You can’t help but feel inspired when you talk to dad-of-three Mark Stephen.
By day he worked as a police inspector, spending many years in the public order unit training up riot police on how to keep the public safe.
And in his spare time, he was either out running, in the gym or playing rugby.
But all that was taken away from him when he was bitten by a tick while out in the countryside.
‘I had real pains in my chest’
Mark, 50, also encountered other health problems which started when he experienced a strange sensation while out on his bike in 2019.
“I had real pains in my chest and after numerous tests was diagnosed with a leaking heart valve,” he explains.
“This was just the start of a journey I hadn’t planned for.”
Then, in June 2020, Mark came off his mountain bike and fell onto the track.
“A few days later, I noticed what I thought was just a skin tag on my leg,” he says.
“But my wife had a look at it and she told me that it was a tick.
“We took it out and there was no bullseye rash. We looked it up on the computer and there was nothing to give us any concern at that time.”
A blood test revealed devastating news…
Mark, of Udny Green in Aberdeenshire, had adapted his fitness regime because of his heart condition but started noticing he felt really tired.
Four weeks later he started experiencing “excruciating” pains in his arm and feared he had broken it.
But a blood test revealed more devastating news.
“On the Saturday it went into my knees. I went into A&E and it was at that point they told me I had Lyme disease.
“Within a few weeks it was in every joint; it was really painful to move, to get up and walk about.
“I was kind of crippled for a while using a Zimmer and walking sticks.
“I couldn’t dress myself. My wife had to put on my socks and bathe me. I couldn’t hold things and couldn’t open my eyes at times – I lost my voice for a week.
“All this put me in a state of fear for what was ahead.”
Then he was diagnosed with another serious health condition
The condition developed into Lyme arthritis, which can happen when bacteria from a bug bite enters joint tissue and causes inflammation.
Mark was prescribed two courses of antibiotics and started physiotherapy to help build up his mobility.
But even worse was yet to come. The Aberdeenshire dad had surgery to remove part of his prostate in December 2020 and a biopsy revealed that he had cancer.
It was yet another serious health condition that Mark and his wife Kate had to deal with.
“Although fortunate enough to have had it caught early, my unexpected Christmas present was just too much on top of everything else and I felt like the Buckaroo kids’ toy,” he said.
“I’m a dad-of-three and a husband, and always considered myself a strong person both physically and emotionally.
“With my heart condition and the cancer there was that fear that I wouldn’t be alive to see my girls and my son grow up and that was quite frightening thinking about how you deal with that.”
How has he dealt with it?
Mark started working with a psychologist who he credits for helping him change his mindset and giving him coping strategies to deal with his diagnosis.
Getting fit again was also a stress buster and helped him build his strength back up and manage his arthritis.
By starting off with walking a mile last January, he was gradually able to walk 17 miles then started training again in March.
Running is still too painful to do but he can still cycle. This helps build up muscle strength around his knee joints and keep them mobile.
“Being at the gym feels like my haven,” he explains.
“When I go in to do my own sessions whatever is going on is just left at the door and I have this great feeling when I come out.”
He started a new career after retiring…
Heart scans showed positive news that his arteries are still strong which enables him to get back to normal exercise.
Mark still gets out of breath quickly but just takes a break and adjusts his fitness schedule when needed.
He’s being closely monitored with three-month blood tests and annual MRI scans and his latest results have shown the cancer has not spread.
Throughout his recovery from cancer the Aberdeenshire dad quickly realised he wanted to help others achieve their fitness goals.
He’s since retired from the police force and now works as a personal trainer at The Shed gym in Tarves.
“These last two years have given me a real opportunity, not only to make my life fuller, but to train to help others make a difference in their lives through fitness and exercise,” he says.
But the retired police inspector will be forever grateful to his wife for her love and support.
“She is my absolute rock,” he says. “She’s very much been there through the low times and she really had to care for me.
“She is an absolute superstar and I wouldn’t be where I am now without her.”
