AS a soldier, he was an action man who served in war zones across the world.

But after he suffered terrible injuries while serving in Afghanistan, Simon Taylor felt isolated.

He did feel as thought he belonged in the military nor civilian world.

He was displaced.

However, thanks to support from the military charity Help for Heroes, he has now started to rebuild his life and found a way of belonging.

Simon, 33, was a sergeant with the Light Dragoons and served in Bosnia and Iraq before being deployed to Afghanistan.

While on a routine patrol in 2009, his vehicle hit an improvised explosive device.

He suffered a multitude of broken bones, a traumatic brain injury, a collapsed lung, spinal fractures and a shattered ankle.

Two years later, as a result of the injuries, Simon’s right leg was amputated below the knee.

He also had to have a cage fitted around his spine, his shoulder pinned and arm plated.

Simon still suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder - not from his own terrible suffering but stemming from feelings of guilt for his comrade who died in the incident.

A fit and active man, he had to rebuild his life which he has started to do with emotional and practical support from Help for Heroes.

Simon said: “In the Army I was always really active. Running was my escape.

"After my injury somebody suggested mountain biking. Help for Heroes was able to provide funding.

"My first time on the bike after receiving it, I went further in that 15 minute ride than I’d been in the last two years.

"It’s my way of helping with the psychological side of things, getting out and about in nature.

"It gives me the space to get my head together.

"I only have one leg for power but when it comes to the downhill stints I’m not limited; I have a sense of freedom.”

Simon took part in a trip in the Brecon Beacons with other wounded ex-servicemen and said he was at last able to "forget all the trouble of the world and just be yourself".

In a letter to Help for Heroes he said: "I wanted to say thank you for the opportunity to feel normal again.

"The injured often struggle to find their place in the world after they leave service.

"We do not really fit into the military anymore nor do we fit into the civilian world in which we now must live.

"We tend to drift along hoping for moments where we can just relax and be with others who feel the same and share similar values and beliefs. Time to tell stories that are all 'uniquely the same'."

Simon has since biked around Vietnam raising money for Help for Heroes and is now part of the charity’s mountain biking team competing against able-bodied people in endurance races.

He has also undertaken a Pathfinder course, part of the charity’s career recovery pathway at Colchester-based recovery centre Chavasse VC House.

Simon then spent a year with the Prince’s Trust, who work in partnership with Help for Heroes, before being offered a job with the Jon Egging Trust where he now runs youth development courses for teenagers in leadership and teamwork.

Simon added: “Help for Heroes is all about having somebody or something there, not just for me but for my family. My wife and kids were worried about me; they needed support too.

“If Help for Heroes didn’t exist people like me would be lost.

"Some people think that now Afghanistan is over you don’t need the support, but these injuries will go on for the rest of our lives.”