Topic : 07/29 "I Survived!" Caught on Camera

I forgot to add, "When God closes a door, He opens a window!"

I was listening to the kid who has an accident playing football.

I just want to share my own experience on this topic. In October 2006, my son (then 17 years old) was in a mini-van accident with 6 other friends (going to a student association meeting on a Saturday morning). He had a C2 type 1 fracture (same as Christopher Reeves, I was told), and his right arm was also quite damaged, but when I got to the hospital, he recognized me, said Hi and he could move his legs and arms. That was all that mattered. The rest was to adapt. He had surgery to place a halo vest (halo screwed onto his skull and attached to a vest on his torso) to prevent head movement. The fracture had damaged one blood vessel going to the brain and he was in danger of suffering an ACV. Luckily, it didn't happen. After 12 days, he was released but had to keep the halo vest for 3 months, and lots of physiotherapy. The only sequel is the lost to use properly the ring finger and the last one. Being a musician (piano, guitar), it made things tough to play but he persisted in finding a way to do it. Not once did he lose his moral.
To top this, one year later, October 2007 (18 years old), he had meningitis (type B), lost his hearing completely. Again, he was lucky enough to have great doctors who took into consideration that he was playing lots of music and he was transfered to Quebec City where the ORL do cochlear implants. They voted to place 2 implants on him - he has been the first seeing adult to have this done. It worked good. The left implant is perfect, the right one, for some reason, is giving him a more high pitch sound.
Although, this technology does wonders it still doesn't bring back the musical hearing (too much info for the processors to send to the brain). Again, he never lost his good natured personality, nor did I. He is trying to relearn (from memory) the real sound vs what the implants make of it.
All this to say that it's not what happens but how you face it. After the accident, I had asked him if he realized that it was miraculous that he survived that accident, and more so that he was paralyzed or brain damaged and he answered me that if he had died, he wouldn't be hurting and if he had been paralyzed, then he would have dealt with that instead. Though I must be partly responsible for his attitude, I admit that I learned a great deal from him during those two events. The student has surpassed the teacher.
A proud mother who wished that her son won't have to deal with any more ordeals in his life.

Chantal Fortier
PS. Just one concern, could time and life crisis catch back with him and take him down ?

That kid, who can't play football anymore, and he sits up there and him and his parents are crying, because he can't play football anymore. Are you stupid??? Be glad, he is not dead or paralyzed. I am speaking from experience, as  I am paralyzed due to a car accident 12 years ago. What I would give for being able to walk again. Quit the whining, not playing football isn't the end of the world. Quit being so ungrateful, it's disgusting!!!

when my 35 year old husband broke his neck (C4) on a 4 wheeler and was paralyzed from the neck down it did change our lives and the lives of our 3 young children forever!!!  But he fought to live and knowing he could see his life pushing a wheelchair with his tongue he still fought to live....to get home off that mountain to his wife and children was his only quest!  His unfortunately died 17 short and long months later.  But he spent that 17 months a quadriplegic and 100% dependant on others to live.  He also spent everyday thanking God he could see his children and speak to youth and adults alike to live their lives to the fullest....he never felt sorry for himself but we had moments he would cry when he watched other men do for his own children what he could not, but he lived and survived those moments with constant gratitude!!! Because truely that is the only way to get through these type of life altering experiences....gratitude for what you DO have because there is always someone worse off!    At the time we were the family that others would say..."at least we don't have it as bad as that family"  (haha glad we could help)  but seriously, I live in admiration of the incredible strength my husband had and the immense gratitude he expressed everysingle day....you learn to appreciate breathing by yourself, speaking again after being intibated for months, fresh air and home.  you appreciate eating food again....I on the other hand appreciated sooooo much more- everytime i didn't want to get up to "turn" him in the night every hour, I was soooo thankful I could GET UP....he couldn't.  So grateful I could kiss him one more day and hug my children....He couldn't.   Gratitude people....he taught me gratitude for the little things and then more gets added to it!!!  I'm sorry for the boy who can't play football, but gratitude young man that you can move and talk and walk and LIVE and life will hand you something better!  I use to have a sign on my garage door reminding my husband to take off his muddy boots.....the first night home from the hospital after the accident...Icried when I saw that sign!  I would have given anything to have him walk across my floor with his muddy boots!!!!!