So Lucky To Be Confused

I know, what is that photo anyway, you may be wondering.  Quite frankly, I still wonder ' exactly ' what it is.  I did finally figure out  tho, that it has to be a picture my camera snapped while I was a lot ' out.'  ( Normally I choose not to write about my aches, etc, but this has a real purpose, so tag along if you wish, or not. )

That's where I've been the past week, come Sunday afternoon, out of it, way, way out of it.

The colors were changing, my back and leg were feeling quite well since the epidural injections in my spine, so my dear Bill asked if I wanted to ride along to the cabin on the 4-wheeler to check the trail cameras.  Of course, I wanted to ride with.  We love the changing of the colored leaves and the nip in the air.

We were checking out the trail that passed the apple trees to see if  maybe, any of those survived this spring's frost.  They did not.

I was looking at every pretty tree in the woods but had not taken a picture since coming out of the woods.  The trail is a little rougher.  Besides that, I was not riding where I usually do.

  

Normally, I ride ON the seat with Bill, but this time I rode on the hunting cushion, ( which had a wooden bottom that was hitting me in the tailbone ), anyway, that was the reason I scooted up on the back rack where the cushion was strapped down for my GrandLoves to ride on.  ( That's changed too.  No more riding on the back cushion. )

  

Anyway, because the cushion base was irritating my ride, I sat ON it, thus, my feet and legs were stretched out with no support to hold me on if we hit a bump in the road.  I thought it would be OK.  We were moving at a snails pace that even I could have walked faster.

What happened next, happened SO fast, and I got knocked a little silly for a while.  Remember, we were on a rough section of what actually is part of a logging trail where trees were dragged out of the woods, so there were ruts, deep 3 ft. ruts and inclines to climb up and down.

  I WAS hanging on but got flipped upside down anyway.  Bill sounded half a mile away, as he was yelling, are you alright, are you alright, can you move, can you get up?

Finally, I was starting to come around to know where I was, I thought, but still could not figure out, why can't I hear Bill more clearly?  Then it dawned on me that my face was  in the dirt and the muffler of the 4-wheeler, was spitting exhaust all over me.  No wonder I couldn't hear him.  The 4x4 was still running, Bill holding the brakes tight, yelling, if you can move at all, you have to work yourself away from the back of the 4-wheeler.  He told me that there was no way he could let go of the brakes or turn off the machine without the tire of the 4x4 backing onto my head.  

It took awhile, tho I was terrified to move, I knew I had to do as he said if at all possible.  All of this took minutes but it seemed hours.  The pain in my neck and shoulders, I was afraid., but prayed it would be OK.  Bill kept telling me it would be OK. too.

Sure enough, as soon as Bill tried to move the machine, it rolled right back where I had just been laying and the tire Would have been on my head.  

When I flipped off, I did a back-flip, landing on my neck and right shoulder.  My lower back must have hit the pile of brush that was in that covered ditch because it still is doing alright.

Why I shared this incident is, Always go in immediately with a neck/head injury and get a doctor's opinion.  I did not go in for 4 days.  Stupid me, stupid me.  I thought it was more important to be around when the Potato crew showed up on Tues. to help pick spuds from the test field.   Oh, I was there but should not have been.

Nothing is more important than taking care of yourself, if not for you, for those that love you.  

By the 2nd day and again on the 3rd, I was throwing up, another sign of a serious brain injury.  Apparently, I'm one of the lucky ones.  I only ended up with a concussion but could have broken my neck.  Thanks God for the leaves and branches God had in that deep rut.  It did cushion the blow a bit.

I still have terrible headaches, see double sometimes, and have to be very careful how quickly I move.   It's a week already and I'm still nauseous.   Back to that snails pace.

 

For 2 more weeks, there will be no heavy lifting over the weight of my glass of water, and no traveling, no riding anything on uneven ground, no walking on uneven ground, no activity that involves jarring my brain any looser in my skull than it already is and no bending my head back or forward too far.

Apparently, after the xrays, doc decided I'm to seriously lay low, but not by the way of resting under a 4-wheeler.

Seriously, I had no helmet on, never have, but should.  

                 I was only hanging on with one hand, so Stop to take 

                   pictures.  

                 And,

ALWAYS Go to Urgent Care or the Emergency Room for proper treatment.  Don't be a fool, and try to treat yourself.  This required more that an ice bag and a bandage.  

DO Ride Safe   I will not be on here for awhile.  I just wanted to share the NO's and Wish you all safe returns.  Take it from one of the lucky ones and Be Careful Out There.

BlessYourHeart