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Our Amazing Story
The life story of Tania and Warren Hayes is an amazing testament to the extraordinary potential for hope,
perseverance and love that is hidden within each and every one
of us.
Tania was only twenty-two when her fiancé, Warren, was diagnosed
with an eight-centimeter Acoustic Neuroma brain tumour. In the
space of a week Tania and Warren’s future morphed from a shining
dream of hope and possibility into a place of fear, uncertainty
and doubt.
The chances of Warren’s survival were slim, and for over a year
Tania remained by his bedside as he bravely faced an agonizing
series of medical battles, mishaps and close calls. Without a
voice of his own, Tania had to fight for Warren's right to continue,
even though doctors were advising her to switch off his life
support and let him go.
Time and time again, Warren defied all expert opinion by clinging
to life and to the possibility of sharing a future with Tania.
Warren spent a total of 446 days in hospital, during which he
underwent twenty operations. He suffered from infected brain
shunts, fungal and bacterial meningitis, golden staph, pneumonia,
a deep vein thrombosis blood clot and spasmodic breathing which
saw him rushed back onto life support. Tania was told that he
may never breathe on his own again.
Frustratingly, on four occasions Warren was released to a rehabilitation
hospital only to relapse unexpectedly. Although these times were
heart-breaking and demoralising for Tania, she never conceded
defeat.
After repeated setbacks Warren’s condition finally stabilised,
allowing him to begin the gruelling task of gradually recovering
his body. Unfortunately, after only a short time in a rehabilitation
hospital, the specialists deemed that his progress was unacceptably
slow. They advised that he should be sent to a nursing home.
After coming so far Tania refused to give up and send Warren
to waste away in a nursing home. At the age of twenty-four she
took on the enormous responsibility of discharging Warren from
hospital and becoming his full-time Carer.
Over the years, Tania and Warren have worked to rebuild their life together, learning many valuable lessons about dreams,
perseverance and compromise along the way. They are now married and have a a beautiful son, Josh. Together, they hope that their story can reach out and lend strength to those trapped
in their own cycles of suffering and fear.
Despite all their tragedy, Tania has remained optimistic about the future. She continues to put her energy into her family and
has become a passionate advocate for Carers and the disabled in Australia. She is regularly called on as a professional speaker,
sharing her family’s inspirational story at many prestigious venues across the nation.
Tania is the official Ambassador for Carers Australia, and a
Carer Representative for Carers New South Wales. She is also
the proud author of the powerful biography Love Has No Limits
published in 2008 by Harlequin Enterprises (Australia) Pty Ltd.
It is Tania’s ambition to inspire as many people as she can to
stay strong throughout even the darkest obstacles in life and
never lose hope. Her message is simple: no matter what may befall
you, with love on your side, nothing in life is ever impossible.
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