Mackenzies Road to Recovery
As many of you may know, about 10 months ago I fell backwards off of a second story balcony, breaking my neck at the C6 vertebrae, paralyzing me from the chest down. What many of you don't know are the incidences that happened following my fall and how they led to where I am today. It's very hard for me to talk about what I've been through, as it was extremely traumatic and brings back the feelings of anxiety I had.
Rewind back to April 23, 2016. It was a beautiful spring day at Lake of the Ozarks having fun with friends, when it took a turn for the worst. I don't remember my fall and I don't remember the events that led up to my fall due to being knocked unconscious. The next thing I do remember, however, was waking up four days later in excruciating pain with four tubes shoved down my throat and my hands tied to the rails of the hospital bed. I was in the middle of having a panic attack and I remember nurses around me trying to calm me down and I remember thinking to myself, "it's a nightmare, don't worry you'll wake up from it in a little bit." Unfortunately for me, it was a nightmare I didn't wake up from. Over the next couple of weeks, I was stuck in a reality/dreamish daze, most likely due to the amount of endorphins my body was releasing, the amount of drugs they had me on, and because I also suffered a minor concussion.
After two weeks of being in the ICU in Missouri, they transferred me to Madonna rehab in Lincoln, Nebraska for two days until I had to be transferred back to an ICU in Lincoln because I was in stage four kidney failure and had accumulated so much fluid on and around my body, that it was making it extremely difficult to breathe. After a few rounds of dialysis, my kidneys began to bounce back and I shed over 60 pounds of fluid. This began my true road to recovery.
I was soon transferred back to rehab where I started making huge gains towards getting better. It started with weaning myself off of a ventilator, getting out of a leg immobilizer (I had also shattered my knee cap in my fall), getting my feeding tube removed, being able to eat normal foods again, and just getting a little bit better each day. With these slow and steady gains from daily physical and occupational therapy, I somehow ended up where I am today. I want to thank everyone for the continued thoughts and prayers during this long journey. I'm extremely thankful because I wouldn't have been able to make such improvements if it weren't for all of the love and support.
Before my accident, I was in my second semester as a junior at the University of Iowa, pre-pharmacy major. I only had 24 more semester hours (8 classes) left until I graduated. I plan to start up school again, but in order for me to get to school and classes I would need some sort of transportation.
Both of my parents have full time jobs so it's hard having to depend on them to take me everywhere I need to go. I have several doctors appointments, therapies, and soon to be classes that I need to get to each month, and having my own car would help immensely. You're probably wondering, how can she drive if she's paralyzed? First I would need to find a car that is accessible for both me and my wheelchair to get into (i.e. a ramp or lift). Then I would need to find a place that would be able to make modifications to the car by putting in hand controls instead of using foot pedals, and unfortunately this process is not cheap.
I'm in need of financial help for paying for a car and paying off my extensive medical bills. As you can imagine, after a long 10 months of hospitals and rehabs, I've racked up a hefty amount of bills. The most urgent expense is a new vehicle as I would like to start taking classes as soon as possible! Thank you so much in advance for your contributions, any little bit helps!
Rewind back to April 23, 2016. It was a beautiful spring day at Lake of the Ozarks having fun with friends, when it took a turn for the worst. I don't remember my fall and I don't remember the events that led up to my fall due to being knocked unconscious. The next thing I do remember, however, was waking up four days later in excruciating pain with four tubes shoved down my throat and my hands tied to the rails of the hospital bed. I was in the middle of having a panic attack and I remember nurses around me trying to calm me down and I remember thinking to myself, "it's a nightmare, don't worry you'll wake up from it in a little bit." Unfortunately for me, it was a nightmare I didn't wake up from. Over the next couple of weeks, I was stuck in a reality/dreamish daze, most likely due to the amount of endorphins my body was releasing, the amount of drugs they had me on, and because I also suffered a minor concussion.
After two weeks of being in the ICU in Missouri, they transferred me to Madonna rehab in Lincoln, Nebraska for two days until I had to be transferred back to an ICU in Lincoln because I was in stage four kidney failure and had accumulated so much fluid on and around my body, that it was making it extremely difficult to breathe. After a few rounds of dialysis, my kidneys began to bounce back and I shed over 60 pounds of fluid. This began my true road to recovery.
I was soon transferred back to rehab where I started making huge gains towards getting better. It started with weaning myself off of a ventilator, getting out of a leg immobilizer (I had also shattered my knee cap in my fall), getting my feeding tube removed, being able to eat normal foods again, and just getting a little bit better each day. With these slow and steady gains from daily physical and occupational therapy, I somehow ended up where I am today. I want to thank everyone for the continued thoughts and prayers during this long journey. I'm extremely thankful because I wouldn't have been able to make such improvements if it weren't for all of the love and support.
Before my accident, I was in my second semester as a junior at the University of Iowa, pre-pharmacy major. I only had 24 more semester hours (8 classes) left until I graduated. I plan to start up school again, but in order for me to get to school and classes I would need some sort of transportation.
Both of my parents have full time jobs so it's hard having to depend on them to take me everywhere I need to go. I have several doctors appointments, therapies, and soon to be classes that I need to get to each month, and having my own car would help immensely. You're probably wondering, how can she drive if she's paralyzed? First I would need to find a car that is accessible for both me and my wheelchair to get into (i.e. a ramp or lift). Then I would need to find a place that would be able to make modifications to the car by putting in hand controls instead of using foot pedals, and unfortunately this process is not cheap.
I'm in need of financial help for paying for a car and paying off my extensive medical bills. As you can imagine, after a long 10 months of hospitals and rehabs, I've racked up a hefty amount of bills. The most urgent expense is a new vehicle as I would like to start taking classes as soon as possible! Thank you so much in advance for your contributions, any little bit helps!
Organizer
Mackenzie Wollenzien
Organizer
West Des Moines, IA