:(
My sister was in a car accident last night. The doctors and police say that she's lucky to be alive. From what the police can tell from the scene of the accident she skidded, then braked and hit a tree. At that point the car was wrecked anyway. But to make matters worse, the car flipped and landed on the other side of the road, where the car was then hit by an on-coming car. The only fortunate part of the whole accident was that the car hit the passenger side of the car (this most likely saved her life. Hate to think what would have happened if it had hit the drivers side).
She was unconscious when they got to her and it took them about half an hour to get her out of the car, then they airlifted her to a nearby hospital and was in their HDU (ICU) for the early hours of the morning (the morning of her birthday, no less!). Then early in the morning they rushed her off to another hospital because they felt she could be better cared for there to eliminate the chances of internal injuries. Naturally she's had lots of scans, x-rays and tests. But they haven't found any internal or head injuries. She does have the following though: lots of bruising, a broken jaw and swollen face, several broken ribs, a broken shoulder blade, and a broken hand/wrist. My Mum mentioned that she's going to need surgery for her broken hand and jaw. She also chipped a few nodules of her spine. But apparently the doctors say that they will heal themselves.
The poor girl also has a chest drain in right now, as she has some fluid/blood around her lungs. The doctors are a bit concerned about her left lung and are keeping a close eye on it. She's due to have another chest x-ray in the morning (UK time).
But my Mum says she's doing very well. She's talking (always a good sign, my sister is quite the talker) and making sense. But she's very drowsy as she has a self-controlled morphine drip, so that she can give herself more morphine when she's in pain.
But the important thing is that she's okay and stable. She's even saying she's hungry and has good leg movement because she's kicking off the covers when she feels too warm. Plus she's complaining that everyone is treating her like an invalid.
My parents have been there with her for the past day or so, my Mum has only had half an hour sleep in the past 48 hours and that was only because my brother and his girlfriend came to see Ellen and sent them home to eat, wash and get some sleep.
My Mum tried to give me a ring to let me know, but she couldn't get the US area code right, so wasn't able to contact me until I came to my laptop not long ago and she was logged into her messenger just sending me an email before turning in (she'd been waiting for me for about half an hour but we were out at the store).
I'm so glad that she's "okay", and I use that term loosely since with all her injuries she's not really. But it could have been much, much worse for her than it was. So that's something to be thankful for.
If you could send any prayers/good thoughts/good vibes my sisters way I'd really appreciate it.
She's gotten through the first 24-48 hours okay, which is usually the most crucial time for car accident victims, so that's of some comfort. I'm so glad we'll be seeing her soon. If we weren't due to fly over to England so soon, we would be on a plane as soon after Christmas as we could, I'm sure.
She was unconscious when they got to her and it took them about half an hour to get her out of the car, then they airlifted her to a nearby hospital and was in their HDU (ICU) for the early hours of the morning (the morning of her birthday, no less!). Then early in the morning they rushed her off to another hospital because they felt she could be better cared for there to eliminate the chances of internal injuries. Naturally she's had lots of scans, x-rays and tests. But they haven't found any internal or head injuries. She does have the following though: lots of bruising, a broken jaw and swollen face, several broken ribs, a broken shoulder blade, and a broken hand/wrist. My Mum mentioned that she's going to need surgery for her broken hand and jaw. She also chipped a few nodules of her spine. But apparently the doctors say that they will heal themselves.
The poor girl also has a chest drain in right now, as she has some fluid/blood around her lungs. The doctors are a bit concerned about her left lung and are keeping a close eye on it. She's due to have another chest x-ray in the morning (UK time).
But my Mum says she's doing very well. She's talking (always a good sign, my sister is quite the talker) and making sense. But she's very drowsy as she has a self-controlled morphine drip, so that she can give herself more morphine when she's in pain.
But the important thing is that she's okay and stable. She's even saying she's hungry and has good leg movement because she's kicking off the covers when she feels too warm. Plus she's complaining that everyone is treating her like an invalid.
My parents have been there with her for the past day or so, my Mum has only had half an hour sleep in the past 48 hours and that was only because my brother and his girlfriend came to see Ellen and sent them home to eat, wash and get some sleep.
My Mum tried to give me a ring to let me know, but she couldn't get the US area code right, so wasn't able to contact me until I came to my laptop not long ago and she was logged into her messenger just sending me an email before turning in (she'd been waiting for me for about half an hour but we were out at the store).
I'm so glad that she's "okay", and I use that term loosely since with all her injuries she's not really. But it could have been much, much worse for her than it was. So that's something to be thankful for.
If you could send any prayers/good thoughts/good vibes my sisters way I'd really appreciate it.
She's gotten through the first 24-48 hours okay, which is usually the most crucial time for car accident victims, so that's of some comfort. I'm so glad we'll be seeing her soon. If we weren't due to fly over to England so soon, we would be on a plane as soon after Christmas as we could, I'm sure.