The Crash
This story begins with me having a good week at school and now it is the weekend and I get to hang out with my friends and work on cars. I can’t think of a better way to spend the weekend. I wake up on Saturday morning and go to my friend’s house and we start working on his car; this was a big job we were starting on and we would have to work on it all day.
As it was getting late, we all (there were four of us) got into a friend’s car and went to the store. The friend driving asked if anyone wanted to go riding around, two of the friends said no, but I said yes. I don’t remember how long we drove around or what brought to this point, but I was along for the ride and then BAM!!!!
My next memory is a week later, waking up to a bright light. I had lost four pints of blood and without blood donors I might not have ever regained consciousness. I wake up and have no clue what’s going on. I was in a hospital bed with a lot of things plugged into me and I needed to use the restroom really bad.
I started to chew through all the tubes that were connected to me. Then, I began to move to the side of the bed and tried to push myself up. I didn’t know I had a broken arm. I finally pushed myself up, not knowing that I had been ejected a hundred and twenty-five feet out of a car and broken twenty-one bones plus cracked my skull. I have three screws in my right leg holding it together.
Sitting up in the hospital bed, I look around the room for the restroom. I see it in front of me and I begin to stand up, not realizing that I was only trying to put weight on my left legs. I was wondering why, but was more concerned with getting to the restroom. I went to take a step, moving very slowly, and my right foot touched the ground. The impact of my foot touching the floor was enough shock to my body and caused me to fall down.
My father was there when this happened because he was asleep beside me. He heard me stirring and awakened in time to see me falling. He tried, but could not get close enough to catch me before I hit the floor. I must have passed out from the pain because I woke up a few minutes later to my father putting me back into the bed. He said “Don’t do that again.” I asked him what I did and he told me not to try to get up again.
Doctors were not sure of the extent of my injuries and they told my parents they didn’t know if I was going to be able to walk, talk, or be able to do anything at all. They were concerned that I was in pretty bad shape
I had been in a coma for a week at that point. After that night, I was allowed to start moving and getting back on my feet. I was sent to rehabilitation for three weeks and was slowly getting better. I was in the hospital and rehabilitation for two months before I went home to continue my road to recovery. When I went home I could walk but I could not lift much weight. I lost twenty-five pounds and only weighed a hundred and fifteen.
Ten years later, things are starting to slow me down. I really feel the pain. I’m very mentally strong but the pain really makes a difference in how much I can do in a day. It hurts to sit in chairs at times, or stay still for long, but I deal with the pain the best I can. I don’t take pain medications because I don’t like to take a lot of medicine and wouldn’t take it if I had it. I attend a technology center in the Automotive Program: I’m a fifth generation automotive worker and hope to continue to work in this field.
Now I tell you all this because I lost four pints of blood and wouldn’t be here today if people didn’t donate blood. I want to say ‘Thank you to everyone who gives blood, and to all the doctors, all the EMT’s, all my teachers, the police, and all my family for helping me to recover and stay alive.
Giving blood really does save lives’ in lots of ways: I know a good amount of people that have been in car accidents that are still here today due to people giving blood and having hospitals to take care of them. Maybe you know a few people that have been in a car accident, hospital, or that is very sick. Please go to your local hospital and see if there is a blood drive going on and try to give blood. It might save your life or the life of someone you love.
Hopefully this will help you understand that giving blood has a really big impact on life for everyone. Please consider giving blood and remember to look at it as your chance to be a hero to someone, and give them a second chance at life.
Keep this in mind; you never know what will happen, so think about things before you do them or it could cost your life. Stay safe out there and may your life forever and always prosper.