Motorcycle Accident Cry For Help
Donation protected
I've lost my arm, we both lost our jobs, and we are now at risk of being evicted, with nowhere to go. My name is Rebecca. I've just turned 40, I'm living in Perth, Western Australia with my husband and 18 year old daughter.
We were living a decent life, enjoying ourselves and looking forward to the future.
On 1 March 2015 I had a motorcycle accident in which I hit some loose gravel on a country road, slid sideways onto the dirt shoulder of the road, hit a tree head on at 80km per hour, bounced off and flew through the air, landing in a barbed wire fence.... I was conscious. I sustained a break in my lower right (dominant) arm, and shattered the upper arm. I had scrapes and cuts all over. But was lucky to excape with just these injuries. 2 hospitals later, I had emergency surgery to repair my bones with metal plates and screws. I went home high on medication and told I had some radial nerve trauma at the upper break but that it would all heal up soon enough. A few checkups later my surgeon realised the numbness I was feeling in my shoulder and upper arm was not normal. He sent me for an MRI and he then told me that I had a Brachial Plexus Injury in which 2 of the 5 nerves that control the arm had been severed from the spinal cord, with a possible third severed as well. He said that this can't be repaired and that whatever use of my arm I had at that time, was all I would ever have. He did refer me to a specialist. And that was that.
I researched all I could but found no information in Australia, but I did find some American Facebook support groups, where I got to ask a lot of questions!
I began seeing my new specialist, as well as a physio and an occupational therapist. I could not move any part of my arm, my hand or my fingers. My arm was locked in an "L" shape from being in a sling for so long. I could do nothing around the house, could not work and was in constant agony and always delirious due to the morphine based medication.
Long story short -
- I had no leave entitlements left so my employer helped me ease back into work, one armed, and despite the constant medical appointments, bad pain days, and falling asleep at my desk. I could work from home when I needed to, and always met all my work responsibilities
- 2 months after the accident, my husband was made redundant from his FIFO mining job.
- 3 months after that my employment contract was not renewed
- Our landlords sold the house we lived in and we had to move
On 4 July 2015 I had nerve transfer surgery. 4 transfers. 7 days later we moved house. And I had to physically contribute, even though I should have been laying still. Lol, there was nowhere for me to sit or lie down anyway with all the furniture moving going on anyway!
We moved house, my husband launched a carpentry business so he could be around to help me, I tried to find a job, but mornings are so bad for me, I can never guarantee what time I'll get to work! I could take an hour to get dressed or 2 hours .... Getting up, getting dressed, and travelling on public transport are not as easy as they used to be! And my medication seems to hit me and make me drowsy and delirious at around 1pm every day ... not cool when you're in a corporate open-office environment! So, seeing as I was running the house as best I could, and managing my husband's business, we decided I was better off not getting a job. I HATE that I'm not contributing financially. For the first time since I was 15, I'm not working full-time!
I do therapy as much as I can and have gained hand/finger movement. I can swing my arm back and forth just a little. I can do a small bicep curl if my arm is on the couch, so no gravity. I haven't seen much improvement in quite awhile ... so I am worried. The stress I am under and the pain and fear make it very difficult to concentrate and dedicate time to my exercises. Sometimes I can't afford to get to my appointments so I miss out on that very important therapy.
I launched my own business based on the skills I've developed over 25 years of working as we really need more income. I offer a mix of graphic and web design, print design such as business cards etc, and high end consultancy services for document control and information management, as well as support for setting up new businesses. Quite a mix.
I have a webpage/blog where I write about my journey and I hope that my stories give people with Brachial Plexus Injuries hope and comfort and a sense that they are not alone. I get many emails from around the world and I'm so glad I've the people I have. My website is here:
www.brachialgirl.com
I have also taken steps to launch an Australian knowledge and support community for Australians with Brachial Plexus Injuries as there are absolutely no resources here, unlike the great setups in many other parts of the world. There are actually a lot of us here. in Australia! Especially when you count all the children who are born with this injury. It is also known as Erb's Palsy. I can't do much more to establish it as a national foundation without financial aid. I have such big plans to help everyone around the country who are going through what I am going through.
