Shropshire athlete and former headteacher inspires other heart illness sufferers
A Shropshire athlete and former headteacher who suffered a cardiac arrest has written about his experience and how he got back to running, in an effort to inspire others.
Martyn Bidgood, 65, and from Kemberton, had a cardiac arrest in 2015.
He had been a keen athlete, playing football and tennis all his life, until he took up running as he got older.
Then in the wake of the cardiac arrest, he struggled as he faced the prospect of not being able to run again, but has since recovered to complete half marathons – even if the doctors tell him he should not try any full marathons.
Mr Bidgood, who was a headteacher at Woore Primary School, as well as Mount Pleasant Junior School in Shrewsbury and Long Knowle Primary in Wednesfield, also suffered a second cardiac arrest in March this year.
However, on that occasion, the early hours of a Saturday, he was asleep and did not even know. An ICD device implanted in his shoulder detected the cardiac arrest and shocked his heart back into its normal state.
Incredibly it was only when the hospital called on Monday to check on him that he found out the device had activated during the night.
Mr Bidgood is part of the Cardiac Athletes project, and is one of the worldwide organisation's ambassadors.
It intends to show athletes that they can still take part in sport after a serious heart illness, and offers encouragement and support on how.
Mr Bidgood's tale is one of the chapters in a new book released by the group last week, titled Cardiac Athletes: Advance of the Ambassadors.
He said he was pleased to be able to share his experience and show others that there is a future in sport after a cardiac arrest.
He said: "It is all about how you can keep going rather than waiting for the next terrible event.
"It is also a group trying to highlight that you do not just have to sit around doing nothing."
The book also includes information on encouraging learning of CPR and awareness of how to use defibrillators – vital for those who have suffered a cardiac arrest.
Mr Bidgood added: "I hope it helps someone else who has been through it and supports them, because psychologically you feel pretty down when you realise what has happened to you.
"It is just to try and encourage people that life is not over, and what it encouraged me to do is live life to the full because you realise how fragile it can be."
The book is available on Amazon.
