Brave teenager Michael Cardoso is learning to re-build his life after suffering major paralysis following a serious road accident earlier this year.

The 16-year-old CedarBridge Academy student has just returned to the Island after spending two months in Boston, where he received treatment and rehab for his snapped spinal cord and broken vertebrae.

He is paralysed from the chest down, but has full use and movement of his right arm. Although he can feel his left arm, he is, so far, unable to use it.

For the next few days, Michael will remain in isolation on the Gosling Ward at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital, where he is constantly surrounded by his friends and family dressed in gowns and protective masks.

And next week, after his new wheelchairs have arrived, he hopes to return to his Tucker's Town home with his parents where he can really begin to get some normality back into his life.

“The first thing I would like to do next week is go outside,” said a high-spirited Michael yesterday.

“I'm desperate to go outside again. I can't stay outside for that long because my body does not sweat anymore, and so if I stay out for long I may overheat. I will have to drink a lot of water. I just want to feel fresh air again.”

Michael was riding his bike along Middle Road in Paget in February when he was involved in a collision outside the Ice Queen take-away restaurant.

He was knocked over the top of one car, and under another, and said he instantly knew that something very bad was wrong with him.

“I always thought I was invincible,” explained the teenager.

“I thought if I was in an accident I would have a couple of broken bones and a little bit of surgery.

“But, as soon as I hit the ground, I knew I was paralysed. I could not feel my legs. I said to my cousin at the scene, ‘my legs are paralysed'. I had always dreaded being paralysed.”

Although Michael wishes he had being paying more attention to the traffic and the roads that day, he said he did not blame his motorbike for his predicament now.

And while he urged other people to be more safety conscious on the roads, he said if ever he was able to walk again, he would climb straight back on a bike.

“It didn't happen because of the bike, it could have happened by me falling down a cliff or jumping off a rock,” he reasoned.

“You can't be a bike-hater. Everybody blames everything on bikes - my mum always hated bikes. She blames the bike, but I keep telling her that I could have slipped on the steps or fallen out of bed and done the same thing.”

And asked whether he believed in fate, Michael said ‘no', but he had a philosophical take on life considering his young age.

“I don't think this was supposed to happen, but it did happen, so I have to get through it,” he said.

“I'm still hoping to go back to Boston. There is some kind of study or experiment going on, involving my doctor, with a new type of drug that they hope can stimulate the nerves in my back.

“They are doing tests on two people next month, and if it works for them, I would like to try it.”

But until then, Michael realises he has to adjust to his new life.

He is already planning to lose weight, after being told that the lighter he is, the easier it will be for him to move himself about.

And he is already thinking about finishing his education and finding a career, but is under no misconception that the road ahead will be easy.

“I'm going to try to get back to school,” said the young joker. I want to go to the Adult Education Centre and graduate. I didn't particularly like school, but I know it's important.

“I did want to be a carpenter, but I don't know now. I also liked to build computers, but I haven't done that for a long time.

“I have feeling in my left hand, but I can't move it, so it would be hard to hold tools. I just really want to get a job.”

But time away from home has also given Michael much time to think, and he is already contemplating how he will negotiate his wheelchair around the Island.

And he was quick to point out that Bermuda was not very wheelchair friendly.

“A lot of restaurants in Bermuda do not have wheelchair access, and I used to like going to the movies a lot, but I probably won't be able to go there any more.

“I don't think The Little Theatre is wheelchair friendly, but I'm not sure about Liberty Theatre.

“Apparently, I can do watersports soon, but I don't want to go in the water any time soon because I like moving my legs in the water and I won't be able to.”

Michael said he had been able to cope with the tragic events of the last few months only because of the love and support of his family, friends and doctors.

He said his parents, Daniel and Aria Cardoso, and his brother Danny, had been a tower of strength to him.

But he also said he found kindness and support from a lot of people who he had no idea had cared about him so much. That, he said, had been very touching. Three of those people are his close friends Brian Botelho, 17, Michelle Pimentel, 15, and Jeryca Dillas, 14, who were at the hospital with him yesterday.

They have been to see him practically every day since the accident, while Michael has been staying in hospital in Bermuda, and they said they still could not believe what had happened.

Michelle said: “After it happened, we cried a lot. We came to the hospital every day.”

But Brian said his friend's accident had had a major impact on him.

“I still ride my bike, but I have slowed down,” he said.

"I'm more careful now - a lot more. I still pass cars, but not so many times. I don't duck cars and stuff anymore. It has made me think about safety more.”

Michael said he tried not to think about the accident, or riding his bike anymore, as he wanted to put everything to the back of his memory.

“I don't regret riding a bike, but I do regret not paying attention,” he said.

“If I had a message for people out there it would be just to make sure they paid attention (on the roads) and followed the rules.”