A DAD suffered a life-threatening leg condition on holiday when he slipped while dancing with his four-year-old daughter. Darren Dixon, from Brough, was only on the second day of a fortnight-long family holiday in Turkey when he fell at a mini disco.
The accident left him with a broken leg, sprained ligaments and life-threatening deep vein thrombosis (DVT). Now, Darren, 38, hopes his experience will alert other people to the dangers of DVT.
Darren, who lives in Brough with daughter Sydney and wife Kirsty, only found out he had DVT when he returned to the UK.
He said: "I was dancing at the mini disco when I slipped and went over. We went to hospital in Turkey, and for the next 12 days my wife was pushing me round in a wheelchair. They put a half cast on my leg so I could fly home, and I went to A&E the next day to get it checked out."
Darren had an X-ray at Hull Royal Infirmary and was put in a full leg cast when he returned home from his holiday in May. But then Darren, who works for Smales fish merchants, started to feel an odd sensation.
He said: "It felt like my calf was going to explode and my foot was stone cold. I went back to hospital and they cut the pot off and the consultant said I had DVT. I didn't even know what it was. I just thought, 'what is everyone panicking about?'."
Since the visit to Hull Royal in May, Darren has been on drugs to help thin his blood and will have to wear compression socks for two years. But, despite all this, he is planning to run the Haltemprice 10k to raise money for the DVT clinic in Westbourne Avenue.
He has already begun training and has so far raised hundreds of pounds
He said: "My ankle still hurts a bit, but I'm doing OK. I've raised about £900 so far, which isn't bad because I only thought I'd get about £100. I did a full 10k on Wednesday and got under 54 minutes, which I was really pleased with."
Running the course on October 27 will be an exciting challenge for Darren. But because it is the day before another holiday, Kirsty has reservations.
Darren said: "My wife said 'don't you dare trip over in the race – I'm not spending another holiday pushing you around in a wheelchair'."
To sponsor Darren, email darren.dixon@smales.co.uk or call 07801 027961.
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