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Got the scare of my life recently


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Haven't been active for a bit as real life got all serious on me. But let me start by saying my daughter is ok, no broken bones or life threatening injuries.

 

But I got the scare of my life a few weeks ago. She was going to school and was involved in a car accident. The other driver cut in front of her and she had no chance to react.

 

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So I get to work and get a call from one of her teachers. Accident happened just before her school and the teacher was on her way there too. She was the first to help out my daughter. At first I thought she fell or something at school but slowly it dawned on me that she was in a car accident.

 

She let Robin talk to me on the phone for a bit and I could understand nothing. She was so scared and crying that she couldn't speak. Now I'm freaking out but in the back of my mind, I know she's 'ok'. She was good enough to at least try to talk to me.

 

So I haul arse to hospital. I beat the ambulance by 25 minutes easy. So I spent what felt like an eternity waiting for ambulance to arrive. I finally get to see her. The poor thing, she was sooooo upset. The left side of her face was all swollen and bruised, a burn on her left cheek from airbag (didn't know this could happen, but I guess it's a common occurence), bloody nose and lips, bruised chest, and both legs badly swollen, especially the knees which were already turning purple. And a couple cuts on her hands, though we're not sure how she got those

 

She ended with a concussion, 2 neck vetebrae that shifted and 2 badly sprained knees. Had a plethora of tests done, but we were finally able to leave hospital after about 12 hours. And this is why I think my daughter is an alien....while we were waiting in between xrays/cat scan etc.....she was doing her homework while on the bed! I told her it could wait but I think it helped her concentrate on something else...sort of like therapy for her.

 

Right now we're doing therapy for her concussion and neck. Next week will probably start therapy on her legs once the swelling is finally gone. It is going down but just seems it's taking forever. There's an outside chance she'll need neck surgery :o

 

But she was lucky...she stopped at a coffee shop that is just down the street from school. When she got back in her car after getting coffee to drive maybe a 1/4 mile to school, she didn't put her seat belt back on. She always wears it and I've constantly preached it to her. All it takes is one time and it got her. Very painful lesson to learn, but I doubt she'll ever make the mistake again. Considering the damage done to car, she is very fortunate.

 

The car is a total loss. And her smart phone, tablet and laptop also were ruined. So once all her friends starting hearing about it and trying to contact her, they couldn't. And for one friend it was very traumatic. Her best friend Autumn also goes to school with her and passed by the accident a few minutes after it happened. She thought it was Robin's car but wasn't sure and continued to school. Once at school she realizes it was Robin and then overhears a conversation that someone saw the medics pulling out a body bag. Well these 2 are the best of best friends and Autumn freaks out. She can't contact Robin and got so upset her mom had to get her. She came down to hospital trying to see her and that's when a nurse asked if I would allow someone to see Robin. Once I knew who it was, I immediately brought her down to room. Poor girl was an emotional wreck.

 

Once I got Robin's phone fixed a few days later, there must have been 300-400 texts just from that morning from all her friends. 100 just from Autumn. She has a lot of good good friends. Had a least 50 swing by house and her boyfriend has spent every moment he can with her. Even helping out with rides to all these appointments.

 

I'm just glad I talked to her before I saw the pics of her car. They were up on internet within 2 hours. Also kudos to the school principal. He rushed down there as soon as he heard one of his students was in an accident and stayed with her and helped calm her down until she went for an ambulance ride.

 

And Robin, being an alien, only missed 4 days of school. while she doesn't handle stress very well, she's a lot tougher, resilient than she looks. So at the end of the day I just count my blessings, because it could have easily been much much worse. She is my 'little everything' and I would be lost without her.

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I read your story and then just sat staring at the screen, at a loss for words.

 

The only thing that really matters is that she's ok.

 

On a side note, you've earned a few grey hairs from this, I'm sure.

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I read your story and then just sat staring at the screen, at a loss for words.

 

The only thing that really matters is that she's ok.

 

On a side note, you've earned a few grey hairs from this, I'm sure.

Oh big time....plus my hair has been thinning out the last several years :( If I had seen that pic before knowing how she was, I think all of it would have fallen out right then and there

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I hope your daughter will recover fully.

