The strength of a Noosa triathlete recovering from a horrific cycling accident has inspired a movement across the nation.
Alexa Leary, 20, has spent weeks fighting for her life after her usual morning ride at Pomona left her with major brain damage, a fractured scapula, ribs, shoulder blade and wrist, a major knee injury and a collapsed lung.
The traumatic crash on 17 July took place after Alexa unfortunately clipped the wheel of a cyclist in front of her and came off at high speeds of over 65kms and landed on her head.
Her dad, Russell, was about 15 minutes behind her on the bike and upon arriving at the scene described her as unrecognisable.
The ambulance raced her to Sunshine Coast hospital where she was soon helicoptered to Brisbane Royal Hospital and has been ever since.
Alexa’s sister, Madison Lee, said every day has been different throughout Alexa’s recovery journey.
“She is doing okay. We’re just so grateful that she is here with us,“ Madison said.
“I think when we posted the photos, I feel like a lot of people look at them and think ’Oh she looks really good’, and sure she looks so much better than she did when we first saw her, but when you actually go in and spend time with her, it’s clear really quickly that this is going to be a really long journey and she’s got a long way to go.
“A lot of people who have been in this situation have said there’s going to be good days and bad days and you just have to appreciate the good days when they come and work through the bad days.
“She is an absolute champion to have survived multiple surgeries, and to have even made it to the Brisbane hospital given the condition she was in, is honestly remarkable.“
The positivity and support from people around the world has not only helped her family cope, but put a smile on Alexa’s face.
The ’Move For Lex’ initiative, started by her family, aims to inspire people to get out and get moving for those who can’t.
“The idea actually came from one of our family friends,“ Madison said.
“She texted me one afternoon and said, ’Hey I can’t stop thinking about Lex and I’ve been thinking how lucky I am to be able to exercise. I had this crazy idea that we should just ask people to hashtag ’Move for Lex’ and see if anybody gets involved’.
“Within the first 24 hours, it went nuts and I couldn’t believe how many people were getting involved. I messaged my family and said this should have its own account.
“We set it up and the response has been massive.“
The Move For Lex Instagram account now has more than 23,000 followers and has been receiving support from athletes like NRL star Johnathan Thurston and Olympian Ashleigh Gentle.
“There’s people who write in and share their stories of similar experiences or say that they’ve never met Lex but the story got them out of bed that day and encouraged them to be grateful for the things they can do,“ Madison said.
“In our family group chat, there’s heaps of us because we have seven siblings, it just runs hot all the time because everyone shares the incredible messages.“
As a graphic designer, Alexa’s older sister Jorja has designed not-for-profit merchandise, including t-shirts and hats, that people have been wearing to show their support while being active.
“Jorja just created the logos and everything straight away, and we went with the butterfly and some of the other symbols because not only did Lex love them, but they were all over her Instagram page as well,“ Madison said.
Madison said her family was so grateful to the people who have joined in on the movement.
“It would just be awesome to be able to help other people who go through this awful rollercoaster experience because you never think it’s going to happen to you,“ she said.
“We’ve started looking into what might be a good place to put the merchandise money into, but once we understand what issues Lex will have in the future, I think we will be able to make a better decision.
“It will definitely be something to do with brains as the neurosurgeons are incredible. We definitely don’t want any money, we just want to share the Move For Lex message.“
Join in on the movement by following MoveWithLex on Instagram. To purchase not-for-profit merchandise in support visit heyrubydesign.com/moveforlex
