I can't believe it's been almost a month ago that we were sitting in the Tiki Bar of the Low Key Hideway laughing and enjoying our last night in Cedar Key before heading to the condo in Cape San Blas. Little did I know what awaited me. My life was moving along like a dream-everything falling into place.
Everyday was a another day to be extremely grateful for- our health, the love and support of our family and friends and our sweet little Hailey. We both felt so very blessed and thanked God every day for our blessings. Then came Thursday night, April 10th.
I had just returned from taking Jim to the airport in Panama City-feeling very proud of myself since it was my first driving journey in Ruby all by myself-I felt like a big girl ! Jim was going to drive back our car and the boxes that were being stored at my sisters house. Me, I was looking around the condo prioritizing my jobs to do while he was gone. The starfish photo caught my eye, the same way it caught my eye on line-it had a peaceful glow to it and I found the perfect spot for it. I set up the ladder,climbed it, measured the spot,went back down the ladder,got the hammer and nails and climbed back up , pounded in the nails and in a quick moment for some reason a thought flashed through my mind that I was going to fall ( I was at least 8ft up). That was all I remembered.
I know I was unconscious for an hour based on a call I made right before the fall and the time of the call to 911 after the fall. I don't remember what I said to 911- I honestly think my training and 13 years as a dispatcher kicked in the auto response for me to call 911. The next call to my sister scared the daylights out of her because I was pretty incoherent and very confused and frantic-I didn't know where I was, I didn't know where Jim was and then in an instant the medics showed up.
I don't remember much about my interaction with them other than the neck brace and telling one of the EMTs that this was my very first ambulance ride. When I woke up on Friday- Thursday night was pretty much a black out. I lay in my bed thanking God,Jesus,Buddha,the Universe, my deceased grandmother Eva and my deceased Aunt Mary (those two are the angels always watching over me)- I knew I could have been dead,paralyzed, blind or who knows what. But there I was with a subdural hematoma,some swelling between the discs in my neck and a very sore tailbone.
My medical family consisted of a Neurosurgeon, a Trauma Specialist and a soon to be added Cardiologist. After 3 CAT Scans, multiple xrays, an MRI and Lord knows how many blood tests they decided the hematoma seemed to be taking care of itself and slowly dissipating. What they were now worried about was the fact that my resting heart rate was only 30. Now I'm not an athlete, I a little over weight and I walk anywhere from 2-6 miles per day depending on my mood so 30 was not a good sign. The cardiologist thought I had a heart block that caused me to faint and fall from the ladder-that would explain no sore arms or no sign of bruising from me trying to break my fall.
Next task, a tilt table test to check out my heart rate-I didn't do so well on that-my heart rate fell to 26-unbelievable and the next thing I know my Doctor was scheduling me for a pacemaker. This was all too much for my brain to handle-it was still sloshing around from the fall. I cried a little that night in my hospital bed-correction-I cried a lot. I kept thinking how could this be ? What I survived Lyme Disease only to have to tackle this ? And then it dawned on me how lucky I was-they found I had a problem because the fall put me in the hospital. I started thinking of all the horrible scenarios that could have been had they not found out about my lazy little heart.
So now I'm home, safe and cozy in the condo-loving watching the waves coming in and feeling very blessed again. I started going through my photo library and came across pictures of our wonderful time in Cedar Key and again I'm so happy to be alive. I don't know why all this has happened. I always felt I went through the Lyme Disease battle in order to discover how precious life is. I got it-really I did. Now I wonder what the universe has in mind for me-make no mistake -there is something I should be doing-I didn't survive all of this by accident. I'll be trying to live in the present moment but in the back of my rattled little brain will be the thought of what is my purpose-and when I discover it, I will let you know.
In the meantime I will appreciate and value every moment and I will never forget the love and support you all sent my way-it really helped me gain my strength and center myself again. Thank you all so much. Won't be
traveling far distances for a few months but I'll keep writing -thank you thank you thank you all so much my friends,my family especially and my dear sweet husband-I love you all.
Happy Trails
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