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A wee bit about myself

The purpose of this section is to let you get to know me better as well as to be kept up to date with what I am up to, when and where.
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These things only increase my determination...

27/4/2016

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It has been a year since my last blog post and boy how things have changed!
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This is an x-ray of my right leg. It is approximately what it looks like today. Below there is another x-ray and that is what my leg looked like before the operation. The first time I saw the picture below I thought I might throw up, luckily no one would let me see it until a few weeks after I got out of hospital. I spent 5 days in hospital in July last year. It was the first time I had ever stayed in hospital over night, it was the first time I had ever had an operation and it was the first time I had ever broken a bone. It was months before I could walk unaided.
So let's back up to what happened...


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I was running a summer holiday fencing camp at Banchory Academy. While running one of the sessions with rubber swords for the younger children I jumped on to a gymnastic crash mat, just like I had done multiple times earlier that day and the day before, but this time something different happened. The mat slipped out from underneath my feet and I landed badly. I saw my foot do something it should not normally do and I knew I needed an ambulance even before I hit the ground. Luckily I had a Duke of Edinburgh's Award helper that day and she was a star. I lay on the ground holding my ankle ordering her about and she called an ambulance, called the children's parents, fetched help from the sports centre and remained very calm. The ambulance took 45 minutes to get to us and then my car was blocking the nearest building entrance. By the time we arrived at the hospital I had been given the maximum amount of morphine allowed by the paramedics. Incredibly when they told me at the hospital that my leg was broken I was surprised and then it turned out it was so badly broken that I needed an operation. I had a spiral fracture on my tibia and my fibula had snapped in two. This meant that I needed a pin inserted into my tibia and lots of screws to hold things in place. Due to this injury I was unable to take my planned trip to Sweden and my 4 week tour of America but it did accelerate my move down to Glasgow where I now live.

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It has been very frustrating having to learn how to walk, run, jump, hop and balance all over again and some of those things I am still not very good at. I still get stiffness and pain in my ankle and knee and I have to attend physio appointments every month. I lost a lot of muscles and strength from not doing anything and it was extremely frustrating not being able to do what or move how I wanted but it has not just been a physical thing. Mentally I lost a lot of motivation to get up and do things even once I was able and I was constantly afraid of falling or injuring myself again. 

As for my fencing, well that has taken some time too. I discovered that there is no wheelchair fencing in Glasgow and I was struggling to even find something in the rest of Scotland. When I was able to get back to fencing I had to wear a shin guard and was not allowed to lunge. On the positive side my business in Glasgow managed to get up and running and that really kept me going. Seeing other people fencing made me desperate to pick it up again. I really pushed myself back into it, starting slowly by taking lessons where I did not have to move my feet that much and then building up to fencing others. I practised lots of blade work technique to improve my arm speed in order to make up for the lack of use of my legs. Although it was really tough, fencing was the one thing I never gave up on. I did not let my dreams fade and with the help and support of my family I just kept going.

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And so.........I kept fencing and I went back to competing, In October I competed for the first time after the accident in the Highland Open. Then the Scottish Open, the Merseyside Open and then at the Edinburgh Open in March I won my first ever fencing medal. I got a Bronze.
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To say I'm stronger than before would not be true. I am often still in pain and I still get frustrated when I can't do things that I think I should be able to but my determination is better than ever. The ambitions I spoke about a year ago are still achievable today.
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A small change in direction...

28/4/2015

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It has been a little while since I last posted in my blog. There has been a lot of fencing since then. As always I have been coaching, I have taken lessons from my wonderful coach and I have also been competing. 


Although my results at competitions have improved considerably since I was last competing I am finding myself getting more and more frustrated each time I get knocked out at a competition. There has been a definite shift in my mentality from "Well at least I fenced well and got knocked out by a good fencer" to "I should have beat her or I should have done better in the poules to get a better draw" etc. My ambition cannot be satisfied by doing my best anymore unless my best gets me a medal. This frustration has pushed me to finally do something to improve. 


I have been taking lessons for just over 3 years now and of course I have seen improvement. According to my coach I am technically very proficient but knowing I should be able to beat someone tactically and not actually managing to win every fight is not any less annoying.  
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Stamina, speed and strength are now the attributes I have to acquire. I am not sure exactly what eventually gave me the kick up the backside I needed but I am making an effort to train every day and complete a daily workout routine. The difference in my fencing and even in my appearance is noticeable. 

This increased level of fitness poses a new question for me if I continue to work on the physical aspect of fencing. How far do I want to take my own fencing? 

For now lets just see what I can achieve and I guess time will tell. Look out for me on the competition leaderboards. Signing off for now.

Laura 
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There's a first time for everything...

21/1/2015

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Well this is my first ever blog post, a new thing for the New Year. This year I spent Hogmanay in a castle (pictured right) which was also a first. On 1st January I had the opportunity to introduce some of the hotel guests to fencing where we spent a few hours playing with the rubber swords and chatting. Both children and adults alike had a great time and I hope some of them decide to take up fencing in the future. The castle was a perfect venue for a fencing event as there was a separate hall (normally used for weddings) which was unoccupied while I was there so we had plenty of space to run around. 

This year I plan to have many more firsts. This weekend I will be competing for the first time under the name of Braveheart Fencing and in early February I plan to run my first Beginner Fencing Class for the Braveheart Fencing Club. I have lots of exciting goals for Braveheart Fencing this year and I will try to keep you up to date with all our achievements. For now though I hope you had as great a New Year as I did and that you work hard to make all your resolutions a reality. I did set myself some New Year's Resolutions for 2015 but for the most part I thought I would do something different this year as inspired by my man who has "ordered" what he wants from "the Universe".
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Hogmanay at Culcreuch Castle
Rather than resolving to somehow be a different person this year to the one I was last year I have had a real think about what I want to achieve this year and asked the universe to deliver it to me. I do not have to worry about how these things will happen, I just need to believe that they will and really start to enjoy managing this business.

Fencing is my passion and I am looking forward to making my fencing club and my coaching business successful with the help of my loving and supportive partner in both life and work.

Speak soon. Coach Laura 
                     (CEO Braveheart Fencing)
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    Coach Laura

    My name is Laura Jamieson and I am a fencing coach.
     
    I am the one of the most highly qualified épée coaches in Scotland. I have a considerable range of experience in fencing and am a member of the PVG scheme. I am also First Aid trained.

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    • Introductory Packages >
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