Justin's recovery and care

On June 1st, 2019  our family received the call that you never think will happen to you! 

My beautiful, free spirited, 17 year old nephew, Justin Amico, was in a horrific beach accident on his 1st day of summer vacation.   (I'm Justin's aunt and his mom's sister)

Just 48 hours earlier...
Justin had completed his last day as a Junior at William T. Dwyer High School in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.  He was excelling in Honors classes, finishing the year with all A's and B's.  He recently  started  his summer job learning to be a chef, and even more exciting, he was working on getting his driver's license just in time for summer! (Mom was very worried about his driving!)  Basically, Justin was a typical 17 year old boy living life to the fullest, ready for summer, thrilled he'd finally be a SENIOR next year and  just so excited about life in general!

Everything was about to change in an instant...

On Saturday afternoon, Justin was with his friends at Juno Beach (around the pier area).  They were  simply running from the sandy beach to the shallow part of the ocean.  Justin playfully and with the force of a strong 17 year old boy,  jumped and dove head first into an oncoming wave.   (Something we've all done so many times before, if you're playing in the water at the beach).

What Justin didn't realize, was the water was way too shallow.   Immediately, Justin's forehead aggressively hit the bottom of the ocean floor and snapped back.   Justin heard his neck break and was instantly rendered unconscious.   His friends didn't realize what had happened, but we thank God, a lifeguard was nearby, saw him floating in the water and immediately jumped into action.  He was able to get Justin out of the water and promptly call for an ambulance.

Justin's alive!!  Our first prayers we're answered.

However, it wasn't long before the devastating diagnosis was given to Justin's Mom and Dad...

The "breaking" noise Justin heard, was that of BOTH his C5 and his C6 vertebrae being fractured.  The doctors have informed us that Justin is paralyzed and there is a very slim chance that he will walk again.

My heart immediately shattered in a million pieces.  My heart aches all day, every day.  I want the horrible feeling to go away, but it won't!  It's a very helpless feeling.  The devastation is overwhelming. 

My heart breaks for my beautiful nephew, who is fighting for his life every single day now...  My heart  breaks for my amazing sister Kelley,  who has not left Justin's side since the accident!  I'm still not close to being out of tears...  I cannot understand why this has happened... The shock is still new every morning...  We're still navigating the questions of where do we go from here and what do we do next... What does Justin need?  It goes on and on... 

We are staying strong for Justin!  We are staying positive and looking forward! We are providing love and support each and every day. 

For the last 20 days, Justin has been in ICU.  He successfully completed a 5 hour surgery to replace the C5 & C6 fractured vertebrae with metal plates and a metal rod for spinal cord stabilization.   He will now wear a large brace around his neck for the healing and fusing to continue.  The brace will be on for approximately 12 weeks.  

Justin will now be transferring from St. Mary's Hospital in West Palm Beach to Brooks Rehabilitation facility in Jacksonville, Florida.

Justin does not have feeling from the middle of his chest to his toes.  However, he currently has some use of his arms and hands with very limited wrist movement.  He will begin intensive in-patient physical therapy on Monday to work on his arm movement and hand movement.  This will be his focus over the next several months.

With that being said, we have quickly realized, that Justin's around the clock care, physical therapy, and basic daily needs are all critical to his recovery, but are more than my family can provide.  There are and will continue to be numerous medical bills that are not covered by insurance.   What we have learned is that we know there are expenses ahead  that will be enormous.  I want Kelley and Justin to be able to solely focus on his recovery and not worry about the financial aspect of this tragedy. 

Kelley and Justin are looking forward  to sharing regular updates and photos.

Should you have any questions, comments, or any information you would like to share with any of us, please feel free to do so.

Whether you are able to contribute financially or not, please pray and send positive thoughts to Justin and his family at this time.

Please know, even $5.00 is a blessing.  We appreciate all donations.