Recovery - Week 1

And so, I woke up in the hospital. I was in no state to call the appropriate people, though I did manage to call my dad that day. Almost all the other phone calls were fielded by Jackie and a good friend, Tommy Marshall, who came down to Winchester, VA for company and extra help. The hospital stay consisted of the usual--pushing the button for morphine when necessary, having nurses come in at odd times to take vitals, give medications, or serve meals, and trying to stay coherent long enough to do much of anything (read, speak, pick up the phone). Thankfully, we got the word out pretty fast that I couldn't handle phone calls unless they were very important. I remember on Tuesday throwing the phone off the hook and keeping it that way most of the day because it would always ring at the worst times.

The four days in the hospital provided a clearer picture of what my recovery would look like, and helped prepare me for that recovery. The surgeon who operated on my ankles said I would be in a wheelchair for three months, and crutches after that for an unknown period of time. Meanwhile, I got to practice getting in and out of my wheelchair using just my arms. I had strict orders to put no weight on my ankles for three months. Transferring myself in and out of cars, showers, and beds was an interesting learning experience. I must say that now, almost five weeks removed from the accident, I am quite good. It was slow at first.

So, the morphine had caused some issues with my bladder, but they released me anyway. My buddy Will, the med-student from the hike, picked me up and took me home. The ride home was painful for my ankles, and Will very heroically put up with my groans in the back seat. We got lost a couple times, and forgot to pick up a much-needed pain prescription, so that Thursday evening was a nightmare as my friends Stephen and Will tried to figure things out. When finally the pain was under control, late Friday morning, I was taken back to the emergency room because of my bladder. Morphine and Oxycodone fall into the category of narcotics. Narcotics freeze one's bladder. I also had a Urinary Tract Infection that they gave me yet another prescription for.

I filled the prescription and looked forward to the first weekend of relative freedom from the hospital. My parents visited that weekend and helped with a lot of errands that would get me settled in my new place. I guess I should say a bit about that transition. For the last year and a half, I had lived with a wonderful family in Gaithersburg, in their basement. This basement apartment was no longer an option for me in my wheelchair. I had already been planning on moving into the school at the apartment on June 1st. My school has a third floor apartment for a few of the teachers and the entire school is very handicapped accessible. My good friend Jason graciously chose to move out fifteen days earlier than arranged to accommodate my injured self. He even acted as nurse for the first few weeks ensuring that I was clean, comfortable, and well-fed.

So, when my mom and dad visited me, it was in my new apartment. They helped make my bathroom handicapped accessible, and brought me most of the necessities from my apartment. Additionally, it was just nice to see them and have them see the reality that I was OK. Thus, week one ended as I said goodbye to my parents (they had to return to school and work), and attempted to set up a schedule for myself in this new place and new situation.