Sad update one year after Aussie dad was injured in a freak accident while riding his daughter's e-scooter
Isaac Craig was hit by a driver who ran a stop sign while testing out a new tyre on his daughter's e-scooter near his home in Townsville, Queensland, in March 2024.
His injuries meant the Aussie dad was bedridden for most of the time and struggled to perform everyday tasks due to the lingering pain.
Mr Craig suffered a heart attack last month with his wife Lisa forced to make the heartbreaking decision to turn off his life support one week later.
Callum Albert, Mr Craig's stepson, wrote on a GoFundMe that it had been heartbreaking to watch him slowly deteriorate both mentally and physically.
'The last year of his life, he was almost completely bed-bound, he did have a wheelchair but it wasn't used often as he was in such pain and discomfort,' he said.
'He couldn't leave the house as it being an old Queenslander style home with stairs, made it almost impossible to comfortably get him up and down.'
Mr Albert said on his stepfather's worst days, he would lock himself inside his bedroom to hide his worsening mental state from his family.
He said the heart attack, while not directly linked to the e-scooter accident, came moments after he told his wife he was experiencing a mild anxiety attack.
Mr Craig was without a flow of oxygen to his brain for 24 minutes before he was revived and rushed to Townsville Hospital.
He was placed in ICU where doctors found he had little to no brain activity.
His life support was turned off a week later.
In yet another blow to his grieving family, Mr Albert said his mother is now facing the possibility of losing their family home.
Mortgage payments have been paused while the family comes up with a solution.
The GoFundMe raising funds for house expenses, cremation expenses, daily expenses of Mr Craig's wife and daughter and future bills has raised over $3,000.
'If donations do come, all of it will be given to his widowed wife and she will use it to best herself and their daughter Rebecca's current financial situation,' Mr Albert said.
'She has no idea about any of this (now she does) but I do know this will make her happy cry and to be relieved that even though it's not all the pressure, at least some is taken off her shoulders.'
In an update, Mr Albert said his mother had been aware of the campaign and that she had received his stepfather's ashes.
'The support has been overwhelmingly substantial! Thank you to everyone who has helped so far,' he wrote.
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Daily Mail
5 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Tragic new details of mum's 'magic mushroom death' revealed
A woman who passed away after drinking tea laced with magic mushrooms had been dabbling with the psychedelic fungi for years before she is believed to have died of 'wood-lover paralysis'. New details on the tragic death of personal trainer Rachael Dixon can now be revealed after the findings of a coronial investigation were made public. Ms Dixon, 52, collapsed hours after ingesting the toxic drink during a retreat hosted by self-proclaimed healer Deanne Mathews at Soulbarn in Clunes, near Ballarat, on April 13 last year. In delivering her findings, Coroner Audrey Jamieson stated that although she could not be certain the drink killed Ms Dixon, she believed it likely contributed to her death via a rare condition related to the mushrooms. Australian Psychedelic Society Doctor Simon Beck told the coroner he believed Ms Dixon's cause of death appeared consistent with symptoms linked to wood-lover paralysis toxidrome. Studies into the condition found those affected can start to become weak anywhere between 10 minutes to 18 hours after consuming the mushrooms. The weakness usually affects the limbs, and manifests at times in an inability to stand or walk, difficulty swallowing, or breathing difficulties. In some cases, the weakness came in 'waves', the study found. The court heard Ms Dixon had been 'very excited to go to the retreat', with her son telling the court she told him 'she thought this was going to be her big breakthrough moment'. Ms Dixon had struggled with her mental health for years, but had been reluctant to use prescribed medications to deal with it, the court heard. 'Rachael attributed her mental ill health to unresolved childhood trauma,' the coroner stated. 'There is no evidence that Rachael attended a medical practitioner, had received a diagnosis or was prescribed medication to manage the same. Indeed, (her son) recalled that Rachael was averse to pharmaceutical and recreational drugs.' Instead, Ms Dixon medicated herself with alcohol before turning to magic mushrooms. 'Even though Rachael was against drugs, (her son) believes that she saw 'magic mushrooms' as 'a natural thing'. In the years leading up to her death, Rachael experimented increasingly with magic mushrooms,' Coroner Jamieson stated. The court heard Ms Dixon met Ms Mathews to 'learn Reiki and to heal' about eight years before her death. In a booklet, Ms Dixon wrote that her primary goal was 'no binge drinking alcohol and food'. The court heard she perceived psilocybin - the active compound in magic mushrooms - as a 'means to address and resolve her childhood trauma'. 