'I chose to have leg amputated to end crippling pain - now I feel normal again'
Richard Potter was a “super fit” Captain in the Royal Logistics Corps, until a crunching tackle during an army football match changed his life for ever.
The officer, who studied fitness at university and served in Iraq, was playing a cup semi-final in 2015 for his regiment when disaster struck. “I went in for the ball at the same time as another player and hurt my ankle. The pain was horrific and I was taken to A&E in an ambulance.
"It was black, blue and swollen, but I was told it was just badly sprained, which was good news because that meant I could still deploy to the Middle East with my team. To go, I had to pass a fitness test. I took painkillers and ran as hard as I could to pass, but I knew something felt off.”
Sure enough, while overseas, Richard’s ankle pain got steadily worse. “It got to the point that I couldn’t squat, deadlift or run,” the 38-year-old dad-of-one recalls. Eventually a surgeon in the field identified he had an osteochondral defect – a hole in the cartilage of his ankle caused by his football collision. The diagnosis was confirmed by an MRI scan back in the UK and Richard, from Norwich, was referred for an operation to fix the issue. But what should have been routine surgery in 2016, took a shocking turn.
Richard in his army days (DAILY MIRROR)
Richard with his prosthetic leg (DAILY STAR)“I went to bed after the op dreaming about playing football again, but at 2am I was rushed into hospital,” he says. “I was going into septic shock.” With wife Ellie at his bedside, Richard narrowly avoided death, but spent weeks on antibiotics. He was diagnosed with a bone infection and a condition called complex regional pain syndrome.
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He adds: “I was on 32 tablets a day and just went from the sofa to the bed and back again. I wasn’t able to train and turned to sugary things to feel good. In constant agony and unable to walk, I became clinically depressed. I didn’t recognise myself.” Months passed and, after yet another bacterial infection, a doctor asked if Richard might consider having the limb removed.
“I weighed up the pros and cons and decided to have an amputation to end the pain,” he says. “It was a huge decision.” Surgery took place on May 1, 2018. Richard says: “The pain had gone. It was like somebody had flipped a switch in the back of my head and I had gone back to normal Rich.”
A long period of rehab, supported by the British Legion, followed. But, after having a prosthetic limb fitted and getting a running blade, Richard, who is a district councillor in Norwich, was able to train again, lose weight and get off medication.
He says: “I train seven days a week for up to 20 hours on a rowing machine and exercise bike and I run.” His fitness is so good he’s been picked to join 58 other injured serving and ex-service personnel for Team UK at the Invictus Games in Germany this September.
While he hasn’t been able to bring himself to play football, he will compete in sitting volleyball, rowing, athletics and table tennis. “I’d love to bring home a medal, but just walking out there is going to be worthy of one as I know how hard I’ve worked to get to this point.”
* The British Legion is leading a team of veterans and military personnel in the Invictus Games Dusseldorf, from September 9-16. rbl.org.uk/invictus
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