture and camaraderie, stopped due to a collar bone injury that would be (believe it or not) potentially fatal were it to reccur.

From my experience the people playing are truly amazing and nice :D That's sad :/ Hope you still hang around the court

If you miraculously got healed tomorrow, what would you do?

Rub one or maybe 10 out, run 10km, swim, drive my go-cart, run up some stairs and shout "Ye that's right , you ma bitch now stairs!" xD

What are some tips that game designers can keep in mind to make it easier for you and others with limited mobility to game (such as key mapping, limited number of buttons, support for certain devices)? I'm more familiar with designing for people who need visual or audio accommodations but haven't considered mobility as much.

Good question, I have learned to adapt to games. I would say for FPS gmaes some sort of aim assist, I know overwatch has something like this on console. Otherwise let every input in the game be adjustable. For example rebinding funcions to any key or peripheral, having the option to toggle, like toggleing on or off sniper aim, maybe even making walking have a toggle option.

The hardest part usually is pressing multiple keys at once, so if i can toggle one function on then I can press some other key at the same time.

In my videos I describe what some hard things are in those games. Hope I could provide some insight. Just ask more if you want something more specific =)

Stupid guy here; How do you play wheelchair rugby if all of your limbs don't work?

Arms work, just the fingers that are bad

How is sex working out for you ?

with Viagra it's all Gucci =)

Just reading thru this AMA and wanted to say you seem like such a cool and positive dude. Sending good vibes your way from the USA!

Thanks man:D means a lot

Hi OP,

hope i am not too late.

When it is time to have a poo, how do you manage to push it out?

I can feel when I have to go, I get like shivers in my body and then I sit on the toilet and it kinda just comes. The timing when there is enough poop built up can sometimes be bad so sometimes I'm like okay I haven't had a poop in 2 days and tomorrow morning I have school so I should go now, then there are 2 ways. The easy one is just laying down in my lap and kinda pressing, it might trigger the sensation that I need to go or the second way is taking a laxative that you can buy at any pharmacy and you put it up the bum and after 10-15 mins you are done :P

How much weight have you gained?

well 1st I lost 10kg and during the last 5 years I gained 15 back

Do you have a video of the accident?

Sorry no