'Evidence indicates that Deanne coached and guided Rachael through microdosing, including on one occasion, instructing her to consume more psilocybin during a microdosing session,' the coroner stated. On the day of the fatal 'healing session' the court heard Mathews sourced the magic mushrooms for the group and ground them into a powder. Participants began the ritual by ingesting blue lotus, to help 'relax the body in preparation for the journey', the court heard. They consumed rice with a 'small sprinkle' of mushroom and performed a round of breath work before consuming the mushroom tea. A second cup of tea was consumed about 90 minutes later. The court heard Ms Dixon was no stranger to the sessions and had attended one with Mathews at Soulbarn every three months in the last 18 months of her life. According to Mathews, Ms Dixon had consumed the mushrooms on each occasion 'without any problem'. But Ms Dixon's son told the court he recalled differently. 'According to him, Rachael told him about her most recent experience at Soulbarn: she said she had a bad experience, went to a dark place, and didn't feel great afterwards. Rachael believed this was because "they had upped her dose of psilocybin",' the coroner stated. But Ms Dixon mostly believed that the mushrooms were helping her with her problems. 'I think they were definitely helping her, she seemed to be getting better,' her son told the court. 'I knew she was getting better because she would stop drinking as much, she would always tell me how relaxed and how much better she felt within herself and about life.' At the commencement of the deadly session, a fellow participant noticed that 'Rachael was on a high, she was welcoming others and giving them hugs'. She repeated her intention of: 'I'm meeting myself, I'm going home', the court heard. At about 6.15pm, she consumed her first serve of mushroom tea, and at 7.45pm, consumed the second from a small bowl with a spoon. At about 11.30pm, participants noticed Ms Dixon was under the effect of the tea. The court heard Ms Dixon called out to Mathews and 'was crying'. 'Deanne comforted her and noticed she remained 'under the effect of the mushroom',' the coroner stated. 'Deanne attempted to lift Rachael to her feet however, she could not walk. Another participant tried to assist Deanne, however, Rachael fell – "it was a decent fall" from approximately 50 centimetres height.' The court heard Mathews formed the belief that Ms Dixon simply 'needed some fresh air' and so moved her to the kitchen and opened the back door to let in 'fresh cold air'. 'There is little evidence from other participants regarding the events of the evening – noting that they were under the influence of psychedelics at the time,' the coroner found. 'One participant recalls that at approximately 11.20pm, she heard Rachael say "help".' While paramedics were called at 11.53pm, the court heard Mathews made no mention of magic mushrooms being consumed. 'I was holding a ceremony and I don't think someone, she's not responding,' she told the emergency operator. When asked 'do you know what happened to her?', Mathews replied 'I don't know, she was just saying she couldn't breathe', the court heard. 'Deanne was "not too sure" if Rachael was breathing and was instructed to commence cardiopulmonary resuscitation,' the coroner stated. At about 12.45am, paramedics declared Ms Dixon deceased. A police search of Ms Dixon's home later found a small container with vegetative substance – believed to be mushrooms. A booklet supplied by Mathews, titled The Deep Self 28 Day Microdosing Experience, was found next to it. Forensic experts told the coroner there was no post-mortem evidence of any injuries which may have caused or contributed to Ms Dixon's death. On November 18 last year Victoria Police arrested Matthews in relation to trafficking in a drug of dependence. She was formally interviewed and released pending summons to appear at court. On March 13 she appeared before the Bacchus Marsh Magistrates' Court where she was found guilty. She received a fine of $3,000 but was not convicted. In concluding her findings, Coroner Jamieson noted expert observations that interest in and the use of magic mushrooms were on the rise here and internationally, driven in part by developments such as Australia legalising the prescription of psilocybin to treat certain conditions in 2023. 'This raises a concerning possibility that Victorian coroners will encounter more deaths in a setting of magic mushroom use in future. Indeed, this may already be occurring,' she stated. 'People have used magic mushrooms for a broad range of reasons for (at least) decades in Australia, despite any laws prohibiting this, and I am not so naïve as to believe I could propose any interventions that would change this reality.' While the coroner made no formal recommendations, she warned people to be aware of the possible dangers around consuming magic mushrooms. 'I have concluded that at present the most appropriate intervention to consider is user education,' the coroner stated. 'People who use magic mushrooms and/or (as in the retreat Rachael attended) facilitate others' use of magic mushrooms should be aware that, even if rare, harms including deaths have been associated with magic mushroom consumption, and if possible, they should put measures in place to recognise and respond to these harms if they occur.'
