A few days ago, the media reported the story of amateur heavyweight fighter Stephen McMullen, which moved everyone. Originally from Ireland, McMullen was once a thriving warrior but suffered a horrific brain injury during a race in December 2021 that changed the course of his life.
At that time, the 27-year-old McMullen faced his countryman Richard Boyle in the final of the Ulster Classic, and the two sides fought fiercely, McMullen lost by points, and quickly lost consciousness and was rushed to the Royal Victoria Hospital for treatment.
At first, McMullen spent five weeks in the intensive care unit, and when he woke up, he was transferred to a stroke unit and later to another hospital for intensive brain rehabilitation. Eventually, after nearly a year in the hospital, McMullen was discharged home in September 2022.
It should be mentioned that Boyle, who injured McMullen in the match, although he won the victory and became the champion, was very guilty, and soon announced the end of his sports career, although in the boxing confrontation, it was not his fault.
Doctors said McMullen had a 99.9 percent chance of moving his eyes up and down because of the severe brain damage, which is no different from a vegetative state and completely unable to take care of himself, but earlier this year, McMullen took a huge step towards success.
Amy Fitzsimmons, her girlfriend who has been in love with McMullen for 13 years, has never left her boyfriend after her accident, and she told the media that McMullen has never given up to get better, and she has never wanted to give up on each other. Now, through medical technology, Amy has successfully conceived McMullen's child, the fetus is currently 7 months old, and it is known that it is a boy.
"Pregnancy wasn't planned, but it's not unplanned," Amy said. We always say that if it really happens, it happens. Right now, my due date is around September, McMullen is expecting our first child, and he's ecstatic about becoming a father. ”
Since McMullen can only move his eyes up and down and can only communicate through a gaze device, the device uses a special glasses tracking camera that captures eye movements, allowing McMullen to see letters on the screen, which in turn helps him form sentences.
Girlfriend Amy said that although the recovery process was very difficult, McMullen was improving every day.
"It's hard, but I'm never going to leave him and be with him all the time," Amy said. McMullen is doing very well, doing weekly physiotherapy and a few months ago he took his first steps and was able to sit up and balance on his own. McMullen loves physical therapy, and his speech therapy has stopped due to the presence of gaze devices, but McMullen has been praying for private language help. ”
Not long ago, Amy and McMullen completed an overseas vacation, which was considered a huge breakthrough, considering that they have not left Ireland since McMullen's accident. "When we went to Portugal for my cousin's wedding, it was a very tough week for McMullen because it wasn't the same for him without physiotherapy, but McMullen wanted to go and we just went on holiday and it was great to get out of here and relax," Amy said. ”
While McMullen is in a coma with a serious injury, Amy tattoos her name on the other person, and she hopes that McMullen will be able to see it when she wakes up. Now, Amy has McMullen's name tattooed on herself.
The McMullen family set up a fundraising page with the hope of raising £5,000, but the total has now exceeded £12,000, which is used to pay for McMullen's intensive rehabilitation and gaze equipment. It is understood that the relevant agencies are trying to get McMullen to control TV and social media through equipment.
McMullen himself knew that rehabilitation was a difficult process, especially at a high cost, and according to his own wishes, he auctioned off some of his personal belongings, including gloves bearing the name of former boxing champion Carl Frampton, and eventually raised £2,400.
McMullen told everyone who cared about him through Amy: "I just keep a positive mindset and know that I can keep improving, and it may take time, but I will." ”