Car accident

I have had a few things going on since I last updated the blog. Notably, I was a guest speaker twice for the Creative Arts in Therapy program at Drexel University. The first time I spoke about resilience and body image in cancer patients and disabled individuals for 2nd year Dance/ Movement therapy students. The second time, I spoke immediately after physical therapy about my experiences with cancer and disability to medical art therapy students. I still haven't processed the experiences, though I enjoyed myself.

This Sunday, my sister Athena drove to Philly to help me recover from chemo. She helped clean up my apartment and set up my Christmas tree. On Monday, I ran a slight fever and had a sore throat so I reported my symptoms to the oncology office. They asked me to come in Tuesday at noon. I cancelled my physical therapy appointment for illness.

After the appointment, we waited for antibiotics before heading to New Jeraey, to my parents' house. At first there was lots of traffic, then it thinned out. I kept falling asleep. Then, we were making good time on one the smaller curvy roads.

Suddenly, I heard Athena shout. We were not on the road anymore but sliding up th embankment and into a phone poll. My face felt like I just got slapped. People immediately stopped to help us. Athena seemed fine and remarkably calm. She left the car.

Eventually, I got myself out of the car by taking off my prosthesis and sliding across the drivers side. The front end was smashed in and all of out qitbags had gone off. With help, I crutched over to sit in a police officer's car. My back syltqrted to hurt.

When the ambulance came, the emts strapped me to a back boar which was very painful. We went to the nearest hospital where I repeatedly gave my extensive medical history and waited for morphine. I had trouble breathing on my back and kept trying to curl in a ball, against medical advice. When I left for the ct scan (@ 7:30), dad and Athena headed to the car to get stuff.

The doctor cam back in the room and explained that I fractured my L1 vertebra. She also saw that my right lung was collapsed though she was uncomfortable treating it because of the cancer. I got transferred to another hospital where they immediately stuck a tube in my chest to re inflate my lung. 

I have been in a fair amount of pain since. My parents, Athena, and Ken visited me today. It hurts to breathe but the back brace helps. My eye is swollen shut and my vieiion is blurry.

Please send me good thoughs and thank you for your prayers and wishes.