Crash
Today I got one of those calls that people never want to get. Michelle called me at work at about 2:15 today and informed me that my Mom had been a car wreck. Turns out it was pretty bad.
She was heading to Ames for a conference, in front of her was a dump truck with a trailer and apparently the trailer became detached. The rest is a blur of sirens, phone calls, and emergency medical procedures. She is alive and as of tonight she is in stable condition, but it's going to be a long recovery. She has a broken C-2 verterbrae in her neck, a broken pelvis, a severely broken left arm, and a brain hemorrage. She does have movement in her hands, I observed that myself, and I thought I saw her move her toes, so I think, from my uninformed medical opinion that she has escaped paralysis of any kind (finger crossed), but there is certainly a lot of rehab in surgery to take place in the near future.
After Michelle called I rushed home, my mind in swirl. At that point all we knew was that there was a wreck and some kind of emergancy surgery was being done. All the bad thoughts rushed through my head. What if she dies? What if she dies and I'm not there? When was the last time I saw her? All I knew was that I needed to get here, to Des Moines, and be here. Michelle tried to argue that we should stay in CR and wait until we got more information, but all I could think was "car wreck + emergency surgery = bad, must go." Then my brother called and told us the basics about her injuries. I was packing Luka's bag, trying to hold it together. How could this happen to my Mom? She couldn't possibly go out like this. Hold it together. Gotta go.
So here we are, I'm a bit relieved because she is in stable condition, but it is my Mom, and she is hooked up to a ventilator at the moment. Pray for us. The next few days, weeks, and months are going to be trying.
And Mom, I love you. Get better, we (Dad, Gabe, Elena, Collen, Michelle, Luka, and everyone else) need you around .
She was heading to Ames for a conference, in front of her was a dump truck with a trailer and apparently the trailer became detached. The rest is a blur of sirens, phone calls, and emergency medical procedures. She is alive and as of tonight she is in stable condition, but it's going to be a long recovery. She has a broken C-2 verterbrae in her neck, a broken pelvis, a severely broken left arm, and a brain hemorrage. She does have movement in her hands, I observed that myself, and I thought I saw her move her toes, so I think, from my uninformed medical opinion that she has escaped paralysis of any kind (finger crossed), but there is certainly a lot of rehab in surgery to take place in the near future.
After Michelle called I rushed home, my mind in swirl. At that point all we knew was that there was a wreck and some kind of emergancy surgery was being done. All the bad thoughts rushed through my head. What if she dies? What if she dies and I'm not there? When was the last time I saw her? All I knew was that I needed to get here, to Des Moines, and be here. Michelle tried to argue that we should stay in CR and wait until we got more information, but all I could think was "car wreck + emergency surgery = bad, must go." Then my brother called and told us the basics about her injuries. I was packing Luka's bag, trying to hold it together. How could this happen to my Mom? She couldn't possibly go out like this. Hold it together. Gotta go.
So here we are, I'm a bit relieved because she is in stable condition, but it is my Mom, and she is hooked up to a ventilator at the moment. Pray for us. The next few days, weeks, and months are going to be trying.
And Mom, I love you. Get better, we (Dad, Gabe, Elena, Collen, Michelle, Luka, and everyone else) need you around .
posted by Chris at 8:19 PM
2 comments
