The Wreck

Most of you remember 7 years ago I was in a pretty serious wreck. I decided since it was the lucky 7 year anniversary of it, and nothing bad happened that I'd be ok to write about it. I've never written about it anywhere, and although it wasn't a great event in my life, it was significant, so I figured I'd bettered write about it before I forget more about it.

It was 3 months after we got married. We had just gotten done moving into our apartment on Gilbert, between baseline and guadalupe (which are now condos) and Cara, Paul and myself were headed to the movies I believe from eatting with Jase and his family at the Hawaiian resturant that they loved to eat at. Anyway, we pulled in front of a car going about 45-55mph and got t-boned, and I was the t-bonee. And now I am the biggest freak about being buckled up, even bigger about kids being buckled up, but luckily back then I wasn't, so I wasn't buckled up or the damage would have been worse. The car hit me (the car we were in was so old it didn't have safety side beams) and pushed me over. It hit me in my big ole hips. fractured them, bruised up the whole right side of my body, crushed a few ribs, internal bleeding, glass all over in my arm and tons of internal conditions that I'm still dealing with. Now I'mg oing to write more about the actual wreck. I remember seeing the car coming to me and saying, well, a really ba "sh" word about 5 times in a row (bad I know, and I've only cussed once since then), being hit, the car spinning, hitting a curb, and stopping. Then I remember the driver of the other car coming and yelling at cara, not even asking if everyone was ok, just going off on poor cara. And I think Cara called 911..I'm not sure. ANyway, I seriously thought I was paralized. I could NOT move my legs at all. I was scared to death, covered in blood and a total mess. The paramedics came and got Paul out of the back. He was a little shook up, but I think he was fine, at least physically. They asked me to move my feet, I couldn't, so they picked me up took me to stretcher, cut my clothes off (so embarassing) to check everything, and the ambulance took me half a block (and asked $400 for that half a block) and that's where the air evac picked me up, which was awful! They kept hitting my legs with the controller thing and I was soo scared anyways...still hadn't cried. Then we landed, and they wheeled the stretcher into the ER where I was asked a billion questions. I gave them vonda's phone number and then I started crying. I felt soo alone, SO ALONE and scared. I remember the ER doc being able to tell and so he tried to distract me by saying I have awesome eyes...I had my brown contacts in. Anyway, through all of this they kept asking if I might be pregnant, and I told them we had been trying (for a week). They did tests, they all came back negative. Anyway, as soon as I saw the first person I knew, I really felt a lot better, and then when they told me my legs were ok I was about 10x better. So they wheeled me to a triage type place where my family came to visit me. My favorite was when Tamee came to see me. I didn't think I looked that bad...most of the blood was cleaned up, and most of my shizzle was internal so I did'nt feel like I looked that bad, but she passed out when she saw me...hit her head on some of my machines and stole my thunder! Thanks Tam. Ha, actually it was quite funny. ANyway, so I spent 2 nights in the ICU, and another 5 days in a regular room where I had those things on my legs day and night to keep the blood flowing and physical therapists came in and tried to help me start walking with a walker which I was kinda able to do by the time we left. I could go about 10 steps w/o dying. I also had the coolest gay nurse, John, who helped cheer me up everyday. He used to come into my room singing that song, crap what was it, something like "hey, it's all bout the money" or somethign like that. I can sing it in my head, just can't remember the words, anyway, I remember my digestive system shut down within a couple of days because I went from being REALLY active to laying in bed for days and he had to shove suppositories up my butt, I know, lovely thought, but he knew I hated it, so one day he said, "oh, don't worry honey, they melt in your butt, not in my hand". Aww, everyone needs a nurse like that. Anyway, the digestive system still isn't up and running. Jase swears he's going to get it going. For now, I rely on my friend Dr. Shultz. Ok, back to the wreck,...


Seriously I didn't know I looked this bad...look at how my sisters are looking at me! Looks like death!


Ok, so when it was time to go home, my dad kept trying to get pictures...not funny! And my mom was driving. And my mom is a scary driver...in my opinion, but she must be good because she lives in her car, and hasn't been in a wreck. But I was soo nervous the whole time. She took us to Randa's where we lived for about a month since I couldn't do stairs and we had just moved our stuff into a 2nd story apartment the day of the wreck and they woudlnt' let us out of our lease. PUNKS! SO Randa was nice enough to let us sleep in their extra room. Jase was working 12 hour days so Randa had to hel pme a ton. I had to go in a few times for cat scans and x rays and all that fun stuff, and then I was having major stomach pains, which we thought might be from the twice a day lovinox shots that Sam had to give me in my stomach (blood thinner), or maybe it was another reaction to the pain killers. I had to try 3 different kinds in the hospital because I kept throwing up, which they THOUGHT was an allergic reaction. Anyway, so finally we went to an internist to check out if my stomach pains had to do with the lack of bm's I'd had, so I went in, and did some test and she had me go to the waiting room, then asked me to come into her office because she needed to tell me something. I remember being soo nervous. She sat me down and said, "did you know you're pregnant?". And luckily I was so naive to what could have been bad about that situation, and I got so excited! So that night I went home and sat Jase down on my lap in the wheelchair and told him. He was excited too, and my sisters seemed excited, bu ta couple later told me that they were pretty nervous for the whole situation, and looking back now. I'm an airhead! I had 3 doctors tell me that the option of aborition is there...just because of the cat scans, x-rays, pain killers, and the actual wreck, all happening w/in the first trimester which is when the brain, body, bones, everythign develops. Kinda a crutial time. ANyway, I finally found one that didn't even give me that option, he just made sure that I saw a perinatologist once a week throughout the pregnancy. And luckily the pregnancy was amazing. The fracture in my hip bone didn't split anymore, which they were really afraid of with me being pregnant and the bone not fully healing beforehand, everything was great and the kid is freaking awesome! One of my top 3! Sometimes he says things and I think, "aww, that's just the painkillers kicking in", but he's a miracle baby! I LOVE HIM! SO after about 2-3 weeks in wheelchair, I started using a walker and crutches for a few weeks, and we went swimming every morning since it was the ONE thing I could do for exercise for a few months...which yes did wonders for the pregnancy....75lbs in 5 months!!!
As horrible and hard and painful as this time was in my life I am SO glad it happened. jase and I fought so much our first 3 months, and the day the wreck hit, our marriage has been just about perfect since. We really grew together from it. Jase was in the salt river canyon during the wreck, picking up our firs tjeep wagoneer that broke down in there, and he was called and told, and hurried to the hospital to see me. It was horrible! Anyway, the wreck taught me a lot of things. Humility, Forgiveness, Patience, and most of all Faith.
Randa's house