I know the feeling with kids and accidents.

Few years back our second was driving downhill with her bicycle when suddenly a car door opened. On the other side a truck was driving uphill. She tried to jump over the door to avoid a head collision (she had a helmet) and nearly did it, just a single contact with her lower leg.

A red cross person and the police asked if all would be okay and she said yes while in shock and there were no injuries visible at this moment. I was in (nearby) Netherlands when the phone rang and hearing 'Your daughter had an accident.' I think my average speed on the way home was above 200km/h in average. Even the headset phoned there were no big injuries I was full of adrenaline and couldn't really drive slower.

My wife was on a doctors meeting at university and drove home too. When undressing our daughter there was not much but a small cut below her thick winter bicycle trousers. The trousers stopped the bleeding, but for too long and the skin was already dead at 2 square inches in the 2 hours after the accicent.

Surgeries, hide transplantations, necrotic skin, more surgeries, scar treatment, ... Luckily we had a very good insurance which did most of the money fight at court. The truck having a camera and a black box also helped. But who had to pay the surgeries, the one who opened the door, the police or the red cross for not doing a real check at a hospital, ... Our insurance did all the stupid money fights for us. We were busy to manage 4 other kids and the special hospital for hide transplantations being on the other side of germany.

 

Seeing a friend in a crashed car can be really shocking. Our oldest is in volunteer firefighters like me. Once we were called for clean up and oil removing and when we arrived she knew the car and the boy who normally drove it. One boy dead and one in hospital and police didn't know who yet.

Lately the best friend from Kindergarten days of our second daughter died, hidden aneurysm in the brain. Speaking with friends at school helps, shared pain is half pain.

 

We hope to protect our kids from everything, but this is just not possible.

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First, I must say that I am relieved to know that your daughter is going to be okay; I do pray that her neck hasn't sustained any significant, permanent damage. Also, I can only imagine what you have been dealing with, yet I have some understanding, because I too have a daughter. She will be attending a University later this year and she has her drivers permit and has been doing accompanied driving for quite some time. What happened to your family recently was truly a living nightmare. It's a blessing that she wasn't hurt more than she was and you now know how strong a spirit she has within and how resilient she is. It's also wonderful that she now knows who her real friends are and has discovered that the school staff truly cares about their students. It is difficult to understand and make sense of why things like this happen in our lives and what good can ever come from them after we assess the way our lives have been affected. Perhaps, having the knowledge that you haven't lost your daughter, she's going to be alright, and finding that you are all stronger having dealt with such a thing may be helpful.

 

I too, had to cope with some serious adversity recently. My father died and the very next week my young horse Gingersnap was injured and could not get up on her feet. After finding her the next morning still on the ground, struggling to breathe, I had to end her life. It was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. Still, I cannot fully sympathize with the ordeal you and your family overcame. You all have true courage and inner strength; I greatly admire and appreciate that.

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I'm glad to hear everything turned out alright (within reason) Knuckles, it could have been so much worse. My wife tripped over a broken sidewalk 3 weeks ago and banged her knee quite badly and has been off work 3 weeks and the doctor says she will be off at least another 4 weeks for it to heal properly. It's amazing considering the state of the car that your daughter recovered enough to return to school within a week!

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Best of luck to you and your family Knuckles. I hope your daughter has no recurring problems once everything has healed.

 

Do you know if the other driver was charged? It might make a difference to your future insurance payments.

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I thi nk the worst thing are the thoughts you have got (as dad/mom/...) between the moment you got to know something has happened to your child until that one, when you realize that is not that worst at all.

 

wish your family all the best!

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Haven't been active for a bit as real life got all serious on me. But let me start by saying my daughter is ok, no broken bones or life threatening injuries.

 

But I got the scare of my life a few weeks ago. She was going to school and was involved in a car accident. The other driver cut in front of her and she had no chance to react.

 

attachicon.gifcar-2.jpg

 

So I get to work and get a call from one of her teachers. Accident happened just before her school and the teacher was on her way there too. She was the first to help out my daughter. At first I thought she fell or something at school but slowly it dawned on me that she was in a car accident.

