15 replies to this topic

[Daddy Mikey]

Hi everyone, our eighteen year old daughter was involved in a car accident two weeks ago today. Her car was struck from behind at high speed and the impact broke her C4 vertebrae and if I understand correctly they refer to her as a C4-5 quadriplegic. There is one hopeful sign however and I was wondering if anyone else has had a similar sensation or if I should even consider it hopeful. She can feel when my wife squeezes one of her toes. In fact when done under the covers and out of her sight, she can identify which toe on which foot. Her injury is so fresh that it's hard to know what to make of it if anything at all. She was rushed to one of the best trauma centers in the south (Vanderbilt Medical Center) and given steroids right away and had surgery very quickly as well to reconstruct her vertebrae. They said that the outer sheath of the cord wasn't breached which I guess is good too. We'll soon be off to Shepherd Rehabilitation Center in Atlanta to start her rehab.

[Smileyblue]

Welcome to the site..

These are still very early days, so its great that she has sensation so early on!

Hang around.. There is MUCH information and support to be gained here.. Get your daughter to join too as soon as she can.. ;-)

[goose]

So very sorry to hear about your daughter. SCI is very tricky to understand and everyones rcovery is different. Feeling in her toes is a good sign. Shepherd is an excellent rehab center. Your daughter will be in great hands there. I'm also a C 4/5 and did my rehab there 25 years ago.

You must be feeling a bit overwhelmed and that's normal. This forum will be your guide to obtain any information first hand from people who have already experienced SCI. Feel free to ask any question. These next few months will feel like a roller coaster ride but you will survive.

I'd suggest having your daughter get involved with this forum. There are many on here around her age who she can relate to. I know one girl about the same level who just returned home a few weeks ago. There are also parents for you talk with. I'd be glad to help anyway I can...please feel free to send me a personal message.

[nomis]

This is a good sign that your daughter can feel her toe and indicates potntial for the future. However, you are going to need to be patient, very patient.

It's probably too early and too little evidence for the medical people to give you the answers you want. It can take months or even years to learn if such indicators are significant or not.

It's a positive indicator.

[Ginny]

I hate to hear of such things happening to such a young person....to anyone, actually. Stick with this site and learn all you can. These early days will be hard for you and for her. It's so difficult to be patient while future capabilities are so uncertain. I do think it's a good sign that she's feeling her toes and I hope that her regain of sensation is quick.

I agree with the previous poster that she should get on this site when she's able. There are young folks like her here and lots of support from everyone.

My heart goes out to her!

[pinkcloud]

Hi

Thank you for sharing with us, as you can see from the post, our hearts go out to you as a parent and i would rather have sci than me children and there are on forum, a good bunch of loved ones of sci, as well as us with sci ourself, whom will be able to understand your daughters condition in ways us with sci never will, as we never have to see ourself from the outside.

I am real happy to know your daughters in the best hand and that her being able to feel which toe is being felt is something I too would be positive about, having said this, I cant feel which toes are being touched in places and I do am incomplete, sci is very individual and not enough is known about the cord in itself, a lot like the brain. The doctors do lots of special tests to find out whats happening and the best ones to listen to, I still get hope today, and enjoy the happy feelings as long as they last..its all about living in the moment,and by remembering this, our lives dont crash around us if what we think is positive, isnt what we had hoped...whats especially wonderful if when we make some progress and we didnt even notice it.

There are excellent support charities around, that provide up to date information, the same as this website has thats come from medical sources and is 100 % genuine, not on forum pages, on the front page there an index and very up to date. These are the only 'googles' I do to understand how sci works.

I find this forum great as sometimes our doctors just dont know enough to give explanations of why things happen, and lucky for me, i find others on here experience this too, And I ask how they cope with this, once I know how to cope, its not scary...plus, I feel reassured that if others have had this too, I dont feel that I am imagining things as many of our symptoms are invisible and inside of the body.

For instance people can see me skin turn grey, and me body above injury has goose bumps even on the hottest sunny day. Yet nerve pain is invisisble.

Doctors tell us it can take up to eighteen months to see if changes may be permanent, all them nerves inside of the body have to grow back...and not all will grow back exactly the same way as before the injury. I think if it takes a baby in womb 9 months to grow, makes sense why 18 months sounds about right.

