Two years ago, Anthea Matthew developed sepsis, which damaged her back as the infection “ate away” at three of her vertebrae and discs in her spine.
Ms Matthew was then bed-bound for a year and was unable to move.
She said: “I was wearing a brace to ensure that no more damage could happen.
“When I came out of hospital, I was on intravenous antibiotics for three months. I had lost all the muscles in my arms and legs and I could not stand.”
Ms Matthew, who was now in a wheelchair, then started attending the community group Simply Limitless where she took part in the Mega Movers resistance band class.
After six months of doing the class without the bands, she built up the muscles in her arms enough to use the band.
She said: “I was still in the wheelchair as I still hadn’t got muscles operating in my legs.
“After a year, I started coming to some of the other Mega Movers classes, where I was able to do more movement and use the resistance band to build up my muscles.
“At this time, I saw the physio in Birmingham Orthopaedic Hospital and he advised the fitness instructors at Simply Limitless of specific exercises I could do to build up my muscles and help me to get moving again.”
Around a year after leaving the hospital, Ms Matthew was able to stand and walk short distances using two crutches, leaving her physio “amazed” at her progress.
Ms Matthew, from Kidderminster, said: “When she looked at my notes and scans, she said she was expecting me to be in a wheelchair, not walking into her room.
“She was really pleased and could see the hard work and effort that I had done. I told her it was due to coming to Simply Limitless that made all the difference.”
Ms Matthew later went down to one crutch before being signed off from the physio.
She has continued to do all the exercises at Simply Limitless on a regular basis, and despite still needing one crutch due to losing feeling in one of her legs after the infection, she can do most of the Mega Movers classes standing.
Ms Matthew added: “It hasn’t just been the physical exercise programme at Simply Limitless that has helped me. Using the Simply Limitless minibus enabled me to get out of the house and meeting and chatting to people at the centre has really helped me with my mental health.
“This has helped me to come to terms with what was a
life-changing event.
“Simply Limitless has shown me how I can look positively at how far I have come and I have great hope for my future health.”