And only in the presence of a trained assistance dog.After years of shrinking, Ashley's world was starting to expand again.But now he faces another challenge It was a game changer," he says.Ellie has also taken some of the strain off Rowena, who was effectively a 24-hour carer for Ashley."Before assistance dogs, I was one eye and one ear open overnight, always tuned in to where Ashley was," she says."I don't need to do that now because the dog does that."Since getting his assistance dog, Ashley has also gained something he has missed for years: a continuity of memory.His day-to-day life no longer has large gaps where he can't remember what he's done or how he came to be in certain situations.He's building a life again.When Ashley runs now, it's because he wants to.Encouraged by his progress, Ashley's psychologist Dr Gemmel suggested he try parkrun as a way of staying active and getting more comfortable in the community.Ashley soon discovered that, not only did he enjoy running, he was very good at it.Ashley entered his first Masters running event in 2025 and is now winning state and national titles."It pushes me into a zone that I didn't think I could go to," Ashley said of his competitive running."Emotionally I'm free and physically, I like the pain