Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced.
~Soren Kierkegaard
A special thanks to Barbara Calato/ Rhoat/ Holup/ Upton Spencer
who made this entire page possible. Without her, I never would have known what it's like to face down be a Quadriplegic. Barbara was the drunk driver that ran into me while I was riding my bicycle with my wife and friends. I don't know why she has changed her last name 3 times, but I'd be surprised if she still isn't a Licensed Practical Nurse in the Youngstown, NY area; and even more surprised if she still doesn't think twice before driving after a fun
night of partying. At least now the initials of her name are appropriate- BAC.
Barbara
, this Bud's for you!
This is a page written by me for me. I consider it an open page that can be read by anybody, but my intent is not to entertain or educate. There are plenty of other sites on the Internet which I'm sure you can find that will be of interest to you if you're looking to be entertained. This one is an attempt for me to try to get some peace of mind. The Reality of my situation is that I'm not going to Heal- so I need to do my best to Deal.
My name is Jim and I'm a C-2 Quadriplegic.
What is a Quadriplegic? Someone whose four extremities don't function properly. Both arms and both legs are either completely or at least partially impaired. Usually the lower extremities are completely paralyzed and the victim's arms may or may not have any voluntary movement remaining
depending upon how high the injury occurs.
What is a C-2 quadriplegic? Someone whose spinal cord is fractured at the 2nd vertebrae from the skull. Complete paralysis is only a small part of the consequences of a C-2 Spinal Cord injury. I never knew about such an injury prior to meeting Barbara and I doubt many others do either. Apparently not many people survive such serious trauma because one of the immediate results is the loss of one's ability to breathe on their own.
Well, I'm one of the "lucky" few who can give some first-hand personal insight into some of the things that a C-2 fracture survivor experiences, feels and thinks about.
Am I looking to get sympathy, revenge or closure by writing this? I don't believe so, because the first two don't really matter anymore and the last one won't happen while I'm still on this Earth.
Why then---
because I feel that I need to, and I still can.
What follows are some of the recollections of my experiences, personal opinions and thoughts. Much of it has been relayed to me second hand for obvious reasons so I can't guarantee it's accuracy. This is my attempt at posting a Disclaimer; I don't know if it's really necessary since most of what might be considered personal, such as Licensing Information and criminal record is freely available to the public anyway.
I know this to be true since some of the included information I easily found on the Internet.
It's difficult to remember a life before nearly everything I knew, all I took for granted, and all my future plans, hopes and aspirations were
taken away from me. But I'll try to start as best I can from
The Beginning
After the crash, the next 5 months of my life would be spent in a Critical Care Hospital. Some of what happened I can remember but much of it I can only relay what I've been told. These are some of my
Hospital Memories
By December I was finally in stable enough condition to leave the Hospital and be transferred to a Rehab Facility that specialized in Spinal Cord Injuries. The nearest one was about 75 miles away in Pennsylvania and arrangements were made to spend the next 6 to 8 weeks there to try to be weaned off the ventilator, regain as much motion as possible and then return Home.
I learned a lot about both my physical condition and my "New Life" during Rehab
After 10 months, 2 weeks and 6 days Placement was found for me at a Facility that would once again be my new, but this time Permanent Home
I never met the driver that hit me and she never contacted me
personally by telephone or in writing. I wonder if this has had any
real impact on her life or if she still drives after she's been drinking.
The following mouse right mouse> Licensing Information was found on the
Internet so I assume it's Public Record that can appear on this Page.
Driving While Intoxicated is a Crime which affects
not only the victim but also the victim's
Friends and Family
People often compare me to Christopher Reeve
We do physically have many things in common but Spinal Cord Injury is so much moire than what the body can and can no longer do.
I'm sure that there are some people that wonder how someone who is paralyzed from the neck down can access the keyboard of a computer. I am very fortunate to be a part of the World outside these four walls once again thanks to the technology of a computer equipped with
Voice Recognition Software
A Special Thanks
to the people who helped me with this Page
and who help me Daily on this Journey called Life.
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11 Years Later
update 2/04
20 Years Later
update 2/13
