"For I know the plans I have for you." Jeremiah 29:11

I realize that in order to get people interested in reading something, it needs to be updated often, at least in the beginning.  Once you have finished reading this post please share it however you can.  Here's some of my back story:

On January 2, 2004 I picked up from her home my then girlfriend, Kirsten, to go see a movie.  It was a Saturday afternoon around 1:00 p.m. and the weather was beautiful.  I wasn't speeding.  We were both wearing our seat belts.

The only thing I remember from that day are the beads that were hanging in the doorway to her room.  I know that this memory is from that morning because they were a Christmas gift and I had not been to her home since she got them.

You see, severe injuries, trauma, and copious amounts of pain killers do things to the memory.  I remember only those beads from that day.  Not the accident.  Not what caused it.  Nothing.

She doesn't remember it either.  And no one saw the actual event.  The people who called 911 only saw my car as it was settling back onto it's wheels.

But, based on the damage and skid marks I know some things.

While approaching the on ramp to the highway I swerved and then over corrected.  This caused my car to flip.  As it flipped over we hit a sign on the side of the highway.  These signs are supposed to breakaway so as not to cause even more damage.  This one didn't.  Because of the sign the roof over our heads collapsed in on us.

Our injuries were as follows: she had part of her ear torn off, the nerves in her right arm injured, and her right knee hurt.  She has recovered from these injuries through intense physical therapy and several surgeries. 

My skull cracked along my right eye socket (I almost lost that eye), my collarbone broke, so did two... maybe three (can't remember) ribs, also I broke three vertebrae in my spine.  As I said in my first post T3-4 broke, but I also broke C2.  That's in the neck.  I also had a lot of cuts on my face, arms, and hands.

When my vertebrae broke the bits of bone collided with my spinal cord; bruising it.  When my skull cracked, the fluid in my skull all rushed to the left, damaging that ear.  I am hard of hearing in that ear because of it; though it's not bad enough to effect me unless I'm in a noisy area or trying to use that ear on the phone.

We were transported to Saint Francis hospital where we both received treatment.  I suppose the x-rays of my neck didn't look too bad because they didn't stabilize my neck at all.  I underwent surgery to implant titanium rods along my spine to protect my spinal cord and stabilize the vertebrae.

For the next eight days I underwent surgery and was monitored.  During that time I was surrounded by my friends, family, and virtually everyone who knew our family and was within driving distance.  Though my memories of those days are very scattered, I do remember fragments of dreams, people visiting me, and conversations I had with them.  I am grateful to everyone who came out, not because they came to see but because they came for my family as well.  I was being well cared for, my immediate family were the ones that really needed comfort.

During those eight days several of my friends and family did research on the best hospitals for spinal cord injury rehabilitation.  The answer was pretty unanimous: Craig Hospital in Denver, CO.  Luckily at this point they thought my injury was complete (That is, severed spinal cord, extremely small chance of recovery.)  I say "luckily" because had they known my injury was incomplete then I would not have been admitted into Craig to participate in an experimental procedure to transplant nerves from the leg on to the damaged part of the spinal cord.  It was only once I got there that we discovered my injury was not complete.  But I had gotten in and they weren't going to turn me away.

You can see how the Lord protected and blessed me.  It could have been terrible weather, thus making it less likely that someone would have stopped to help us.  That sign could have given away, had it done so, we would have rolled down a hill and I'm sure incurred much worse injuries.  They might have discovered how badly my neck was broken and for some reasons forbidden me from flying to Colorado so soon after my injury.  Craig only accepts people whose injuries are less than two weeks old for their studies.  I could have not gotten in to Craig... which, for all intents and purposes was the biggest saving grace of all.

Clearly, God had a plan.

"But you, Lord, are a shield around me" Psalm 3:3

This first, initial post, serves several purposes.  Firstly, to let anyone and everyone who is interested in reading it know that it exists.  Second, to explain my reasons for writing it. 

I am a paraplegic.  My spinal cord is damaged at the T3 and T4 levels.

What does that mean? It means that I cannot use any muscles from my chest down.  Yes, any.  Toes, feet, legs, abs, etc. 

The accident that caused my injury happened on January 2, 2004.

Since then I have experienced the full breadth of reactions.  From childlike wonder to prideful arrogance.  I will tell my story from the beginning, as well as I remember it, and then continue to relate my thoughts, concerns, and wishes about my situation. 

Now there comes the matter of you who are reading this.  I have two favors to ask of you.  The first is that I would like you  to tell others about it.  The main purpose of this blog is to educate people about what it is like to live with a physical disability.  The only way that situations can get better is by educating people about it.  So please, share this with anyone and everyone you know.

The second favor I would like to ask of you is to hold me accountable to maintaining this blog.  I tend to forget to do things and this is something I feel that God has led me to do.  Please help me to continue it.

That's all for now.

God speed my friends!


References:
The image was borrowed from http://inspiredsciforum.com/thread/939/thoracic-herniated-disc.