"You're 62, in perfect health, running twice a week. And then, after a lovely evening out, you find yourself lying in bed feeling terrible. When I woke up, my husband said I was talking nonsense, so he called an ambulance. I was rushed to hospital with the sirens blaring." After examination, it emerged that Suze had sepsis, an extreme reaction of the body to bacteria, in her case, pneumococci. "Everyone carries this bacteria, but a reaction that severe is just
bad luck."

Due to a lack of blood supply, her limbs began to fail. Suze had no awareness of this. "I was in a coma for three months. The doctors told my husband: warn the children, because most people don't survive this." Suze turned out to be the exception, but she was left with a severe disability. "During my coma, they first amputated my lower legs and then my hands. When you wake up, you don't realise what's happened."

An intense road back
After the bacterial infection, an intense rehabilitation process lasting more than a year began. Suze had to learn to live with prostheses. "That was tough, because nothing feels normal anymore. Your world stands still. Showering, getting dressed, and going to the toilet, the most everyday things become difficult. But I still give my life a solid eight out of ten. The people around me, including Siem, help me enormously. And I get so much pleasure from my bike. "Her first few metres on a tricycle left her wanting more. "After my rehabilitation, I took a test ride on an Easy Rider at vanRaam, and I'd have loved to take it home with me right away. In the end, I had extra footrests fitted so my prostheses wouldn't slip while cycling. The automatic reverse function is incredibly useful for me."

A daily companion
Suze now rides every single day. "The funny thing is, I barely cycled before all of this. I worked close to home and hardly ever got the bike out. It came into my life out of necessity, but I'm so glad it did. Being out in the fresh air, cycling through the woods. It's just wonderful," she says with a smile. "When you're healthy, you take everything for granted. Now, every time I go out on my bike, I think: how lucky am I that I can still do this." ■