The life story of Alex Lewis is like no other. This man refused to give up on his life no matter what it took, and today, he’s thriving with the help of his loving wife Lucy Townsend, and their son.
Alex and Lucy always knew they were meant for each other. When they married and welcomed their son Sam into their life, they felt like the happiest couple on Earth. But then in 2013, around the time Sam turned two, this family’s life took a different turn.
Both Alex and Sam caught the flu, or at least they believed so. However, as the boy got better in a short period of time, Alex wasn’t feeling fine even days after he experienced the flu-like symptoms.
“Because we owned and lived in a pub and came into contact with lots of different people, I assumed it was a seasonal cold and thought it started off as man flu,” Alex told Metro.
Instead of improving, his condition worsened and he became feverish and noticed blood in his urine.
As he could feel something was very wrong, he went to the hospital where doctors told him he contracted a streptococcal infection (type A). Unfortunately, at that point, the infection penetrated deep into the tissue and the organs and caused sepsis. Alex had contracted shock syndrome, septicemia, and necrotizing fascitis – and his body was attacking itself from the inside out.
“I called an ambulance, and within eight minutes, they were there. At the hospital, we went straight into resuscitation, and I was told to say goodbye. His kidneys were shutting down, and they were going to put him on life support,” his wife Lucy told The Guardian.
Doctors’ prognoses were dull. They told the family there was just a three percent chance that Alex would survive as his face and body turned black.
“They were going to turn my life support off, but they wanted to give me one more night to see if I improved, and they wanted to give my family a chance to say goodbye,” Alex told Metro.
“I cannot imagine what Lucy and my mum were going through.
“Having spoken to them since it happened, I think they were more in shock as they couldn’t believe something so incredibly invasive was happening so quickly,” he added.
“I don’t remember being in excruciating pain at this point, but my family remembers seeing me in absolute agony.”
It was determined that a flesh-eating bacteria was poisoning his body so doctors had to amputate his left arm up to the elbow. Sadly, as months passed by, Alex lost all of his limbs, and doctors were also forced to cut parts of his face in order to save his life.
“I can remember seeing my legs in hospital and how they were getting blacker and blacker,” Alex told The Guardian. “The blackness was creeping up towards my waist. I don’t remember seeing my left arm in that condition, but I can remember my legs vividly.”
As Alex lost his lips, plastic surgeon Alexandra Crick took skin from his shoulder in an attempt to fix his mouth.
“It would take me about an hour to eat a sandwich at night, and that was with the help of the nurse,” he told the Daily Mail.
“The last available skin for surgery was on my shoulder,” he explained. “So they replaced the temporary flap with that. All my other skin had to be used for grafts or was scarred.”
“Having my bottom and top lip done at the same time like this was a world first. It’s one piece of skin, and it was like if you imagine placing a bag in your mouth and then sewing around the edges. After the original operation, I had to have them every three or four months.”
Looking at his father, and how different he was, Sam was afraid to approach closer to him, but Lucy found a way to explain to him why his dad looked like that, which wasn’t easy as Sam was just two years old at the time.
After spending months at the hospital Alex could finally go home. The good thing was that doctors managed to save the elbow of his right arm which allowed him to have a prosthetic and be able to use his arm. Eventually, he could speak again as his lip surgery was a huge success.
“That one elbow is his whole independence,” Lucy said.
“I had to relearn everything,” Alex added. “From learning to eat, drink, put my clothes on, to learn to use a prosthesis, and to self propel a manual wheelchair.”
Today, Alex is involved in a number of tech projects which help ease the lives of disabled people. Among the rest, he has tested solar-powered, battery-assisted four-wheeled handles which have been designed by masters students at Southampton University.
Despite his condition, he’s living a quality life and is doing a lot of things, such as kayaking and climbing. In 2019, he climbed one of Africa’s tallest mountains using a specially adapted buggy.
“Since becoming an amputee, I’ve been fortunate enough to try out a number of training methods to keep my fitness up, working with physios and visiting the Help for Heroes training facilities,” he shared with Sports Management.
“I’ve had first-rate guidance, but nothing has been as effective as EMS training, especially in such a short space of time.
“It’s amazing how the machine helps me to engage muscles I haven’t felt since I lost my arms and legs,” he added.
“I feel stronger in training, daily life tasks are easier, and I’ve gained greater confidence that I can take on these challenges.”
His Wild Wheelchairs Project, besides helping improve the lives of disabled people, raises money to finance the construction and operation of a wheelchair manufacturing facility in Ethiopia.
Alex is also a motivational speaker who is happy with his life.