Our minds move much faster than our body heals, we can be impatient, think of it like when you was late for an important meeting by an hour....and the only transport is a very slow bus, when really you wished you had the ability to become a world champion sprinter instantly in that very second. I think thats what us sci and loved ones equally can feel like at times

Best wishes for you all, and recently on here, the website owner simon shared with us that rugby player called matt hempson has just released a book, about his life with sci..and theres a lady whom is a model whom does many fun extreme sport activities, her name on here is 'twisted ophelia' and her blog site is in her signiture. There is of course Christopher Reeves too who wrote a book availble in audio cd (esir to hear a book sometimes, for me since injury all the time lol), By seeing there is life to be led, brings hope of a great future, regardless of mobility and injury level..i will never get where these are and i have a lesser injury yet hey...to know its possible can make us feel we will at least be able to do a little......a shining light in a very dark tunnel which you all are in together helps I find.

I am not able to make all the news positive, its a real hard road which sci and all loved ones travel on, yet when theres any positive, as you have written on here, grab it and enjoy them positives.. until you know otherwise, by being realistic that this spinal injury is nasty yet theres ways to live life like so many i have met on here, is what keeps me going, a determination that i am and can contine to live life happy too. The younger ones on here are lovely..Beautiful is inspiring, The Blacksheep as well as being fun also is in a loving relatonship (can be important to young girls) for me, age is not important as i can connect with ny age, many much older in years relate to me with fun life stories, the long time injured are patient with me despite them hearing stories like mine so many times and make me feel as if its ok to feel fed up at times....so many many great people...your daughter can just send messages, I dont know of any on here whom wont happily reply (and dont worry..not in long essays like this one lol) it can be a easier way than jumping onto open forum. And friendships can be made this way...sci only the introducing topic...chats abot everyday life too goes on from there too.

Kindest wishes for you all

Edited by pinkcloud, 21 August 2011 - 01:25 PM.

[Daddy Mikey]

Thanks for the kind and encouraging words everyone. pinkcloud,I can hear your accent in your writing Lol. I'm very glad that a website like this is available and I'll definitely get my daughter involved as soon as she's able. Thanks again!

[pinkcloud]

Your most welcome

Any questions you may have, maybe write them down for when you see the doctors, as its so easy to forget to mention symptoms we have everyday, once asked.

Also once home, its a great idea to keep a copy of a doctors letter which explains her injury level etc, list of medications by the front door, just a simple way to help feel secure that if ever, in the future, your daughter takes ill (non-related sci problems still happen, for some reason I forgot this about meself lol) you wont all have the worry of remembering or having to recall information to a hospital. Its simple steps like this which helps all of us involved with sci feel secure for the future.

Ahhh me accent...i plan to get voice recognition soon to help me, as people may think i'm an imposter if i had started saying 'my cup instead of me cup'..i pronounce 'y' as an 'e' at the end of words

[Millard]

Daddy Mikey, on 21 August 2011 - 01:24 PM, said:

Thanks for the kind and encouraging words everyone. pinkcloud,I can hear your accent in your writing Lol. I'm very glad that a website like this is available and I'll definitely get my daughter involved as soon as she's able. Thanks again!

Hello DM,

I think that getting to the hospital quickly helps out a great deal. I broke my neck in an auto accident and was in ER in less than 30 minutes. A couple of weeks later when my neurosurgeon came by, he was happy when he sqeezed my big toe and I felt it. He stuck a pin in my foot which prompted language from me and he was delighted. I started arm movement after about 2 weeks and it seemed like daily that I got some "little" something back. I was on a Stryker frame bed which they turned me every 2 hours...facing the ceiling for 2 hours then facing the floor for 2 hours...24/7. I slowly started using my hands when facing down. I would pick up things like "Air Bons" peppermint, the round balls. After scattering many around my room, I finally made it to my mouth with one and that was a glorious day.

I was in the hospital in traction (the old days with Crutchfield tons) for 100 days and left there and went to rehab in Warm Springs, Ga. Very quickly I was up and walking with forearm crutches which I used for 37 years. I worked for the next 41 years until 2010 when I burned out totally from working and am now on disability. I still do the computer programming for 3 days per week and I volunteer with the National Park Service for 3 days per week.