The Guardian
5 hours ago
- The Guardian
I lost my hearing in one ear and I'm worried I won't find a new job
I am a 50-year-old man. After a long-term disease, I had my inner ear removed, and then lost my job due to incapacity. I have hearing in one ear, am waiting for an implant and wear aids, which help. I felt lost for a few years, but I got fit and slowly regrouped, and ended up doing an apprenticeship. Now it is coming to an end, I am worried about applying for jobs, having to prove myself again against healthy people half my age. Sometimes I wake in the night panicking. I want to cry most of the time. I just want someone to say it will be OK and help me. But I'm not sure who to ask. My biggest fear is putting strain on my wife and kids again. I can't drive due to the illness and operation, so I am already at a loss as to which jobs I can apply for. After being ill for so long I lost a lot of friends, who just didn't get it. I think the new situation is triggering a lot of that hurt. Facing a long-term disease and loss of hearing is tough. You have already really helped yourself. I went to emergency planner Prof Lucy Easthope, and the RNID, the national charity supporting people who are deaf or have hearing loss or tinnitus (which is one in three adults in the UK). Easthope has written a book you may find helpful called Come What May: Life-Changing Lessons for Coping with Crisis. The first thing she said was: 'Bloody well done. We often need to hear that, but no one says it. You've been incredibly brave doing the apprenticeship.' She felt you were using 'pessimism as protection, which can actually be really helpful as long as it doesn't sabotage, because you have to be ready for things to not go entirely right. And there are reasons things might not go right that shouldn't be linked to your self-esteem.' She gave the example of people after adversity 'going for total reinvention and not being realistic, like going for jobs they can't do and maybe could never do. If the job isn't right for you, then you probably won't get it.' She also felt that: 'What you are going through is bigger than what happens next; the dreams you have had to give up on.' She suggested 'speaking out loud the monsters that keep you awake at night so you can explore them'. Who previously made things OK for you? Is there someone you can talk to? I'm sure your wife would welcome you letting her in, but if not, a good friend or a family member? I'm sorry your friends didn't get it. Lots of people don't, but often it's not ill intent, just ignorance (and laziness to not find out what you need). Sign up to Inside Saturday The only way to get a look behind the scenes of the Saturday magazine. Sign up to get the inside story from our top writers as well as all the must-read articles and columns, delivered to your inbox every weekend. after newsletter promotion Little by little, things can and will shift. Health crises can really throw us, and it can take a long time to adapt and redefine ourselves. It also sounds like you are a bit afraid of letting others in, but talking about things is how we process. No one can say this is going to be 100% OK, but slowly you may realise that there will be OK-ness, joy and hope. You can cry if you need to. The RNID recommended looking for employers who have signed up to the Disability Confident scheme. And added: 'Remember that under the Equality Act 2010, employers have a legal duty to support individuals, including those who are deaf or have hearing loss.' The RNID has lots more info, and the charity Hearing Link Services offers peer support sessions. Easthope said that you might imagine younger people without your issues wouldn't be afraid but, trust us, they are. Everyone is with a new start. You've done amazingly well. This wasn't what you planned, but it's where you've found yourself. You're not the same person you were at the beginning of this journey, because you've already found great resources within yourself. Every week, Annalisa Barbieri addresses a personal problem sent in by a reader. If you would like advice from Annalisa, please send your problem to Annalisa regrets she cannot enter into personal correspondence. Submissions are subject to our terms and conditions. The latest series of Annalisa's podcast is available here. Comments on this piece are pre-moderated to ensure the discussion remains on the topics raised by the article. Please be aware that there may be a short delay in comments appearing on the site.
