Brett Christie survived years of crippling pain, now happy to help others

Though he is not totally out of the woods, all he can talk about is how grateful he is, and how the lessons he's learned have been 'invaluable'.

In September 2014, Mr Christie was a highly active, fit and healthy man, who was into his first weeks as a teacher at Latrobe High School.

Then during a staff-student basketball match, he landed from a jump and felt a crack in his right ankle.

Little did he know that day would be the start of a journey which would test his endurance to the limits, as well as that of his wife Kayla and their children Lacey, 10, BJ, 9 and Taslee, 6.

Mr Christie had grown up on a farm at Weegena, and had worked in a Queensland zoo and as a wildlife officer, but he had never broken anything worse than his nose.

At first he wasn't too perturbed about the ankle fracture.

"But after the third surgery, I realised this was probably not as simple a break as I thought, and I was also frustrated with the care I was getting in Tasmania."

By then, he had spent seven weeks in a cast, with weeks of rehabilitation for an ankle which still had two untreated fractures.

He had a second operation in March 2015 and a third that September, which was supposed to be a bone graft. Instead, the surgeon removed bone fragments from the ankle and closed it up.

"Another six weeks rehab and it was the same story. It was really hard to walk and hurt quite a bit," Mr Christie said.

The next operation in February 2016 confirmed his ankle was worse than thought.

After another two unsuccessful operations in Melbourne to fuse the ankle bones, he was advised to have his foot amputated.

"It was pretty tough mentally, but I'd had four years of constant pain and not being able to do what I wanted.

"Every amputee I talked to was really positive.

"I was keen for it. I wanted the days of my ankle being an anchor in my life to be over. It was hard on my wife and children. I couldn't beat it so I thought I would do it and get on with it."

Life as an amputee was a far cry from what he'd planned. A few years after leaving Don College, he had taken off to Japan to volunteer as an English teacher in Hiroshima.

He learned to speak Japanese fluently and made many life-long friends. It was there his eyes were opened to differentness.

"They're an incredible culture - so respectful and hard working. I learned quite a lot from them about how to treat people kindly."

On his return to Queensland, where he had been living with family, he was scooped up by a zoo who wanted his language skills for their Japanese visitors.

Then he became a wildlife management officer, rescuing snakes, possums, sugar gliders and other animals for relocation.

When it was time for a sea change, he and Kayla moved to Tasmania, where he gained a degree in accounting and Japanese, and worked for Crowe Horwath in Devonport.

One career move later, and he was teaching at Latrobe High School while studying for a post graduate degree.

Just five weeks into his new job, the life-changing break happened.

His lower leg was amputated in April this year in Melbourne, as Mr Christie was no longer 'really confident' in the Tasmanian medical system.

He was told he'd be recovering for six weeks. But complication after complication prolonged his stay to 20 weeks, which took its toll on Kayla and their three children.

At first, he had such intense phantom pain from the amputated foot that he was crippled by it, on occasions vomiting and falling unconscious it was so severe.

He was fitted with a prosthetic limb in August and began rehab again, but the worst was not yet over.

An infection inside his bones was preventing the wound from healing.

"So I ended up going for more surgery in September. In the first week at the Alfred Hospital, they did three operations which was pretty horrible.

"It came back the first time with two infections in my bone. They cleaned the wound up, which was awesome."

It's now been more than two weeks since that last surgery, and Mr Christie is starting to feel cautiously optimistic about his future.

But he still feels wounded by his treatment from Tasmanian surgeons.

His darkest days were when he found out from the Melbourne specialist that his ankle couldn't be fixed without surgery, after the Launceston medical professionals told him it looked fine.

"Because it was WorkCover, you are painted with this brush that you're trying to cheat the system.

"I felt I had to go into bat against these surgeons - it was really frustrating and depressing.

"I wanted to be active and happy with the family, but I felt like no-one was listening and nor did they care."

When he returned to see them after being treated in Melbourne, he was told no surgeon in Tasmania would see him because he had sought treatment on the mainland.

"I was shattered. I couldn't speak for a couple of days. It was really heartbreaking to have someone turn you away like that."

Mr Christie said the five years had been really hard on his family.

"My children have had to watch me being in pain constantly.

"Many nights I've had to go and console them because they've seen me in pain and couldn't do what I used to do."

He paid tribute to his wife, Kayla, whom he said always had to be the solid one.

"It's been a rough road for my wife. This year while I was away for five months, she was running the three kids around, working full time as a nurse and studying full time.

"She's taken something that could have split the family apart and held it all together. She's seen the worst of it."

Being part of a small community had also been a help, with local clubs, the school and neighbours all pitching in and supporting.

His spirit is astounding. His journey of pain, fear, depression, stress and dashed hopes has been a roller coaster, but also invaluable.

"It's opened a lot of doors and I've met a lot of amazing people along the way."

In fact, one of them has joined his own family.

He decided a young woman he met in rehab would be a great match for his older brother, who was single and living in Queensland.

"I 'met' them on Facebook and they fell in love and eloped to Indonesia to marry. They'll have a formal wedding in about 12 months."

The past five years have been punishing for his wife and family. But they all feel quietly optimistic that the worst is over, and a new life can begin, with changed goals and hard-won insights.

"My son said, 'Since you going through what you've been through Dad, I know how to treat everyone exactly the same.'

"It brought tears to my eyes. You can't learn unless you've been through it."

The experience has been hard but enlightening.

"There's no use complaining about your situation. You can't control the situation, but you can control how you react to the situation.

"I try to react as positively as possible.

"I won't grow a leg back. I try to take advantage of every situation and make the best of every situation.

"The life lessons I've learned are invaluable. The friendships I've made will be lifelong. I wouldn't trade it for anything."

And his final word?

"I really want to help anyone going through hard times."