Stents

After my return from Prague things began to happen a bit more rapidly. I did do some more teaching, just a day or two from time to time and mostly at the Magdelene College School in Brackley where I began to be recognised and actually felt quite comfortable. I was sent, though, one day to a bad school in Daventry. I met another supply teacher there and she said that the fact that this place had a Pupil Referral Unit, with several skilled staff, was  asign that they had trouble most days! Sure enough, I was faced with a nasty few lads in a Year 10 class at the end of the day. There was nothing to help me know what to do with them. Some sort of session about exercise and health, I think, and certainly not my line of teaching or experience at all! I wondered if we could watch a video of some sort but couldn't get the recording thing to work. I couldn't access a computer either so couldn't use any of my own web materials. I was in apretty helpless state and resorted to the 'do your homework and keep quiet' escape clause.

Unfortunately, there were a few lads who just took no notice and bags were being thrown across the room and a game started where the bag would be dropped out of a window in the corner of the room that I couldn't easily get to. Then the pupil whose bag it had been would run out and get it. This was wrong on several levels but the worst thing was the way in which some pupils outside would try and jam shut the window as another pupil was pushing something through it. I could see a disaster in the making.

I shouted at them to stop but to no avail so I walked across to where one lad was lying across a ledge and reaching for the window. I grabbed him and, as I pulled him back he seemed to come much more easily than I'd expected, probably pushing himself back just as I pulled up. So this chunky boy got pretty much lifted and just as I was about to plonk him down near a desk I gave him one more heavy shove. The whole kinetics worked quite remarkably and he shot back across a desk and against the back wall of the classroom. He went down on the floor but I could see that it would only be some damage to a shoulder or arm and nothing to be worried about. He was really quite shocked. He stood up, holding his arm and faced up to me as if he was about to punch me. I just stood there and told him to get on with life or something, whatever came to mind. He said I'd hurt him and I smiled and moved away. He went off to complain about me and the rest of the class went pretty quiet. They said he had a dad who could be trouble so I should watch out. That did worry me so I was quite glad to get away from there after school finally finished.

I talked to some people in the Referral Unit and they didn't seem terribly surprised about the incident. I was worried that I would be i trouble as I do know you're not supposed to manhandle students but no-one seemed to be too concerned. Even the agency were OK about it and I was at Magdelene College School again a couple of days later. I decided, though, that I had had enough and didn't do any more teaching.

I wouldn't have got much chance anyway as, after several visits and all sorts of investigations into my heart at Northampton Hospital, I was sent to Bedford hospital in July 2015 to have a stent fitted in an artery near my heart. I was awake throughout the operation where the chap inserted a long wire device through my wrist and slowly worked its way to where the stent was released and placed. My arm was very painful, though, as the painkiller injection hadn't been quite as successful as it should and I had some bad bruising to the area where they'd tried to insert a needle. Otherwise, though, I was home afterwards and just had my arm in a sling for a few days. I wasn't allowed to drive with the sling but it got repaired in a few days and all was well.

The doctor had said that I may not be permitted to drive earlier because they had not been able to identify the cause of my heart stoppage. So she said that it could just happen again and cause an accident. I should have to inform the DVLA and I remember almost being in tears as I left the surgery at the time, thinking that, without a car, I would be lost and my life was possibly about to change for the most serious of futures that I had always dreaded. I carried on, though, as the hospital investigations did seem to find a cause and the stent cured it. Thank goodness for that!

Another two stents were inserted in August in a much more pleasant and painless exercise at Bedford again. Oddly, I cannot recall both visits now. I presume it will have been the same surgeon doing the honours but now I can only recall one session. anyway, I now have three stents and, apart from having to take a few tablets every day, all is well with my world again in that respect.

It seems that I had a lucky escape.