- Woman took helmet with her but left it in car
A woman is today fighting for her life in hospital after suffering brain damage in a rollerblading accident.
Mother-of-one Caroline Place fell and hit her head during her first attempt at rollerblading.
She was airlifted to hospital and had two emergency operations to remove blood clots on her brain.
Caroline Place, 44, had the accident in Darlington's South Park (pictured). Although the woman had taken a helmet with her when she and a friend went to skate, it was left in her car
However, doctors have warned the 44-year-old complementary
therapist's family to prepare for the worst as she remains on a life
support machine in James Cook University Hospital, in Middlesbrough.
Although
Mrs Place had taken a helmet with her when she and a friend went to
skate in Darlington's South Park, it was left in her car.
Yesterday,
Mrs Place's husband, Paul, spoke of the family's anguish in trying to
come to terms with doctors' prognosis that even if she if she does
survive, she is highly unlikely to retain full brain function.
Mr Place said: 'It seems just a matter of time now.
'The past six days have been the most horrendous six days of my life - but also the most beautiful of my life.
'I have learned so much about Caroline from the way she has touched so many other people.'
Mrs Place, of Gainford, County Durham, went rollerblading with a friend on Wednesday last week.
Mr Place said that the pair were travelling down a hill when the incident happened.
He
said: 'Her friend fell onto some grass and was laughing. When she
looked up Caroline was coming down the hill at a fair rate of knots.
'She was squealing with delight, which is Caroline all over.'
But when she reached the bottom of the hill, she lost her balance and fell backwards, striking her head on the path.
A paramedic alerted the Great North Air Ambulance Service, and a doctor from the service worked with Mrs Place for more than an hour before she was airlifted to hospital.
Mr Place said: 'She is severely brain-damaged. She was not wearing a helmet. It was in the back of the car when I went to pick it up.
'That was Caroline, but I would not recommend it to anyone else.'
Mr and Mrs Place are Buddhists, and Mrs Place, who was born in the Lake District, runs a therapy business specialising in hypnotherapy and crystal healing.
They have a son, Daniel, five, who Mr Place said had shown remarkable courage in dealing with the situation.
He said: 'He has been amazing. He has been to see his mummy. He understands death because he has lost both grandparents.
'Daniel was in the bath, one of his Power Rangers was having a conversation with the other Power Ranger, saying he had lost his mummy, and the other one was giving him a hug.
'He said he wanted to take her a crystal and went through them very carefully.
'He said, 'I think mummy needs Tiger Eye,' which has properties of healing.'
Mr Place described his wife as a free spirit who had overcome setbacks in life to become an incredible therapist.
He said: 'Caroline always said that if she was going to go, she wanted to go doing something she loved.
'She was full of life. She had not had an easy life. She had suffered from serious ME. She had lost her parents two years ago.
'She had lots to deal with, but she used her spirituality to take her forward in life.'
The couple had known each other for 18 years and were married in 2004.
'We were soulmates,' said Mr Place.
Mr Place paid trubute to the hospital staff caring for his wife, and said: 'Intensive care at James Cook have been absolutely amazing. They have offered Caroline the best care possible.'
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