Mark42
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Thread starter- Joined
- Oct 8, 2003
- Messages
- 9,334
Someone mentioned to me at work this past Friday how they remembered hearing about a catastrophic accident I was in and how well I have recovered. It has been 16 years, and to tell you the truth, this is the first time in 16 years that the day of the accident has passed (Oct 17, 1994) without me even thinking about it.
I was nearly killed by a drunk driver. Full head on collision, and re-enactments by state troopers showed that the drunk was doing well over 60 mph in a 25 mph zone. He came over a crest on a turn, became air born, and landed in my grill.
I was flown by helicopter to an emergency room where they patched me up and saved my life. I had to endure 7 hours of surgery to re-attach my face to my skull (still have loss of sensation in places), 2 follow up surgeries to get my nose right, and multiple sessions of laser surgery months later to remove scaring and a few months of physical rehab to get walking again.
The real issue was the docs wanted to amputate my right foot above the ankle due to the extensive trauma. I refused to sign the surgery form, and after 3 weeks finally found a surgeon who was able to repair my foot and ankle. Its always a problem, and walking can be painful, no more jumping or running. But it is there and it works.
I thought I would never forget that October evening and the months that followed. The horror of seeing yourself look even scarier than Frankenstein's Monster due to grotesque swelling and scaring on the face I was afraid would never leave.
Time has passed, and so the memory has started to slip away. It will always be with me, as I can hardly take a step without being reminded that I have a permanent injury. The anxiety attacks, and post traumatic stress issues are now a thing of the past. I am my cosmetic surgeons poster boy for new repair techniques, including nerve re-attachment in the face. He has asked for follow up photos every year until about two years ago. I am happy to let him photograph me, especially if it will help others. I still have the photos he took before doing the surgery. There I lay with tubes and clear plastic covering my bare skull as my face lies inside out in a pan off to the side, just attached to my head by one side.
I used to stay inside with the lights off on Halloween for years because one Halloween evening a store clerk thought I was wearing costume makeup the year after the accident and said what a great costume I had (was wearing a black wide brim hat and full length black leather jacket). That stuck with me a while. I rarely left the house without cover up makeup after that. Wore makeup designed for burn victims for about 3 or 4 years, and on special social occasions. Got pretty good at it.
Seeing the ads on TV about young veterans who have lost limbs and more makes me reflect on my own situation. I have great respect for those who work hard to recover from their injuries. It was not easy for me, it must be 10x worse for veterans.
So... as they say time heals all wounds. Sort of. I feel comfortable with myself. That is all that matters at this time.
Feel free to share this with some you know in a similar situation.
I was nearly killed by a drunk driver. Full head on collision, and re-enactments by state troopers showed that the drunk was doing well over 60 mph in a 25 mph zone. He came over a crest on a turn, became air born, and landed in my grill.
I was flown by helicopter to an emergency room where they patched me up and saved my life. I had to endure 7 hours of surgery to re-attach my face to my skull (still have loss of sensation in places), 2 follow up surgeries to get my nose right, and multiple sessions of laser surgery months later to remove scaring and a few months of physical rehab to get walking again.
The real issue was the docs wanted to amputate my right foot above the ankle due to the extensive trauma. I refused to sign the surgery form, and after 3 weeks finally found a surgeon who was able to repair my foot and ankle. Its always a problem, and walking can be painful, no more jumping or running. But it is there and it works.
I thought I would never forget that October evening and the months that followed. The horror of seeing yourself look even scarier than Frankenstein's Monster due to grotesque swelling and scaring on the face I was afraid would never leave.
Time has passed, and so the memory has started to slip away. It will always be with me, as I can hardly take a step without being reminded that I have a permanent injury. The anxiety attacks, and post traumatic stress issues are now a thing of the past. I am my cosmetic surgeons poster boy for new repair techniques, including nerve re-attachment in the face. He has asked for follow up photos every year until about two years ago. I am happy to let him photograph me, especially if it will help others. I still have the photos he took before doing the surgery. There I lay with tubes and clear plastic covering my bare skull as my face lies inside out in a pan off to the side, just attached to my head by one side.
I used to stay inside with the lights off on Halloween for years because one Halloween evening a store clerk thought I was wearing costume makeup the year after the accident and said what a great costume I had (was wearing a black wide brim hat and full length black leather jacket). That stuck with me a while. I rarely left the house without cover up makeup after that. Wore makeup designed for burn victims for about 3 or 4 years, and on special social occasions. Got pretty good at it.
Seeing the ads on TV about young veterans who have lost limbs and more makes me reflect on my own situation. I have great respect for those who work hard to recover from their injuries. It was not easy for me, it must be 10x worse for veterans.
So... as they say time heals all wounds. Sort of. I feel comfortable with myself. That is all that matters at this time.
Feel free to share this with some you know in a similar situation.
