Tim starts taking photos again...

I have to admit I’ve been uncharacteristically absent from the countryside over the past two to three years. My childhood ills which I won’t bore you with now unfortunately came to revisit me in mid 2007. Having collapsed rather more seriously than usual I was admitted to Dorchester County Hospital and following a short stay was referred to a specialist at Kings College Hospital in London. The rest of 2007 and a large part of 2008 saw me clock up many miles to and from various NHS establishments resulting in me being faced with life saving surgery in August 2008.

Now I’ve had my fare-share of hospital visits over the years and indeed as a kid I looked upon the BRI Hospital in Bristol as more of a home than my own in sleepy Dorset. However back then as a kid and didn’t really appreciate what was going on and why it was happening. As much as this was often upsetting, painful and lonely I never knew how serious it all was and as such the prospect of being wheeled into theatre again didn’t particularly scare me, apart from that terrible green pre-med they used to force down my throat prior to surgery.

Now almost twenty years on and having to face surgery again, as an adult, I was well aware of the seriousness. My condition was far from routine and the surgeons involved by their own admission accepted that it was new territory for them. I had spent the months prior to my operation getting as fit as I could as I knew my body would need all the help it could get.

When the date came I was very confident, indeed I was doing the easy bit. Professor Nigel Heaton head of the liver unit at Kings and my family were looking forward to a very long 12 hours, particularly considering the estimated time for the surgery was three to four hours.

Having recovered remarkably quickly the following year or so was still very tough. My body struggled with a 12 inch abdominal scar on top of all the others I’ve got and I continually suffered from debilitating back problems. Used to regularly playing football and being physically active not being able to enjoy this as well as being in constant pain was far more difficult than any operation.

As the scar began to stretch and give I became more able to partake in activities. Upon a suggestion from a friend and work colleague (thanks Dave) I took up Salsa dancing and more recently after moving home with my better half and Salsa teacher, I have been able to enjoy long walks in the country that I’ve missed so much!

In the past month or so I’ve borrowed camera equipment including a telephoto lens from a good friend and fellow wildlife enthusiast and actually taken some half decent pictures. My hope is that I can look to replace the equipment I was forced to sell as a result of time away from work and get back to taking photos of the wildlife and landscape around me. Click here to check out the first photos I’ve taken for three years!