It was meant to be a quick dip, but I broke my neck.

As featured online @ Daily Telegraph 7 January 2016

My 2016 has been a pain in the neck already.

It’s been a tough few weeks on Australia’s beaches. Drownings, shark attacks and general injuries in the surf have been a common occurrence.

Such circumstances are tough enough to read about, so when I found myself in the middle of one recently, it was a real wake-up call.

Sydney’s Coogee beach is well-known for its shore break — a wave that breaks right on the sand. This was no more evident than on Saturday, January 2, when five-foot waves pummelled swimmers just metres from the shallows.

I’ll often have a 30 minute swim before work but on this particular Saturday the plethora of bluebottle jellyfish had me wanting out of the water quickly.

With what appeared to be a small wave coming, I decided to slide onto it and ride it in to shore. Only, within the space of a few seconds, the thing had doubled in size.

Being an accomplished surfer and swimmer meant nothing as the wave picked me up, had me vertical and then slammed me head first into the rock-hard sand.

I knew something was wrong as soon as I hit the bottom. My spine compressed and most of my body from my diaphragm up was numb. I should have been relieved that I could stand and stumble toward a lifeguard but all I could think about were the pins and needles in my arms, back and shoulders.

I was quickly and efficiently put on to a stretcher by the lifeguards and taken to hospital by ambulance. As some of the feeling in my arms started to come back and sensing the doctor’s fingers pressing against my muscles, I breathed a sigh of relief that I had seemingly escaped serious injury.

But then the scans came back — a fracture to my C5 vertebrae.

All I could think was, ‘C? As in cervical? That’s really high up. I’m in deep sh*t here’.

The neurosurgeon didn’t seem overly concerned but knowing my symptoms was slightly surprised to find I had a break in my neck.

“More scans to come on Monday,” he ordered.

I was fortunate that “more scans” didn’t show more damage.

But my thoughts were — and still are — in overdrive.

I am extremely lucky things aren’t worse, yet the recovery is going to be slow and painful. An ambitious 2016 is going to be put on hold.

This little anecdote is not a search for sympathy but one I tell for two reasons.

The first, to say thanks to all the unsung heroes.

Nurses — my nurses and all nurses — never receive enough praise in general, let alone when something bad happens to us. Pat, Ali, Trav, Ange, Siri, Doctor John and Raj the neurosurgeon at St Vincents Hospital, Sydney, have been tremendous.

Paramedics Tynan and Bryan were brilliant.

And Aaron and his crew at Coogee beach were just as their title suggests — lifesavers.

The Australian of the Year Awards are coming up and I would be stoked to see a nurse, a paramedic or a lifeguard be recognised.

The second reason for the anecdote? A plea. I implore you — please, please... play it safe by the water.