This is my car, Moby. I bought Moby on June 30, 2011. On September 9, 2011 this car, guided by God’s hand, saved my life.
At approximately 4:25 in the afternoon last Friday my sister, Candace, and I were driving home from attending school at Eureka College. We were laughing, had just ordered sushi in our typical “celebrate Friday” fashion, I had just joked that she should call in and we go on a shopping trip for some books, and then it happened.
A man was stopped at a stop sign on a road ahead of us. We both saw him stopped there and thought nothing of it. Then, when I was a merely 2-3 car lengths away, he pulled out in front of me. Candace screamed, I threw my arm over her, slammed on the brakes and we hit him.
I was admitted to the hospital on September 9, 2011. I was not released until September 12, 2011. I am currently suffering from a fractured right ankle, badly sprained left ankle, fractured L5 vertebrae, bruised tailbone and multiple bruises/abrasions. Candace is relatively unharmed, no bruises, but she does have a very sore neck and is experiencing headaches and memory loss, like I am. The other driver is alive, we do not know his condition.
Aside from the pain, I am experiencing what is every readers nightmare. I passed out for 10 seconds in the car after the accident – this is not a good thing and the seriousness of it still has not fully impacted me, although its starting to now that I realize just how significant it was that there was a Priest present in the ER throughout my entire experience there.
In short, I am unable to read for any length of time. After about 10 minutes my eyes roll up in my head and I cannot force another word through. This is devastating to me, and I hope I recover from it quickly as, you all know, reading is something I’m passionate about – but not only that, it’s a stabilizing element in my life. On top of my own personal reading, I am a mere 2 1/2 weeks into the start of school, my first semester in a classroom setting in over 14 years.
Prayers, thoughts, good wishes are all appreciated. I have several reviews in advance posted on my blog here, but after those run out things will be slowing down while I attempt to get my groove back on.
Thank you for reading this blog, for making me feel as if I have something somewhat important to say about the books I read, and for all of your support. I’m glad I will still be here to post and to chat with you all.
God bless.
- Lydia
Lydia – oh wow, oh wow. I seen that picture of your car and I instantly teared up! Thank God you and Candace are both ok!
Hang in there, rest, and take care of you! *hugs and prayers*
Thank you so much Sheila!
Oh Lydia! What a horrible nightmare. Thank goodness you and Candace weren’t more seriously injured. I’m sending lots of prayers your way. To have a broken ankle AND a back injury … I can’t imagine. I wish I were closer so I could help.
Big hugs to you, darling!
Thank you, Beth. It was very, very scary. Candace says thank you as well for your well-wishes, she was really quite taken with you.
And I wish you were closer too, only because I know we’d have a blast hanging out together =) Accident or no!
Oh no! First, thank goodness it wasn’t more serious. Second, I know many people who have turned to audiobooks while recovering their ability to concentrate and while doing their rehab exercises. All good thoughts for a speedy recovery.
Yes, I totally agree Beth. We’re so grateful we still are alive!! And thank you for the audiobook suggestion. I do listen to them, although mostly in my car, and never even thought of just lying down and turning one on.
SO glad you’re OK. Take time for you to heal and recover and regain some peace of mind. We’ll be here when you can fully return.
Thank you, Andi!
Oh my gosh! Prayers for a speedy recovery.
I second Beth F – maybe audiobooks can get you through until you are happily buried in pages again.
Thank you, Lindsey. That Beth is a smart lady – I agree with the audio books =)
Thank God you are still alive. Accidents are terrifying and I’m sorry drivers are so stupid.
I hope you have a speedy recovery.
Thank you so much, April.
Take care of yourself! Hugs!
Thank you!
I’m so sorry to hear this happened to you. And so glad you’re okay. Rest up, the books will wait patiently- in the meantime, I think audiobooks are worth a try. My thoughts are with you.
