What’s in the box? Why chocolate birthday cake of course! With blue ribbon tied round it. I wish I had baked it myself but it was delicious and made John’s birthday. He is partially sighted (from birth) and now C2 Quadrepligic and was bed ridden at the time (due to previous bedsore breakdowns from not being turned enough. Legal advice sought) He can sit up for a few hours a day now which is great! Aren’t birthdays fun!

Take care of yourself and family
and thank you for a wonderful website. When I was lost I found myself by chance here and it made me feel that at last people who know how it really is. It was very comforting. I told John about it but at the moment he has not been using his commputer via his carers as they are not allowed to do that unless they want to or something to that effect. I am not sure as John never tells me anything except “I’m alright!” And his positive thinking is seeing him get stronger. I particularly love the physio team who put him on a quad bike at the Nursing home and standing table and work his arms with some sort of machine. For the most part John is on this journey alone as he rarely gets visitors and we still have the Town (where I live) and City situation where he lives. The snow presently has disrupted railway lines and bus routes so I really need to find the courage to get behind the wheel again of a car since I was a front seat passenger in a head on collision two decades ago. Seeing Johns determination to try his best I feel ashamed I don’t have similar drive. I also can’t believe I didn’t break any bones in that accident (hairline fractures) despite 4 cars being written off. I still feel constant pain, albeit manageable with paracetomal and yet my younger brother John fell off a chair (office type with wheels) and breaks his neck! Life isn’t fair and a lottery in my opinion and I just hope one day Science continues to have breakthroughs and God is watching and helping.

Kindest regards
Andrea

Kyla, you can ask anything quadriplegic here, or start a post in our forum if you like.

best regards
Andrea

Thought I would leave a photo (the first ever) of John and myself last Christmas. It will be his fifth year of tetraplegia at C2 since his fall in July 2007. He lost everything, his home, his former life, his friends and his family (most of us) but he has one thing, his mind and for that I am truly grateful. He regained his voice after six months in intensive care (which was thought would not happen) and since then we talk everyday on the phone. I wish I could visit more often but he is the countryside and I live in the town. I cannot move there but I follow his progress. He has progressed to the electric bike and standing table in Physio. All these things we didn’t think possible as he was bedridden for many years due to his bedsores on his spine he got in intensive care because they couldn’t move him due to heart attacks he was getting …but God is good. I still believe one day technology and God will find ways to help all stages of spinal cord injury. I think in this century this will happen. Especially with the recent breakthroughs and tireless scientific research. There’s hope.

Andrea.

How are you today? I hope you are pulling along and most of all I hope you find peace of mind. Your post touched me because my brother too cannot sit up for long periods and had to abandon a university course, or at the least put on hold though he tried his best, there were other problems like lack of tuturiol support. It appeared it was difficult to find teachers who would travel to his nursing home despite it being within easy reach of railway stations and free car parking. The money offered as salary was good too..but apparently not good enough. More than average wage as in UK he got a grant to help with university fees. Anyway he wanted to also start his own business as he had experience in helping friends start up and maintain theirs. All I can say is don’t give up and if you believe in God please pray. For years I was just too shocked and mentally exhausted to pray for my brother. I was angry even with God, with life. It affected me greatly as I am his only visitor as his friends and family disappeared. Our parents were not here because they have died and his brothers were unable to keep up the contact apart from christmas and birthday. He also wanted to marry and have children but now it does not seem possible but it may still be. One thing though I know he never gives up hope and I think someday John will get back on track and back to computers which he loves so much. There is so much you can do with technology as you know and I just think perhaps you need time to heal more. You have your brain, the best and largest organ (I think?!) because at the Home where John resides, as I have no choice, there isn’t funding to pay for 2 24 hour carers and he is fragile, I know that John thinking positive has helped tremendously. He puts on a happy face and I am actually beginning to think maybe he is. Having adjusted to his new way of life. Please, please go easy on yourself. Listen to some lovely music, watch a few films if you can. I will pray too for you. I hope you get back to work one day if that’s what you really want. Take care of yourself. Andrea