Dimitri's Spinal Cord Injury Fund

The Story

My story begins on Sunday, August 14th, 2016 at 7am. I woke up with a sharp pain along my back. Within minutes it severely escalated. I quickly phoned my sister and told her I needed to get to the hospital as soon as possible. Less than 10 minutes pass and my legs give out and I collapsed to the floor. As I leaned up against the coffee table waiting for the ambulance and my sister to arrive, I tried getting up and realized I couldn't move my legs. I thought everything would start coming back within a few minutes. Little did I know my life was soon about to forever change.

My sister, niece and EMT's all arrived and quickly carried me down the flight of stairs and I was rushed to Mount Sinai Hospital in Astoria, Queens. When we arrived at ER the staff were confused. They didn’t know why I could not move my legs. They didn’t have anyone to work the CAT scan and MRI machine. I was told they needed to transfer me to Mount Sinai of Manhattan. When I arrived they started the MRI and discovered a large blood clot compressing the majority of my spine. The neurosurgeon said that I somehow developed a clot along my spine,  which caused blood to fill my spinal canal. It compressed and severely damaged my nerves. I had no trauma or shock or injury, current or past. The doctors found it very strange that although my blood was thin, I developed such a large clot along my spine. I was told I needed to have surgery immediately to decompress the spine and clear the mass.

The Surgery

Within an hour of arriving in the ER I was rushed into the operating room. A thoracic laminectomy (decompression of the spine) needed to be done immediately to clear the clot and try and limit any further damage and try to regain some sensation and function.

The surgery was close to 4 hours and another 4 hours for the plastic surgeons to close me back up. I was opened from my cervical (C3 level) to thoracic (T11 level).
The neurosurgeon told my family that with her 25+ years experience she had never seen an incident like this. Such a large blood clot with no known underlying reason. After taking hundreds of tests, they all showed up negative and no cause could be found. I had no prior accident and no known disease found.

I spent 6 days in Intesive Care Unit, and woke up attached to a breathing machine and my hands tied to the hospital bed so I would not reach to pull the breathing tube out. I was told there was a 72 hour window to wait and see what, if any,  function would return. I was certain my body would start healing like any other injury. After the 72 hour period passed, I still had no sensation or movement. At this point I was diagnosed as a T4 paraplegic complete. Paralyzed with no movement or any sensation from the nipple down, as well as no bladder and bowel sensation and function.

The Therapy

After ICU it took weeks to gain enough strength to leave  the step down unit, and thats when I spent over two months at Mt. Sinai inpatient therapy. There, they showed me how to live a drastic new life from a wheelchair and with 70% of my body not physically functioning.

There, I relearned how to redo the most basic things such as sitting upright, balancing with no core function, getting dressed, feeding myself, bathing, self bowel and bladder routine, breathing, coughing, how to transfer to and from a bed to a wheelchair and many others. It was the most grueling and challenging time of my life both physically and mentally.

After inpatient therapy I was transferred to a nursing home were I spent three months for continued therapy as I awaited the move to a new home that was being modified for wheelchair accessible living. All the while battling extreme depression, fear and anxiety of what the future will hold and what my life will become.

Post Therapy

On January 1st, 2017, I finally arrived to my renovated and wheelchair accessible apartment. Being out of the hospital, therapy, and nursing home and arriving in my new home was a relief, but also very scary. I struggled doing the most simplest things and the neighborhood I grew up in was a strange and foreign place from a wheelchair.
The adaptation had just begun.

In March, insurance granted me 20 physical therapy visits for the year at 30 minute sessions each. My therapy sessions since have expired, so I joined a gym with my girlfriend and have been using a handful of machines from the wheelchair as most workout machines are not made with the disabled in mind.

Funds Going Towards

The funds raised through this campaign will be used towards purchasing essential equipment that is not covered by insurance. This includes a standing frame ($7,000), which lifts my body in a standing position and helps maintain joints, bone density, helps with circulation and slow the process of muscle dystrophy.
A motorized leg cycle ($3,800) to help with the severe spasticity, improve blood circulation and muscle elasticity.
A transportable commode ($1,500) for my personal care routine, lifestyle modifications and the many future expenses, which include private PT/OT therapy.
Any additional funding will go towards a wheelchair accessible vehicle  ($20,000+)

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