A rogue wave came out of nowhere

By Greg Hamilton and Naomi Mallin

On September 14th, 2022, our lives changed in an instant.

I was on the beach near our home in Exmouth, WA, watching my husband Greg on his paddleboard when a stroke hit.

We were at one of his favourite surf breaks. Greg was approximately 150-metres offshore with a decent swell rolling in. His right hand slipped out of his paddle, he tried to grasp it and found he couldn’t, then his right leg gave way and he fell on his board. He knew something was terribly wrong and he somehow managed paddle back to shore using his left arm.

I was watching him from the shore. I saw that he was having difficulty paddling so I walked down to help. At first, I thought he had hurt his shoulder, but when he neared shore, he called for assistance. I immediately knew something was not right, Greg had all the classic signs of a stroke.

We were very lucky, there were quite a few people to help Greg out of the water. Triple 000 was called immediately, but due to the beach being more than 20-minute drive away from the hospital it would take the volunteer Ambulance service a good 40 minutes or more to reach us. So, we decided to drive immediately into town and meet the ambulance.

The stroke happened at 6.30am, Greg was flown out to Perth by RFDS at 9.30am and was admitted to Sir Charles Gardiner Hospital by 3pm.

Greg had a Basal Ganglia haemorrhagic stroke. He was in Sir Charles Gardiner Hospital for one week, followed by four weeks in Osborne Park Hospital Stroke Ward.

We decided to take part in the early discharge program for 6-weeks. We did home therapy in Perth, where hospital physiotherapists, speech therapists and OTs visited us daily. We also attended a private Neuro-physiotherapist based in Perth. We knew once we were back in Exmouth it would be much tougher to access this kind of specialist help.

The ocean has played its part in Gregs recovery too. Recovery is not only about the treatments the therapists provide, but also about finding activities that 'light you up' and motivate you. For Greg, and for me, that revolves around the ocean.

Although Greg cannot surf at present, he gets up early to come to the beach with me. He sits and watches me surf, he coaches and gives tips to me and my surf buddies.

Daily he scrolls the internet and provides a surf report, the tides, swell and winds, which are very important things to know before you head out. All these activities help to move Greg closer to his goal to surf again. It maintains his mental health, helps with speech, and I feel intrinsically involved in his recovery - which helps my own emotions.

As a waterman, therapy in the pool has been wonderful in improving movement, balance and strength and he is looking forward to returning to the ocean for some vitamin-Sea.

I am proud of Greg, his dignity, perseverance and focus are extraordinary. The strength of our relationship has enabled us to get through this journey, we have learned that for us, recovery is a team effort.

Connect with Greg and Naomi here.