You can see the beginnings of my creation here:
www.brachialplexusinjuryaustralia.com.au
My husband is busy. My business is not. To be expected in this situation, we are behind with our financial committments. We manage to scrape by but we cannot catch up, let alone get ahead. It's putting us on a constant stressful and emotional rollercoaster and with my mind always sinking into despair about my arm and the pain and my future, I have become truly afraid.
My husband and I have both had tough lives. Emotionally charged childhoods, family heartbreaks, and financial insecurities. We have moved house countless times, both together and before we met, due to renting situations. We both have little family support. It's just the 3 of us. Trying to support each other.
*I need financial help to get this BPI Support organisation launched so we can raise awareness across the country about the risks of BPI birth injuries, and raise awareness in hospital birthing rooms and emergency rooms across the country about birth injury risks/prevention, and about checking for these injuries in traumatic accident cases as early diagnosis and initial treatment is extremely important to the patient's outcome. Brachial Plexus Injuries are unkown to the majority of the population!
*I need financial help to engage a lawyer to look into road conditions to see if the roads department is at fault for the loose gravel and very badly conditioned road shoulder
*I need help to pay back my friend for the bike I wrecked ...
*I need help paying for my constant transport and medical appointments.
* I need help to pay back my mum the $500 she lent me for my operation
*I need help to get our debts to a level which we can work with.
*I need financial help to market and obtain equipment and grow our businesses so we can support ourselves.
*I need financial help to gather a deposit so we can buy a house near my medical facilities so we can create a stable base without fear of a landlord forcing us to move again and again. I don't think I could last through another move and finding ways to get to my appointments gets harder and harder...
If we could raise enough money to achieve even some of these things, we would be able to stop jumping every time the phone rings, dedicate the required time and money into getting my arm working as well as possible, so that I can work, we could possibly buy a home where we could feel secure for the first time in our lives, run our businesses and know we can pay our bills, help raise awareness in Australia and build a national charitable foundation to raise funds for those in remote areas or poor financial positions, create a support network to help all those suffering from the physical and emotional effects of this injury, and I could possibly be entitled to monies from the roads department, which I could put to use with all of the above as well, especially into furthering the Brachial Plexus Injury Australia organisation.
I have spent my entire life having things repeatedly ripped away from me and constantly fighting to survive this commercial, expensive and unfair world. For the last 25 years of my life I have constantly wondered if I would ever just be able to go to work, pay my bills and laugh with my family. Forget riches and holidays or anything magnificent. I just want to rest, stop fighting and clawing out of cesspools, and just live with some sort of confidence and sense of security.
Based on my past experiences, I doubt the powers that be will see fit to grant me that peace ..... I feel like I'm an experiment to see how far a person can be stretched before they break ...... but if it happens, my husband and daughter and I would be so amazed and thankful and humbled.
Some of the comments I've received ... I am truly humbled ...
Please keep sharing ...
www.gofundme.com/brachialgirl
"These two are close friends of mine , I was at the accident that day when Bek went down , Bek was extremely unlucky and was caught by a lip on the edge of the road ,which in turn has changed everything . I watched these two go through so much , from the accident to job loses. Not once have they given up , and tried so hard to keep moving forward and still trying . But these two are giving people and will help anyone , but this time they need our help . These are very genuine people . so if you can help, that would be much appreciated . Thank you" - Neil
"I'd also like to add that although I'm all the way in CT, South Africa, Bekka's can-do attitude , encouragement and spirit has been of enormous help to my husband and I. He was involved in a similar accident not long after and is suffering from the same injury. She has been a beacon of light for us" - Linda
"This is my friend Bekka smile emoticon
I have been friends with her since I was about 5yrs old. We've always stayed in touch one way or another. Shared our ups and downs and more. Now this beautiful woman is proud and strong so when I saw her asking for help I did,
Bek had a serious motorbike accident earlier in the year and we were all relieved she survived but with that has came a serious injury that will never be better. It's really hitting her and her family hard, physically, mentally, emotionally and of course financially.
Please take 5 to read her story. There's no support in Australia for her injury (but you'll see more of that as you read).
If you can help her with any donation then I thank you smile emoticon If you aren't able to that's ok too but I would ask that you share her website (about the injury - the link is within her story below). The more who know about this injury and that there is support starting in Australia, thanks to Bek, then things can only improve for all affected with this type of disability." - Rebecca
We were living a decent life, enjoying ourselves and looking forward to the future.