“I’ve lived more of a life in the past four years than I did in the previous 33, and it’s made me realize how much I love Lucy and Sam,” he told Metro.
“There was so much I regretted not doing when I had arms and legs, but I am not letting that happen again. I would not change anything, not in a heartbeat.”
Sam also learned to love his dad for who he is and is proud of him.
We truly admire this brave man’s resilience. His story is proof that no matter the curveballs life throws at us, we should always do our best to end up winners.
BARBRA STREISAND’S 11-YEAR HOME HUNT: THE ULTIMATE DREAM HOUSE THAT CEMENTED HER 26-YEAR MARRIAGE
Barbra Streisand and her husband, James Brolin, are celebrating 26 years of marriage in the home where their love story truly came together. The journey to acquiring their dream home was anything but simple—it took them 11 years to finally buy it.
At 82, Barbra Streisand, the legendary performer, and her 83-year-old actor husband, James Brolin, have enjoyed many years of happiness in their beloved home. The couple, along with their dogs, have created countless memories there. Their dedication and perseverance paid off, making their home a symbol of their enduring love and commitment.
Barbra Streisand first laid eyes on the house when she was living nearby. At the time, she couldn’t make the purchase because her boyfriend didn’t like it, and she also wasn’t able to afford it.
Now, Barbra Streisand and James Brolin live in the dream home that took 11 years to buy. They recently celebrated their 26th wedding anniversary on July 1 in this special place. Streisand shared a sweet photo on Instagram, showing the couple in a side embrace. Her caption read, “28 years today since we met honey… and 26 years today since we married! Love you.
Their Maltese poodles, Scarlet, Violet, and Fanny, are clearly a cherished part of their family. Streisand’s Instagram posts of their birthdays must be adorable! It sounds like their home is filled with love and joy.
In 1984, while living on a ranch down the road, Barbra Streisand first laid eyes on her dream home. At the time, she wasn’t thrilled with her current house, so her real estate broker showed her a place closer to the ocean. This home would later become the one she and James Brolin would spend many cherished years in, despite the long journey to finally owning it.
Streisand noted that the house’s facade wasn’t particularly impressive, describing it as modern gray and somewhat like a “contraption.” However, upon entering, she was pleasantly surprised by its “rustic charm,” which won her over despite its outward appearance.
The Broadway star fell in love with the house right away and wanted to buy it. However, it wasn’t possible at that time, and she had to wait several more years before she could finally make it her home.
At that time, Streisand owned the ranch she had been staying on. Her manager advised her that she wouldn’t be able to afford the dream home until she sold the ranch.
Streisand also revealed that her boyfriend at the time thought the house was too close to the cliff where it was situated. She decided not to purchase it, but she admitted, “I was so forlorn when I found out that it was sold to someone else, and they had started renovating it.”
Streisand’s affection for the house didn’t diminish over time. In fact, she continued to dream about it and couldn’t shake the feeling of longing. She admitted that she had a deep emotional connection to the home she couldn’t buy.
However, some years later, her luck turned around when the couple who owned the house kept her in mind as they got ready to move.
Years later, Streisand’s luck changed. The couple who owned the house remembered her as they prepared to move out, and this gave her another chance at the dream home she had always wanted.
Barbra Streisand was so in love with her dream house that she bought a home one house away just to be close to it. She even became friends with the elderly couple living between her current home and the dream house.
When the couple moved away, Streisand bought their house too. She planned to combine both properties into one large house on the two-acre land.
Finally, fate was on her side. The couple who owned her dream home divorced and lowered the price. Streisand was able to buy the house in 1995 and was thrilled. She was relieved not to have to build a new house or deal with lots of details.
Since then, Streisand has turned her dream home into a beautiful place, celebrating its craftsmanship and making it a special part of her life for nearly 30 years.
The house is set on a big piece of land with beautiful green lawns. An aerial view shows the spacious garden and the pool in front of the house, which faces the ocean. The driveway is located at the back of the house.
To design the interior of her home, Streisand looked at many books and drew inspiration from things she saw while traveling. She really enjoyed this process.
She also added streams to the landscape because she finds water very calming. Streisand wanted a barn because she loves how they are a key part of American culture. Inside her barn, she has hens that lay green eggs.
Streisand and Brolin met in 1996 when they were 54 and 56 years old. Both had children from previous marriages and blended their families together. They got married two years after they first met.
Now that they’ve been married for 26 years and their kids are grown and out of the house, Streisand and Brolin are enjoying a new phase in their lives: being grandparents.
Streisand and Brolin have grandchildren from their adult children, and they always welcome them to spend time in their loving home.
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