A man who was suicidal after losing his lower right arm in an industrial accident is looking forward to Christmas for the first time in seven years.
Nigel Ackland was one of the first people ever to be fitted with a Terminator-style bebionic3 hand and is now travelling the world to speak at conferences to explain the benefits of the incredible mechanical limb.
Three years ago, the 54-year-old, of Grange Bottom, Royston, was suicidal after being laughed at and taunted for the hook-like prosthetics provided by the NHS after the accident.
Nigel lost part of his arm when it became caught in an industrial blending machine at the Johnson Matthey smelting plant in Brimsdown in 2006. The former precious metal smelter who had to quit his job says he has since tried to black out the day.
He said: “After the accident I lost my reason to be, I just couldn’t see a future. Some people don’t understand how alienating losing a limb can be. The bebionic3 hand has given me back a life when I didn’t think one existed, I don’t feel disabled anymore, without it I don’t know where I would be now.
“With the right support, help and prosthetics a life changing injury doesn’t have to mean a life that’s over.
“This is the first year I’ve looked forward to Christmas since the accident, I used to be Bah Humbug, but now all I really want is to see the smiles on my wife and sons faces. They have coped so well with all this.”
After undergoing months of surgery along with several less advanced prosthetics, he rediscovered everyday activities such as dressing himself and peeling vegetables through RSLSteeper’s Terminator-style bionics.
A video and interviews of Nigel showing his bebionic3 hand have had almost three million hits on YouTube.
This year he headlined conferences in New York, Moscow, St Petersburg and Budapest.
Attendees were able to see the hand close-up, and learn about new technologies in life extension and prosthetics from the world’s leading scientists.
Nigel, husband to Vanessa, 52, and father to Conor, 20, added: “People used to look at me in disgust but now people are interested and ask questions, so I feel worthwhile. Speaking at the conferences is nervewracking but it’s exciting, they give a really positive message. My life has changed immensely this year.”
The carbon fibre bebionic3 myoelectric hand, given to Nigel to trial in 2012, is strapped to his elbow and responds to his muscle twitches like a real hand.