Mental Health
A motorcycle accident left Elsje Potgieter with two broken legs and a fractured pelvis.
Today, she’s able to walk again, thanks to the care of health practitioners and staff at Mediclinic in Bloemfontein. She shares her remarkable story with us.
Elsje’s a family woman who speaks about her husband, mother, children and grandchildren with love and adoration – but she’s also a dedicated biker who’s had to come a long way since being traumatically injured in a road accident.
On 2 February 2019 – a day that has shaped the rest of her life – Elsje Potgieter and her husband were riding their Harley-Davidsons to a Cheetahs rugby game when tragedy struck. Three days previously, her husband had retired. “We had everything sorted to go and look for a house at the coast,” Elsje says. “I inherited a camper from my dad, and we had it ready to celebrate both my husband’s birthday and the start of his retirement. He didn’t want a party; he said his party would be going with his wife to look for a house and moving down to the coast.”
The fateful morning of the accident, the couple, who are members of the Harley-Davidson Owners Group, were off to join a group of riders heading towards the Free State Stadium. “We both climbed on our Harleys – his white and mine pink – the only pink one in the Free State!” On their way to meet the rest of the pack, the accident happened on the Langenhoven Park Road, approaching Bloemfontein. Elsje takes up the story: “This is hearsay – I cannot for the life of me remember – my husband and other witnesses told me this. My husband was in front of me doing 80km/hour. A bakkie with a canopy drove in front of us. There isn’t a lane for them to drive in – we had right of way. My husband just missed the bakkie. I was not that fortunate.”
Elsje was left with two broken legs and a badly fractured pelvis. “Through it all, my husband didn’t leave my side for one day. On three occasions early on, the doctors called my family to come and say goodbye to me. At that stage, I was lying in the ICU – I don’t remember a lot. My family says those people were so, so good to me. They looked after me so well. Dr Andre Loubser, the trauma surgeon… if he finds somebody with a pulse, he’ll put them together! He did that for me. There were so many doctors and specialists, and each one of them went over and above the call of duty. The doctors, scrub nurses, cleaners and nurses in the wards, all the way through to the people who made the food – everybody stood together.”
Miraculously, Elsje, who is allergic to morphine, was able to get through her journey of recovery using only paracetamol-based pain treatment. Although now able to walk, she still requires the care of her loved ones, who’ve been incredibly supportive. “Our God works in mysterious ways, and I’m sure His miracles won’t end at me standing up and walking,” she persists.
The retired independent consultant and partner at an HR business now focuses her energy on pastoral counselling, something she’s been passionate about for many years. Despite the accident and how it changed her idea of what her life would look like, Elsje’s heart is still open and generous. She’s willing to show up for people who are experiencing their own challenges. Whenever possible, you’ll find her at somebody’s hospital bedside, offering them and their family spiritual comfort and support.