How an unprovoked metal baseball bat attack changed a man's life forever, and the message he's now determined to share

A man whose life was changed forever after suffering brain injuries in an unprovoked attack has been working to raise awareness of neurological conditions.

Adam Harcombe, from the Rhondda Valley, was repeatedly struck by a metal baseball bat and was told by medics he was fortunate to survive.

Despite coming through the ordeal, the physical and mental scars have stayed with Adam.

"They had to remove this side of my skull and keep it in my stomach for six months because my brain was swelling and they just wanted to reduce the damage," Adam explained.

"I lost the left side of my body and it's took time to build up but it's stronger now than it's ever been before."

In a sign of the neurological damage Adam suffered, simply being able to do daily activities now feels like an achievement.

"Today, for the first time since leaving hospital I done my laces up, which just feels like you've won the lottery," he said.

Adam was speaking as the UK marked its first ever Neuro-Disability Day, an awareness-raising initiative to improve understanding around brain injuries and neuro-disabilities.

Supported by the charity British Home, the day also seeks to celebrate scientific and medical advances made to enable people living with brain injuries to live independent lives.

What is a neuro-disability?

The term neuro-disability is an umbrella term for conditions involving damage to the brain and nervous system caused by disease or injury.

People who live with a neuro-disability may struggle to communicate properly, control their body, move or eat independently and may also have problems with processing and retaining information.

Paul Perkin, CEO of British Home, said he hoped the occasion would alert people living with neuro-disabilities to the support available to them.

He said: "We are immensely proud to be launching our own National Neuro-Disabilities Day.

"A sixth of the UK's population is affected by neuro-disability, so this is an opportunity to not only highlight this, but remind everyone that there is support and care available if you or a loved one experiences brain injury or an acquired neurological condition."

Darcey Harcombe, Adam's sister, said that her brother had made remarkable progress but that it had taken a phenomenal amount of effort for him to get there.

"We were in the waiting room when Adam was in surgery and my dad just said 'what's his life going to be like after this?'

"And even now people see Adam and he's doing amazing.

"He's so positive. But they don't see the every day."

Some charities have also voiced concerns that neuro-disabilities can be mistaken for other behaviours.

Peter McCabe, from the charity Headway, said he was aware of cases where people had been discriminated against and mistaken for being under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

He said: "Somebody may have had a piece of their skull removed and put back, but the scars may be below the hairline and you won't necessarily see it.

"And yet people find that they are discriminated against, almost on a daily basis, because people think they may be drunk or under the influence of drugs because they may have an unsteady walking gait or may have slurred speech."

Adam said he has not received any kind of discrimination since his injury but he remains determined to raise awareness of the challenges facing many people across Wales.