On 1 March 2015 I had a motorcycle accident in which I hit some loose gravel on a country road, slid sideways onto the dirt shoulder of the road, hit a tree head on at 80km per hour, bounced off and flew through the air, landing in a barbed wire fence.... I was conscious. I sustained a break in my lower right (dominant) arm, and shattered the upper arm. I had scrapes and cuts all over. But was lucky to excape with just these injuries. 2 hospitals later, I had emergency surgery to repair my bones with metal plates and screws. I went home high on medication and told I had some radial nerve trauma at the upper break but that it would all heal up soon enough. A few checkups later my surgeon realised the numbness I was feeling in my shoulder and upper arm was not normal. He sent me for an MRI and he then told me that I had a Brachial Plexus Injury in which 2 of the 5 nerves that control the arm had been severed from the spinal cord, with a possible third severed as well. He said that this can't be repaired and that whatever use of my arm I had at that time, was all I would ever have. He did refer me to a specialist. And that was that.
I researched all I could but found no information in Australia, but I did find some American Facebook support groups, where I got to ask a lot of questions!
I began seeing my new specialist, as well as a physio and an occupational therapist. I could not move any part of my arm, my hand or my fingers. My arm was locked in an "L" shape from being in a sling for so long. I could do nothing around the house, could not work and was in constant agony and always delirious due to the morphine based medication.
Long story short -
- I had no leave entitlements left so my employer helped me ease back into work, one armed, and despite the constant medical appointments, bad pain days, and falling asleep at my desk. I could work from home when I needed to, and always met all my work responsibilities
- 2 months after the accident, my husband was made redundant from his FIFO mining job.
- 3 months after that my employment contract was not renewed
- Our landlords sold the house we lived in and we had to move
On 4 July 2015 I had nerve transfer surgery. 4 transfers. 7 days later we moved house. And I had to physically contribute, even though I should have been laying still. Lol, there was nowhere for me to sit or lie down anyway with all the furniture moving going on anyway!
We moved house, my husband launched a carpentry business so he could be around to help me, I tried to find a job, but mornings are so bad for me, I can never guarantee what time I'll get to work! I could take an hour to get dressed or 2 hours .... Getting up, getting dressed, and travelling on public transport are not as easy as they used to be! And my medication seems to hit me and make me drowsy and delirious at around 1pm every day ... not cool when you're in a corporate open-office environment! So, seeing as I was running the house as best I could, and managing my husband's business, we decided I was better off not getting a job. I HATE that I'm not contributing financially. For the first time since I was 15, I'm not working full-time!
I do therapy as much as I can and have gained hand/finger movement. I can swing my arm back and forth just a little. I can do a small bicep curl if my arm is on the couch, so no gravity. I haven't seen much improvement in quite awhile ... so I am worried. The stress I am under and the pain and fear make it very difficult to concentrate and dedicate time to my exercises. Sometimes I can't afford to get to my appointments so I miss out on that very important therapy.
I launched my own business based on the skills I've developed over 25 years of working as we really need more income. I offer a mix of graphic and web design, print design such as business cards etc, and high end consultancy services for document control and information management, as well as support for setting up new businesses. Quite a mix.
I have a webpage/blog where I write about my journey and I hope that my stories give people with Brachial Plexus Injuries hope and comfort and a sense that they are not alone. I get many emails from around the world and I'm so glad I've the people I have. My website is here:
www.brachialgirl.com
I have also taken steps to launch an Australian knowledge and support community for Australians with Brachial Plexus Injuries as there are absolutely no resources here, unlike the great setups in many other parts of the world. There are actually a lot of us here. in Australia! Especially when you count all the children who are born with this injury. It is also known as Erb's Palsy. I can't do much more to establish it as a national foundation without financial aid. I have such big plans to help everyone around the country who are going through what I am going through.
You can see the beginnings of my creation here:
www.brachialplexusinjuryaustralia.com.au
My husband is busy. My business is not. To be expected in this situation, we are behind with our financial committments. We manage to scrape by but we cannot catch up, let alone get ahead. It's putting us on a constant stressful and emotional rollercoaster and with my mind always sinking into despair about my arm and the pain and my future, I have become truly afraid.
