ACC has failed us, what our next plans are

Added: 2026-05-22

[00:00:00]Hello everybody from a beautiful Lake Tekapo, where it's been very very chilly.

[00:00:07]>> [laughter] >> Hey, so we are just making a little bit of a different video to inform you of what's going on for us. We're on our way to Christchurch, which is our last day up here in the high country doing a bit of a push tomorrow. We are on our way to Christchurch because I am getting the surgery that I need for my back. Uh, it has been about 7 months since I injured myself and it has I've been so uh sucks. I'm like not able to bike anymore. Can't walk. Can't go on adventures. Yes, so it's it sucks. But this is the fix that I need. Um, I've got two compressed discs in my spine.

[00:00:41]The discs are like gone. Yeah, and then the material from the disc is pushing on my nerve and I've got this incredible pain in my leg and my foot. Um, I'm on ugly drugs that help keep me mobile, but I don't like the effects of them. Um, so this is the fix that we need. Um, ACC [clears throat] has declined uh sorting this out for us and along with that um I'm not getting workers compensation either and so I'm going to be off work.

[00:01:08]>> And that's been for the last 7 months.

[00:01:09]Yes, I've been on reduced hours since December, so uh >> So I've been back plastering and painting in Twizel, which I've enjoyed and um yeah, helping keeping us fed and fueled fed and fueled.

[00:01:21]Uh social media doesn't pay very well if you didn't realize. No, no, no, no. The tradie tools have been back out.

[00:01:28]It's so cool though. Yes. Um, so I've been paying thousands of dollars into an insurance policy for the last couple of decades and so they're going to do the surgery for me and they are going to sort out the review with ACC, so don't worry that's going to happen. Yes. And hopefully get turned over, but in the meantime like that can take ages. In the meantime we're just getting this done.

[00:01:47]Uh we do have to make a co-payment and it's huge.

[00:01:51]The surgery is $85,000 and we have to contribute 20% of that, which is roughly about $18,000.

[00:02:00]So, we wanted to inform you, tell you what's going on, but many people over the years have offered help and support towards our family, which has been greatly appreciated. And we don't really like to make these kinds of videos, but we thought this is probably the best opportunity at the moment for us to ask for some help. Not from people that are living week to week or, you know, are struggling financially. It's pretty hard out there at the moment with fuel prices and food prices.

[00:02:25]But people that have extra, that have offered help, this is probably the best time to help lighten our burden of finance during this period, you know.

[00:02:35]It's not been the easiest for Saf.

[00:02:38]And but we're making it. We've got a plan of how we can get through this, but we would love a bit of support. Yeah, so we've got we we know how we're going to pay for this and get through these next couple of months. Um and yeah, it is what it is.

[00:02:53]But we wanted to I guess see if people wanted to support us during this time. And if so, that's appreciated. Yeah.

[00:03:03]But yeah, we're down to the big smoke tomorrow, down to Christchurch for the surgery. And then a couple Once Saf's ready, once she's recovered a bit, we are heading back up into the high country. We are going to be chasing the winter conditions, which we've already experienced quite a lot of in the last couple of weeks. I feel like um April and May have been amazing.

[00:03:22]>> so cold. We've had like minus fives minus Well, I think we got to minus six the other day. And we've seen some hoar frost, and that's definitely given us that excitement and enthusiasm for the winter conditions.

[00:03:32]>> some things we want to snow. We want some more hoar frost. We want to go ice skating.

[00:03:39]But anyway, thank you. Um thank you for watching this video and for supporting us. And I've got a couple of episodes to edit while we'll be in Christchurch, and I'll put one out in a few days' time, so it's not too long. You know, this isn't really what a lot of you subscribe and follow for. So, the next adventure is actually a long one. It's going to be about 28 minutes as well. So, really cool one deep into the mountains. Spot we've never camped before and um yeah.

[00:04:02]All right. We'll leave We'll leave it there.

[00:04:04]Thanks.