 

She let Robin talk to me on the phone for a bit and I could understand nothing. She was so scared and crying that she couldn't speak. Now I'm freaking out but in the back of my mind, I know she's 'ok'. She was good enough to at least try to talk to me.

 

So I haul arse to hospital. I beat the ambulance by 25 minutes easy. So I spent what felt like an eternity waiting for ambulance to arrive. I finally get to see her. The poor thing, she was sooooo upset. The left side of her face was all swollen and bruised, a burn on her left cheek from airbag (didn't know this could happen, but I guess it's a common occurence), bloody nose and lips, bruised chest, and both legs badly swollen, especially the knees which were already turning purple. And a couple cuts on her hands, though we're not sure how she got those

 

She ended with a concussion, 2 neck vetebrae that shifted and 2 badly sprained knees. Had a plethora of tests done, but we were finally able to leave hospital after about 12 hours. And this is why I think my daughter is an alien....while we were waiting in between xrays/cat scan etc.....she was doing her homework while on the bed! I told her it could wait but I think it helped her concentrate on something else...sort of like therapy for her.

 

Right now we're doing therapy for her concussion and neck. Next week will probably start therapy on her legs once the swelling is finally gone. It is going down but just seems it's taking forever. There's an outside chance she'll need neck surgery :o

 

But she was lucky...she stopped at a coffee shop that is just down the street from school. When she got back in her car after getting coffee to drive maybe a 1/4 mile to school, she didn't put her seat belt back on. She always wears it and I've constantly preached it to her. All it takes is one time and it got her. Very painful lesson to learn, but I doubt she'll ever make the mistake again. Considering the damage done to car, she is very fortunate.

 

The car is a total loss. And her smart phone, tablet and laptop also were ruined. So once all her friends starting hearing about it and trying to contact her, they couldn't. And for one friend it was very traumatic. Her best friend Autumn also goes to school with her and passed by the accident a few minutes after it happened. She thought it was Robin's car but wasn't sure and continued to school. Once at school she realizes it was Robin and then overhears a conversation that someone saw the medics pulling out a body bag. Well these 2 are the best of best friends and Autumn freaks out. She can't contact Robin and got so upset her mom had to get her. She came down to hospital trying to see her and that's when a nurse asked if I would allow someone to see Robin. Once I knew who it was, I immediately brought her down to room. Poor girl was an emotional wreck.

 

Once I got Robin's phone fixed a few days later, there must have been 300-400 texts just from that morning from all her friends. 100 just from Autumn. She has a lot of good good friends. Had a least 50 swing by house and her boyfriend has spent every moment he can with her. Even helping out with rides to all these appointments.

 

I'm just glad I talked to her before I saw the pics of her car. They were up on internet within 2 hours. Also kudos to the school principal. He rushed down there as soon as he heard one of his students was in an accident and stayed with her and helped calm her down until she went for an ambulance ride.

 

And Robin, being an alien, only missed 4 days of school. while she doesn't handle stress very well, she's a lot tougher, resilient than she looks. So at the end of the day I just count my blessings, because it could have easily been much much worse. She is my 'little everything' and I would be lost without her.

Reading it all out like instead of on messenger with you really shares and imparts the terror that parents go through with all their children

glad you girls safe, and you're still hale friend :hugs:

now... im gonna go give my mom a hug

:heart:

 

gogo

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Thx guys...I do appreciate the responses and your own stories...

 

@Hooyaah I don't know if I could ever put down an animal/pet myself...oh I've had to have a few older dogs put to sleep but never by my hand. I has to be a very upsetting/traumatic thing to do....my condolences :(

 

@ Podgie...sorry to hear about the better half...hope she recovers quickly and fully (rehab is awful)

 

@ Doromil...I really didn't get that gut wrenching feeling...The first thing the teacher said was that she 'is fine' so I never got the chance to imagine all the possible worst case scenarios...that and talking to her immediately (well listen to her try to talk and cry at same time) also allievated some worries....I knew she was ok enough to try to talk to me....though seeing her at hospital got me all choked up...her face was soo swollen and red (and my daughter is not one of those 'pretty' criers...she looks like a mess when she does)...was soooo hard not to look upset and try to be positive. Usually when something like this happens, I will joke a bit to relieve some of the stress...So I actually said "Look at the bright side...it wasn't prom week!". Yeah I said that :P

 

@ Spock...yeah the other guy is 100% at fault....already knew he was but had to wait for official police report....sometimes they assign a percentage of fault....so it could have been 70% for him and 30% for my daughter being at fault. But he cut in front of her, driving into her lane and she didn't have time to stop....she's a little blurry about what exactly happened, but she doesn't even remember having time to press the brake pedal.

