It started as a holiday from our holiday, coming
down to Perth to celebrate our birthdays. I had my celebration on Friday
night, and on Saturday we went to the Moore River for Greg's and Jaimie's,
where the boys had built a waterslide down a massive sand dune. The
boys had been playing on it for hours without incident, before I became the
unluckiest person to ever go down it.
I remember how much fun it was to slide down, coming over the lip and realising I was not going very fast, and the water coming up to meet me. The photo shows me stretching my arms out, but they clearly didn't do much, because the next thing I remember was hitting the crown of my head very suddenly and solidly on the sandy bottom. As I popped up out of the water, I noticed my arms and legs were working, to my great relief. If I could move my arms and legs, how bad could it possibly be? I flopped to the shore and tried to get up, but the back of my neck hurt so badly that I just lay down in the shallows. Greg and other people had rushed over but all I wanted to do was lay down.
Other people sprung into action, including a first year paramedic student who had witnessed the accident. He immediately took over, immobilizing my head and keeping me stable and strapping me to a surfboard so I couldn't move. He also did some basic neurological tests, touching me at various points and asking if I could feel it, and getting me to move my fingers and toes. In the meantime, someone called an ambulance. At the time I thought it was overkill since I probably just had concussion. I am invincible, you see.
Due to my condition I didn't have to opportunity to really observe all of the amazing people who worked together to get me out of there safely. The paramedic student, the surf lifesaver/paramedic and the girl holding the umbrella to keep the sun out of my eyes, and the guys who got people to stop making waves on the river, the person who called the ambulance, and the one who went and escorted the ambulance, and the volunteer paramedics holidaying in Lancelin, all helped to make my life a little better. The people who stayed out of the way and let things happen helped in their own way as well. Greg's presence was a huge comfort, and I was so grateful that he came with me all the way to the hospital and kept me company the whole time
It still didn't feel very serious even after arriving at the Emergency Department in Joondalup. We were expecting to hear that it was not a big deal or a very lucky escape, and I might be walking out of there that night. When the results came back from the X-ray and CAT scan to say I had a serious fracture, I was disappointed but not too concerned. The doctor in Emergency downplayed it, and I was convinced it would only take a couple of weeks in a neck brace, and I would be fine to return to Darwin for the duration of the treatment.
It took two days to have the MRI performed which finally let us know the extent of the damage. I had really done a mischief on myself: four fractured vertebrae, including one fractured in the front and back, and extensive tissue damage. The fact that my spinal cord was untouched is a minor miracle. Despite being the unluckiest person in Moore River that day, I'm a very lucky girl.
I remember how much fun it was to slide down, coming over the lip and realising I was not going very fast, and the water coming up to meet me. The photo shows me stretching my arms out, but they clearly didn't do much, because the next thing I remember was hitting the crown of my head very suddenly and solidly on the sandy bottom. As I popped up out of the water, I noticed my arms and legs were working, to my great relief. If I could move my arms and legs, how bad could it possibly be? I flopped to the shore and tried to get up, but the back of my neck hurt so badly that I just lay down in the shallows. Greg and other people had rushed over but all I wanted to do was lay down.
Other people sprung into action, including a first year paramedic student who had witnessed the accident. He immediately took over, immobilizing my head and keeping me stable and strapping me to a surfboard so I couldn't move. He also did some basic neurological tests, touching me at various points and asking if I could feel it, and getting me to move my fingers and toes. In the meantime, someone called an ambulance. At the time I thought it was overkill since I probably just had concussion. I am invincible, you see.
Due to my condition I didn't have to opportunity to really observe all of the amazing people who worked together to get me out of there safely. The paramedic student, the surf lifesaver/paramedic and the girl holding the umbrella to keep the sun out of my eyes, and the guys who got people to stop making waves on the river, the person who called the ambulance, and the one who went and escorted the ambulance, and the volunteer paramedics holidaying in Lancelin, all helped to make my life a little better. The people who stayed out of the way and let things happen helped in their own way as well. Greg's presence was a huge comfort, and I was so grateful that he came with me all the way to the hospital and kept me company the whole time
It still didn't feel very serious even after arriving at the Emergency Department in Joondalup. We were expecting to hear that it was not a big deal or a very lucky escape, and I might be walking out of there that night. When the results came back from the X-ray and CAT scan to say I had a serious fracture, I was disappointed but not too concerned. The doctor in Emergency downplayed it, and I was convinced it would only take a couple of weeks in a neck brace, and I would be fine to return to Darwin for the duration of the treatment.
It took two days to have the MRI performed which finally let us know the extent of the damage. I had really done a mischief on myself: four fractured vertebrae, including one fractured in the front and back, and extensive tissue damage. The fact that my spinal cord was untouched is a minor miracle. Despite being the unluckiest person in Moore River that day, I'm a very lucky girl.
 |
| Laying around in Joondalup Private Hospital, enjoying the view of the ceiling. |
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