On March 21st I was in my basement lifting a box when I hit my head and fell on the cement floor. It was the most painful experience I have ever had. I called for help as I had visitors upstairs and they came down to help me. I couldn't stand but was able to crawl across the cellar floor and up the stairs and onto the couch in the living room. I had my friend Norm get me an ice pack and that seemed to calm down the pain. After about 45 minutes I tried to get up and thats when the pain came back so I had to be brought to the emergency room where they diagnosed me with a bruise and sent me home with pain killers and Tylenol. After two weeks of being on the couch and still in pain I went to my primary care physician who did an xray of my back and eventually a CT Scan. Much to her surprise I had a burst fracture of the Lumbar Spine. I went to the emergency room that night at UMass Memorial where they admitted me and told me I may have to have surgery where they fuse the vertebrae together. That night I have never prayed as hard asking God to spare me from the surgery. The next morning the surgeon met with me and said I was a good candidate for a back brace to be worn for the next couple of months.
I've been in the brace for 4 weeks now and during that time I've made good use of my injury by watching educational photography videos. I'm so excited to be able to put the techniques I've learned into practice. In a few weeks I may be able to go to Physical Therapy. Hopefully the therapy will help to relieve the spasms which are the most painful part of this ordeal.
Bad things that happen are not necessarily bad. This accident turned into something which is not an accident at all but a vehicle by which I have been able to improve my photography skills and build my confidence. I've been able to take a few portraits while in the brace but I am limited to what I can do, so I do what I can.
Thank you for reading my blog. I'm so looking forward to posting my new images when I'm healed totally. My current project is Maternity Photography and Newborns.
