Very Thankful

Monday March 14th was one of the scariest nights in my life. I was driving home from picking out a prom tux. On the way home I started nodding off, but I was so close that I figured I could make it and it wouldn't be worth pulling in a gas station to get a coffee or take a power nap.  Less than a half mile from home I caught myself heading towards the ditch. I turned the wheel the opposite way but overcorrected. Within a split second my car swerved back, started fish tailing and then shot into the ditch. As I was heading down the steep embankment all that when through my mind was "Don't flip!  Please, don't flip. I don't have the money for a new car!" I hit the ditch around 60mph and as my car started flipping I remember thinking "Crap how am I going to get around without my wheels?" As my car flipped over, my head was like a pinball in a pinball machine hitting everything possible it could reach. Thankfully the car stopped right side up. As the dust cleared I felt blood streaming down my face and the back of my head was throbbing. I took off my heavy jacket and climbed out the driver's side window. I immediately  called my dad to tell him what happened and started walking to the neighbors to get help. By the time I got to the road a car approached and I waved it down. The driver and his daughter were very nice.  He gave me  something to hold pressure on my cut and told me to sit down immediately. Soon after my dad arrived  he was about to take me to the ER until I told him my head was hurting; he called 911 right away. Miraculously,  two trauma ER nurses where driving by and stopped to help.  The only reason I can think of why they came instantly upon the scene of my accident is  that God sent them my way. They had me lie down.  While one stabilized my head, the other started asking me the usual awareness questions. Within several minutes the fire trucks and ambulance arrived. They put a head and neck brace on, placed me on a backboard, and put me in the ambulance. I was rushed to the trauma center and was given a CT scan. Every few minutes a nurse would walk in telling me the CT scans looked good and that I probably had a small concussion. About an hour later a nurse came in and told me I had fractured my C1 and C2 vertebrae. It is a miracle that I could still move all my limbs and was not dead. I realized God was definitely watching over me because I could have done permanent damage to my neck as I crawled out of my car and started walking down the road.  The neurologist  came in and explained that I either needed surgery or had to wear a halo apparatus.  The doctor said that I would be better off with the halo because with the surgery I potentially wouldn't have full neck movement and would have arthritis at a young age. I decided to go with the halo. To make a long story short, they put the halo on and I was kept in the hospital a few more days.  The pain was so intense I found myself pressing the morphine button every six minutes. I have been home since last Thursday and have been feeling better each day. I still spend my days and nights confined to the Lay-Z-Boy.  I am beginning to spend time on the computer and playing my X-box. I have to have the halo on for two to three months and after that I should be as good as new. I am thankful to be alive and still be able to pursue my dream of becoming a jockey if I get accepted into the program.