Last month, July 20, was the 44th year of my injury. Next month, September 19, will be the 40th anniversary of being married. I hope your daughter has a lot of recovery and can be out soon.

Good luck and God bless.

[wheeliebear75]

FEELING.....feeling ANYTHING is a good thing ESPECIALLY so early on. And being sent to the 2 best facilities for Spinal Cord Injury in the area will give her an added head start....she'll have more help & have to learn less on her own. :spcool: Sorry that your family life has been so rudely flipped upside-down.

[BigSis_K]

Millard, on 21 August 2011 - 04:21 PM, said:

Daddy Mikey, on 21 August 2011 - 01:24 PM, said:

Thanks for the kind and encouraging words everyone. pinkcloud,I can hear your accent in your writing Lol. I'm very glad that a website like this is available and I'll definitely get my daughter involved as soon as she's able. Thanks again!

Hello DM,

I think that getting to the hospital quickly helps out a great deal. I broke my neck in an auto accident and was in ER in less than 30 minutes. A couple of weeks later when my neurosurgeon came by, he was happy when he sqeezed my big toe and I felt it. He stuck a pin in my foot which prompted language from me and he was delighted. I started arm movement after about 2 weeks and it seemed like daily that I got some "little" something back. I was on a Stryker frame bed which they turned me every 2 hours...facing the ceiling for 2 hours then facing the floor for 2 hours...24/7. I slowly started using my hands when facing down. I would pick up things like "Air Bons" peppermint, the round balls. After scattering many around my room, I finally made it to my mouth with one and that was a glorious day.

I was in the hospital in traction (the old days with Crutchfield tons) for 100 days and left there and went to rehab in Warm Springs, Ga. Very quickly I was up and walking with forearm crutches which I used for 37 years. I worked for the next 41 years until 2010 when I burned out totally from working and am now on disability. I still do the computer programming for 3 days per week and I volunteer with the National Park Service for 3 days per week.

Last month, July 20, was the 44th year of my injury. Next month, September 19, will be the 40th anniversary of being married. I hope your daughter has a lot of recovery and can be out soon.

Good luck and God bless.

(brief thread hijack)

Millard

I'm in tears after your story. I'm a big sis to a lil' bro (32) who just broke his neck in a car accident 3 weeks ago. Current status is C7 complete, though his function looks more like C6-7 at best right now. He's got great care & I'm hoping for anything back (I'd give one of my own hands to him....right now).

[Muskie]

Hi DM,

Sorry to hear the news of your daughter's injury, we are in a similar situation our son(21) is a c5 quad from a diving accident on august 2 of this year. We are into the 3rd week of rehab and he gets alittle bit better each week. The people on this website know their stuff, have tons of compassion and don't bs you. I joined it because I was in panic mode because of my son's state of mind but the people here calmed me, told me what he was going through was normal and he would come out the other side. I read alot of the entries here because it educates, informs and gives me questions that I can ask the staff here that I would have never thought of until he was in out patient. We will add you to our prayers had hope for a speedy recovery of your daughter

Muskie

[mellowgator]

dear dad,

i'm a c6-7 quad and have been injured 25 years. i also was in an auto accident. i don't walk but i've managed to have two daughters after my injury and have a great life. i have feeling below my injury level and can move two toes on command,. i also swim daily and snow ski and scuba dive and play w-c tennis.

i'm praying that your daughter has a full recovery. my oldest daughter is now 18 and it would kill me to see her hurt. i lost it after she woke up from her nose job all beat up. so my heart really goes out to you now.

karen

[Niceparalegs]

You are being blessed Dear Parent. The fact that she not only feelz but that its that specific.

[Kitson]

Hi and welcome to an amazing resource for people crushed by news like yours.
My little comment is that its hard to see where you'll end up as rehab and attitude play such a big role in recovery.
My advice is to really get involved in doing as much as you can with your daughter encourage her efforts on all fronts.
It is a tough battle but not without its rewards and comradeship.
The swelling and trauma of the injury masks alot of the recovery you will make in the future so bear in mind nothing is set at this point.
You will be discounting lots of activities and feeling bad about their passing but it might not work out the way you think.
The best of luck to all of you.
Kitson

[Zack]

How's your daughter been doing? Did you get her involved on here ? Hope she's doing ok !