I agree with you on the audio books – I’ll definitely be using mine, I just wish my textbooks had an audio option!
wow that is incredibly serious and scary. you definitely need to spend all your energy on getting better and hopefully in the future you can read again. wishing you the quickest recovery possible, my thoughts are with you.
It’s funny, because we’ve told the story so many times it seems trivial now to me. I mean, I know it’s serious when I look at my car, but then I think.. wow, we’re still alive and we’re still laughing and it seems so surreal. Thank you so much for your thoughts and well-wishes!
I know exactly what you mean. On my 15th birthday my mom and I were hit, totaling a brand new car as well (less than six months old). It is still hard for me to comprehend how lucky we were in escaping with only minor damage (I had internal bleeding but that was about it). I’m glad you two are able to laugh and enjoy things though, and I really do hope you get back to reading and heal quickly
What an awful experience. I wish you and Candace a speedy recovery.
Thank you, we’re determined to put this behind us quickly!
So glad you’re ok! I’ve been worried when I saw that you hadn’t updated recently and found it to be odd. Here’s wishing you a speedy recovery and lots of get well wishes!!
Oh Lydia!
I am so glad that you are alright, even with complications. I will be praying for you. I know how devastating it must be to not be able to read. Keep thinking positively!
What a horrible thing to happen. Wishing you both a quick recovery!
Car accidents are one of the scariest things to have happen to you. After mine I had nightmares for a long time and would have panic attacks every time I would see someone coming towards me from a side street.
I will keep both you and your sister in my thoughts and prayers as you contine to recover. I know you both will have full recoveries.
Take care of yourself. Don’t worry about us, we will still be here when you come back.
Thank you, Ryan. I hear you on the panic attacks, every intersection we passed on the way to school yesterday had me a nervous wreck, and when we drove past the scene of the accident I was in tears.
I’m so glad to know that you are (for the most part) ok! I hope your recovery is quite and complete, but know that no matter how long it takes we’ll all still be here.
Oh my goodness! I’m so glad you’re back! So sorry to hear – er, see/read – about the accident. I’m sorry about the reading. i’d be devastated. (((Hugs))) lots of prayers for you!
So glad you made it through the accident, and I hope you’re feeling better soon. ((HUGS))
So glad you’re pretty okay! I was going to comment to suggest audio books, only to see 50,000 people beat me to it. But I hope you do try them. I too never just hang out in my house and listen to one, but my sister did when she had eye surgery – all 4 Tolkein Rings books. It kept her busy for a month! If you’re looking for suggestions Abby (the Librarian) and Stacked both run a monthly audio roundup (they alternate months) where you can get links to audiobook reviews.
Thanks so much! I do have a backlog of audible books on my ipod, and it’s come in handy =)
OMG I’m late coming to your post but my heart goes out to you with your accident. The emotional scars that trauma like that leaves often takes longer to recover from than the physical ones. I know I also had severe anxiety and panic attacks for quite a while, you just have to remember it’s a normal reaction.
Gentle hugs, take care, you’ll be in my thoughts and be kind to yourself
Oh, Lydia, I am sending positive vibes and prayers your way. I know how frightening a car accident can be, having been in a couple…and my daughter has been in several. Hopefully your recovery will be a good one…just be patient with yourself and get lots of rest.
And take care of yourself! Don’t worry about what isn’t getting done for now….
You can get textbooks as audio books. I think this is the right link http://www.learningally.org/ . You may need your doc to certify that you need them due to a medical condition that makes it difficult to read. It has been a long time since I looked up the info, but I have recommended it in the past for several students I worked with who were dyslexic. The service used to be called something like books for the blind and dyslexic….something like that.
Lydia, my prayers are most definitely with you and your sister. Here is wishing you a quick recovery! Allow your body the time it needs to heal, and don’t worry about the blog. We will be here when you come back!
Bonnie @ HandsAndHome
So glad you’re okay! I hope you heal quickly and that everything gets back to normal. You take care of yourself. Keeping you in my thoughts and prayers.