Family of judo star Stephanie Inglis feel like they have "got her back"
THE cousin of Commonwealth Games star Stephanie Inglis gave a rousing backing of her “twin” yesterday, insisting the family feel like they have got the old Stephanie back.
Louise Ferrier has visited the injured judo silver medallist several times since her admission to Edinburgh’s Western General Hospital a week ago and told of her demands for crisps and cutting remarks made to other family members.
While her voice is still at a whisper, Ms Inglis is able to communicate fully. When Miss Ferrier went to see her on Sunday, she was desperate for a bag of Walker’s Sensations Thai Sweet Chilli Walker’s Sensations, a favourite of Ms Inglis when she has girls’ nights.
The pair are often called twins because of the striking similarities in appearance and have less than a year between them in age.
Family members have regularly witnessed her remarkable recovery over the last week, which has included being helped out of bed to walk. Signs keep pointing to the Glasgow 2014 medallist continuing to get back to her old self.
“When she told us she wanted crisps and we asked what type, we were expecting ‘just crisps’ as a general response,” said Miss Ferrier. “But when she specifically asked for Sensations, I couldn’t stop laughing. She’s not allowed them yet but I didn’t have the heart to tell her no. She knows I live right near a 24-hour Tesco, so it’s going to be hard getting out of buying her a bag!
“My mum and (her sister) Stacey were tucking her in and Stacey said something like ‘you need to keep your muscles warm, just like mum said’. She replied with ‘mum talks rubbish sometimes’. She then looked at me and said ‘well it’s true!’
“I brought in several different colours of nail polish to do her nails and she picked purple, which is exactly what Steph would have picked.
“It feels like we’ve got back the Steph we know and love.”
The pair shared a memorable moment over a packet of chocolate buttons – Miss Ferrier, a dance teacher, gave her the last one from a bag they were sharing on Sunday night, which reminded her of when she first started to walk as a child.
“Our parents always tell us the story about me holding out a chocolate button for her and she got up and took it off me. Those were her first steps,” she said.
She added that the 27-year-old does not remember anything about the accident in Vietnam, which happened six weeks ago, but does recall a conversation they had just days beforehand where Miss Ferrier told her cousin about a new car she had bought.
Yesterday marked a week since the former Millburn Academy pupil was transferred to Edinburgh, following a medivac flight from Bangkok.
She had been in an induced coma following a motorcycle accident in Vietnam last month, where doctors initially only gave her a one -per -cent chance of survival.
“She’s desperate to get home and get walking, back to her normal self and see everyone. We promise her it is going to be soon and she is like ‘well, I wish it was sooner!’,” said Miss Ferrier, who lives in Dunfermline. “She’s so determined and it’s almost as if she’s seen all the fighting and clubbing together everyone has done for her and wants to do us all proud.”
A fundraising campaign to pay for her medical and transport costs, set up by childhood friend Khalid Gehlan, raised more thanover £300,000 and was vital to bringing Ms Inglis home alive.