Telegraph
6 hours ago
- Telegraph
The woman who says you can spot a psychopath at three years old
There is little Prof Viding, 50, hasn't seen in the 25 years she has been researching psychopathy and young people's mental health, and she spent two years conducting studies on inmates at Wormwood Scrubs prison and Broadmoor high-security psychiatric hospital. 'It struck me that when you read prisoners' case histories, there were warning signs that had been there long before they committed their crimes,' she recalls. Ted Bundy, the notorious American serial killer, was a prime example of this: as a child he liked to dig holes in the ground, laced with spikes, for passers-by to fall in and hurt themselves. He also used to buy mice at the pet shop and pull them apart. Over the years, there have been even more alarming reports: babies who repeatedly bite their mother's breasts; toddlers who pretend to hug their parents and headbutt them instead. One of Prof Viding's studies looked at the genetic predisposition to psychopathy in seven-year-old twins, finding that CU traits have a 'strong genetic influence'. In other words, some children are born more likely to develop personality features that could be red flags. 'No one is born a psychopath' 'You see families where there are concentrations of these traits,' Prof Viding explains. 'No one is born a psychopath and the genes are not a blueprint, but there are people whose genetic makeup means that they are at higher risk than others.' Our genes and our early social environment shape how the brain processes emotional and social information – and the brains of children at risk of developing psychopathy are different from those of other children, showing little response to emotional stimuli that would normally induce fear. They also tend to have a low resting heart rate, typically associated with stress resilience. Researchers at the University of Cambridge in 2021 found that children whose hearts beat faster at the age of eight were at lower risk of developing adult psychopathy, despite having adverse childhood experiences. 'Children with conduct problems and CU traits, and adults with psychopathy, are poor at feeling what others are feeling, known as emotional empathy,' Prof Viding adds. 'On a conceptual level, they understand it, but that is not the same as feeling it. 'They are better at cognitive empathy, so they can work out what makes someone tick, but they don't care if they make others distressed. This combination makes for a powerful tool for manipulation.' The latter will chime with most parents – my three-year-old certainly has me wrapped around his little finger – but, if anything, my kids feel too many big emotions, not too few. 'Interventions can work' It's not all bad news, however, even if a child displays these traits from a young age. Several studies around adoption show that children at risk of developing worrying behaviours because of their biological family history, if they go on to be adopted by warm, loving parents, are less likely to see those behaviours worsen as they get older. Treatment, Prof Viding says, is effective, such as adapting parenting styles, learning how to help a child regulate their differing reactions, and seeking ongoing professional help in which a therapist works with both child and parents. 'With any behaviour, the more rooted it gets, the more difficult it becomes to intervene. But we know that interventions in adolescents and adults can also work, so the message should not be that if you don't get there in the first five years, it's useless.' Unfortunately, she adds, getting help to the children who need it is easier said than done, as those who exhibit these tendencies often come from families where their parents have complex issues of their own (such as addiction, mental-health difficulties or problems with the law). 'It is harder to elicit sympathy for children who don't play by the rules and behave in ways that can be unpleasant or downright dangerous,' she says. 'It is an uphill battle to get funding to help these children, even though it would be in society's interest.' A mother herself, to two teenagers aged 15 and 17, Prof Viding understands only too well the parenting rollercoaster – and how difficult dealing with an unruly child, let alone one showing worryingly abnormal personality traits, can be. 'I get emails on a weekly basis from parents who are concerned and don't know where to turn,' she admits. 'It's heartbreaking. 'At the moment in the UK, the health service is incredibly reluctant to diagnose conduct disorder, so the parents often have to wait until things are so bad they can no longer cope or their child is in trouble with the law.' But, she insists, no child is beyond reprieve – nor is anyone's little darling 'destined' to become a psychopath. Cue a collective parental sigh of relief.
