Successful model, actor, and the first personal trainer to be crowned 'Mr. England'. This is the life Jack Eyres leads today, a life uncompromised by his physical disability. Jack is seen as a true example of self-belief and determination, but how has he learned to make the most of his prospects?
The Jack Eyres Story
Jack Eyres was born in Bournemouth with a rare condition, called Proximal Femoral Focal Deficiency, which prevented his right leg from developing properly. As a child, Jack struggled to accept his limb difference, admitting to The Telegraph that he "used to wear two pairs of trousers because I didn't even like my leg."
At the age of 16, Eyres made the decision to have his right lower limb amputated. That was the moment when his outlook on life took a positive turn. Jack recalls that he was wearing a huge smile on his face just before the surgery as he was "dead excited" to begin a new chapter.
"People say that you are only as old as your amputation because you need to learn how to do basic things again, like walking. So, I was reborn after my surgery." , Jack adds in his interview for The Telegraph.
Jack was so impatient to explore the world with his new prosthetic limb, that he discharged himself out of hospital 5 days after the amputation. However, the post-surgery recovery was not easy. He struggled with several infections and had a preconceived image of how easy the rehabilitation process would be.
It was exercise that gave Jack the self-confidence he needed to overcome physical challenges. As a young disabled person, he reveals that he felt motivated to prove to himself and others around him that there were no limits to what he could achieve. According to Jack himself, exercising is his therapy and the best pain killer available.
As his fitness routines got more and more complex, a career as a personal trainer appeared more likely by the day. "The only problem I have now is that when I sweat, the leg slips off", Jack jokingly tells the BBC.
The journey that Jack Eyres has taken towards self-acceptance has also been paved by the numerous modelling gigs that he’s undertaken for charities and disability associations. His appearances in campaigns served a bigger purpose - to motivate all the young disabled people out there to believe in themselves.
In 2017, Jack became the first PT to be crowned 'Mr. England'. He also competed for the 'Mr. World' title the following spring.
"If I could say anything to the young disabled people who aren't very happy and confident in themselves, it would be to grow into their own self-belief.", Jack adds.
What is ExpHand Your Prospects?
‘ExpHand Your Prospects’ is an ExpHand Prosthetics blog series aiming to show that people with limb loss - and disabilities more broadly - enjoy the same personal and professional development opportunities as everyone else. We take real examples from the real world and share stories with our community in order to motivate and inspire.
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