Our first case in Essex

Our first case in Essex has been to help a 33-year-old man go to court regarding his tenancy for the home he shared with his ex-wife to move on from the family home and into a flat.

A few years ago this young man fell from his attic, breaking three bones in his back. Due to the pain, he was given morphine which started him on the long road of relying on prescription drugs. His family saw that he started to change, his daughter told a family member that ‘before the fall he was a happy daddy and she wanted him back because this daddy was not nice’, out of babe’s mouth comes the truth. My question was, did he also have a head injury?

A few years later he was involved in a car accident and up to that point no x-ray had been given for his head.

His mother, who had not slept for months, was at her wits end. Knowing the court case was going ahead, she had already taken so much time off work over the last few months she felt she could not ask for more.  With just the acknowledgement that Cascade will go to the court and support her son gave her the best night sleep in months.

The last time he had gone to court over an issue with his wife, the court had been told that he had been harming her and she had been sectioned off from him whilst at the court. He explained that he had not been brought up to behave in that way. This experience had upset him so much that he did not turn up for any other related court appearances.

We had met him twice before the court case, talking about his greatest hobby which was music. He also spoke of his addiction to prescription drugs and how in the previous two weeks he’d had another two falls in his room. The hospital had now taken an x-ray of his head and had found a frontal lobe injury that had left him with having epilepsy seizures.

He understood the work of The Cascade Foundation within prisons and prisoners with head injuries. He spoke about that when he is well he wanted to help others who were suffering the same as he has.

The court case went well, and the judge was pleased that he was willing to move from the family home without contesting the tenancy. He said that was their home for his wife and his children. His ex-wife and solicitor were pleased with how he had conducted himself and how fast the case was to move on. The ex-wife phoned his mother the next day and said that she was impressed with the support that the Charity had given her ex-husband, and that he looked the best she had seen in months.

His mother heard him play the piano and was shocked at how well he could play. She has since purchased a piano keyboard for him to busy himself with his music in his new flat. He has been talking to one of our trustees who also loves playing the piano and sharing music ideas and has given him much encouragement to pursue this course. He is now considering starting a degree in music course in September.

The change in just two weeks is amazing his family are very supportive of his needs and the music has given him something else to focus on.

Watch this space for more work of The Cascade Foundation!!