My husband and I have both had tough lives. Emotionally charged childhoods, family heartbreaks, and financial insecurities. We have moved house countless times, both together and before we met, due to renting situations. We both have little family support. It's just the 3 of us. Trying to support each other.
*I need financial help to get this BPI Support organisation launched so we can raise awareness across the country about the risks of BPI birth injuries, and raise awareness in hospital birthing rooms and emergency rooms across the country about birth injury risks/prevention, and about checking for these injuries in traumatic accident cases as early diagnosis and initial treatment is extremely important to the patient's outcome. Brachial Plexus Injuries are unkown to the majority of the population!
*I need financial help to engage a lawyer to look into road conditions to see if the roads department is at fault for the loose gravel and very badly conditioned road shoulder
*I need help to pay back my friend for the bike I wrecked ...
*I need help paying for my constant transport and medical appointments.
* I need help to pay back my mum the $500 she lent me for my operation
*I need help to get our debts to a level which we can work with.
*I need financial help to market and obtain equipment and grow our businesses so we can support ourselves.
*I need financial help to gather a deposit so we can buy a house near my medical facilities so we can create a stable base without fear of a landlord forcing us to move again and again. I don't think I could last through another move and finding ways to get to my appointments gets harder and harder...
If we could raise enough money to achieve even some of these things, we would be able to stop jumping every time the phone rings, dedicate the required time and money into getting my arm working as well as possible, so that I can work, we could possibly buy a home where we could feel secure for the first time in our lives, run our businesses and know we can pay our bills, help raise awareness in Australia and build a national charitable foundation to raise funds for those in remote areas or poor financial positions, create a support network to help all those suffering from the physical and emotional effects of this injury, and I could possibly be entitled to monies from the roads department, which I could put to use with all of the above as well, especially into furthering the Brachial Plexus Injury Australia organisation.
I have spent my entire life having things repeatedly ripped away from me and constantly fighting to survive this commercial, expensive and unfair world. For the last 25 years of my life I have constantly wondered if I would ever just be able to go to work, pay my bills and laugh with my family. Forget riches and holidays or anything magnificent. I just want to rest, stop fighting and clawing out of cesspools, and just live with some sort of confidence and sense of security.
Based on my past experiences, I doubt the powers that be will see fit to grant me that peace ..... I feel like I'm an experiment to see how far a person can be stretched before they break ...... but if it happens, my husband and daughter and I would be so amazed and thankful and humbled.
Some of the comments I've received ... I am truly humbled ...Please keep sharing ...
www.gofundme.com/brachialgirl
"These two are close friends of mine , I was at the accident that day when Bek went down , Bek was extremely unlucky and was caught by a lip on the edge of the road ,which in turn has changed everything . I watched these two go through so much , from the accident to job loses. Not once have they given up , and tried so hard to keep moving forward and still trying . But these two are giving people and will help anyone , but this time they need our help . These are very genuine people . so if you can help, that would be much appreciated . Thank you" - Neil
"I'd also like to add that although I'm all the way in CT, South Africa, Bekka's can-do attitude , encouragement and spirit has been of enormous help to my husband and I. He was involved in a similar accident not long after and is suffering from the same injury. She has been a beacon of light for us" - Linda
"This is my friend Bekka smile emoticon
I have been friends with her since I was about 5yrs old. We've always stayed in touch one way or another. Shared our ups and downs and more. Now this beautiful woman is proud and strong so when I saw her asking for help I did,
Bek had a serious motorbike accident earlier in the year and we were all relieved she survived but with that has came a serious injury that will never be better. It's really hitting her and her family hard, physically, mentally, emotionally and of course financially.
Please take 5 to read her story. There's no support in Australia for her injury (but you'll see more of that as you read).
If you can help her with any donation then I thank you smile emoticon If you aren't able to that's ok too but I would ask that you share her website (about the injury - the link is within her story below). The more who know about this injury and that there is support starting in Australia, thanks to Bek, then things can only improve for all affected with this type of disability." - Rebecca
Organizer
Bekka Cochran
Organizer
Carlisle WA
