Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Man who was left fighting for his life in Aberdeen Royal Infirmary to hold fundraiser

Derek Ledingham
Derek Ledingham

A north-east man who battled back to health after being paralysed by a virus has launched a fundraising campaign for the people who helped get him “back on his feet”.

Derek Ledingham was struck down with Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) in March 2014, a rare virus that attacks the nervous system, which he picked up off the back of a cold.

Within days he lost control of his body, and was left fighting for his life in Aberdeen Royal Infirmary’s intensive care unit.

He was eventually transferred to Woodend Hospital’s neuro-rehabilitation unit (NRU) to begin his recovery.

The 42-year-old’s ordeal lasted about 14 months and he has only recently been able to walk independently and return to his job as a graphic designer at Tag Worldwide.

Now Mr Ledingham, of Portlethen, has organised a race night to raise money for the hardworking medical staff at NRU and the Horizons Rehabilitation Centre in Aberdeen.

Some of the money will also be donated to GBS charity, Gain.

He said: “It is good to get back with the guys at work and get all the gossip, back into the swing of things and back doing what I do.

“This time last year I was only just standing independently and could maybe go 10 to 15 yards with a walking aid, from that to now is a massive difference.

“I decided early on I wanted to put something back into the system since I took a lot out, and the guys at NRU and Hirizons and they are both NHS funded, they always need to get donations and get more support to help out people.”

Funds raised for NRU would go towards the renovation of its on-site garden, where Mr Ledingham enjoyed some time away from his hospital bed.

He said: “It was good for me when I was there to get out and get some fresh air. I’d like to do anything I can contribute towards that.

“I thought I’d give it to the guys who actually helped me. They got me on my feet and got me my life back. I am so grateful for what they did for me.

“If I can put something back for them, if I can help even one person then I am happy.”

The race night, which will also include a disco, buffet and live auction, will be held on October 9 at 7pm in the RUA Club on West Craibstone Street, Aberdeen. Tickets are £5.

Donations are also being accepted for his chosen causes at

http://crowdfunding.justgiving.com/derek-ledingham