 

@ Chattius...Glad your daughter was able to fully recover...I'm with you on the speed race to hospital....don't know how fast I went and can't even remember driving there. Just remember waiting and waiting for ambulance to arrive. My insurance also seems to be stepping up and not contesting anything. His insurance (which will end up paying for it all) has also been very helpful so far. So I really have no distractions and can just worry about Robin...so far I haven't had any problems with anything on the legal/insurance side.

 

@ Gogo..yeah mom's are awesome....she has helped me so much in being a single dad...I could never ever repay her for everything she has done...first person I called...I didn't even make it to hospital before calling her....think she was maybe 10 minutes behind me getting there....the boyfriend maybe another 30 minutes...he would have been there sooner but went to her school first.....My one sister that lives nearby was next and then her best friend....must have had 20 people visit that night at home including my other sisters who live a couple hours away.

 

Right now it's therapy, therapy and more therapy...she has it every day except the weekend...she's now able to walk without crutches but still needs the knee braces, and she gets tired quickly walking...but every day is a little better than the one before. Still no idea on the neck....guess we're going to do therapy for a bit and then if no improvement, we'll discuss other options at that point.

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Thx guys...I do appreciate the responses and your own stories...

 

@Hooyaah I don't know if I could ever put down an animal/pet myself...oh I've had to have a few older dogs put to sleep but never by my hand. I has to be a very upsetting/traumatic thing to do....my condolences :(

 

Right now it's therapy, therapy and more therapy...she has it every day except the weekend...she's now able to walk without crutches but still needs the knee braces, and she gets tired quickly walking...but every day is a little better than the one before. Still no idea on the neck....guess we're going to do therapy for a bit and then if no improvement, we'll discuss other options at that point.

 

Thanks for your kind words, Knuckles. The fact that she (Gingersnap) was struggling to breathe did not make it any easier. It just made it the right thing to do.

 

I surely do hope that your daughter continues to improve. Neck injuries can be difficult if the cervical vertebrae are pinched or suffer misalignment or there is disc damage. There are also the muscles which may be damaged and may form scar tissue. This tissue may impede free movement and cause pain. Massage therapy may help and a consultation with a chiropractor may be as well if your physician gives the okay. Please keep us apprised of her progress.

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  • 4 months later...

Well I can finally say she's close to being 100% again. All physical therapy just finished and she's out of the concussion protocol. She was diagnosed with a stage 2 concussion (4 stages, 1 being the worst). Took a couple months to get down to stage 3 and finally in June she was declared concussion free.

 

Bad timing as she was a senior (but she graduated and was able to maintain her grades...still on National Honor Society). Part of the concussion treatment was no tests, quizzes, homework etc; 1/2 days at school and no working/driving at all. Somehow she made it through all that and maintained an 'A' grade.

 

Been a long stressful year so far for her. So she has decided to take a year off and start college in 2018. Not what I want but I totally understand. Will still go to community college here and work on her math grades. We got a bunch of scholarship money but she just missed out on a lot more. So she's hoping improving her grades and working with disabled children this year will help out.

 

Still waiting on lawsuit and stuff...guess it will be a while before any settlement happens. At least my insurance paid off the car. So she was without a vehicle for awhile. I was going to sell my truck and upgrade. My old truck only had 35,000 miles on it and was in mint condition so I just gave it to her. Been so busy at work I've been driving work van home lately so wasn't even using truck much. So using work van now. At some point I'll buy a new one.

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Well I can finally say she's close to being 100% again. All physical therapy just finished and she's out of the concussion protocol. She was diagnosed with a stage 2 concussion (4 stages, 1 being the worst). Took a couple months to get down to stage 3 and finally in June she was declared concussion free.

 

Bad timing as she was a senior (but she graduated and was able to maintain her grades...still on National Honor Society). Part of the concussion treatment was no tests, quizzes, homework etc; 1/2 days at school and no working/driving at all. Somehow she made it through all that and maintained an 'A' grade.

 

Been a long stressful year so far for her. So she has decided to take a year off and start college in 2018. Not what I want but I totally understand. Will still go to community college here and work on her math grades. We got a bunch of scholarship money but she just missed out on a lot more. So she's hoping improving her grades and working with disabled children this year will help out.

 

Still waiting on lawsuit and stuff...guess it will be a while before any settlement happens. At least my insurance paid off the car. So she was without a vehicle for awhile. I was going to sell my truck and upgrade. My old truck only had 35,000 miles on it and was in mint condition so I just gave it to her. Been so busy at work I've been driving work van home lately so wasn't even using truck much. So using work van now. At some point I'll buy a new one.

Robb, thats so sad to hear about the time she's having, but I'm so glad she's finding all these work arounds and is making her way through, especially after the concussions!

Of course you're there, and this is the pillar she's needed and is needing to keep forward on her road and find that incredible momentum she had. It will come back, you and her are working so hard!

:hugs:

gogo

 

p.s. message me for gogo spam on Facebook! :heart:

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Been a long stressful year so far for her. So she has decided to take a year off and start college in 2018. Not what I want but I totally understand.

She should enjoy that time (probably doing nothing)! After that experiene it is the best.

We are also discussing with our daughter her future atm, because she doesn't has got a real plan for her life (well..travelling around the world is her plan! :D ). But if there would happen the same to her I would grant her some frre space to reset everything and start from scratch

Edited by Dorimil
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Don't know the differences between the countries, ...

A good friend of my daughter was handicapped and in a chair wheel until he died. When she was visiting him she was working with disabled children at the place together with him. She got a document which states IF she would want to become a teacher she wouldn't have to do 3 month praxis training at a school.

I can do equivalent documents for people who work with kids in youth fire fighters if they want to become a teacher, or when they do repairs to replace a praxis quarter year for possible engineers. So you can to some degree combine sport/social activities to save time at university.

@Dorimil: Living countryside we have an au pair girl every year to replace a big sister with a car. Being au pair in another country can be an experience for life time too. But she has to be 18 or even 21 depending on country.

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she is thinking of that (au-pair or travel & work). the problem is her age...she will be 17 when getting her graduation next year, so she will be limited in her choices. atm she is thinking of doing some holiday for two months, Florida or South Africa, because there are friends of her with own houses/families and then starting university in September after that. Her problem is, what to study! ;)

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"Her problem is, what to study!" -> Statistics.

Manipulating Creative interpreting of data and diagrams is very good paid. If she lacks criminal energy, statistics are not only wanted by politicians but also by banks, brokers and insurances. Hmm, seems you always need criminal energy with a master in statistics.

 

Currently my

oldest finished bachelor in arboristic. She was interested in it ever since she was 9 and watching how an old tree was cured/repaired by filling the holes with concrete. The family from my fathers side is all in wood working. But she decided to fo her master not in arboristic but in forest economy. She jumped two classes so loosing a year for the change is not that bad.

second plans to be a doc in artificial limbs and does an apprentice in wood working while visiting a full day dual school in polytechnique. Wish started when one of her classmates lost an lower arm because of cancer.

third plans to be the first music star with the electric zither ( My brother played in a punk band ), alternatively becoming an instrument maker (her godparent is a friend of mine who studied maths with me and now builds music instruments)

the twins both just started school and want to become docs like her mom.

It is very strange that they know so early what they will be, because I decided to study maths when I was 26 ;) And given that I got my job because I learned explosives while my 8 years at army and cobined with a math degree - experience outside what you learn at university is also important.

When I was assistant teacher at university and doing corrections on tests... the students in agriculture often did better tests in economics than the students doing economics as their main direction. They grew up on farms and learned early that a modern farm has to be run like a small company. An experience the specialists lacked.

So I am happy that my kids combine theory and practice as long as possible. Noone knows what life will bring.

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