STOP DRINKING & DRIVING!!!

On Monday August 27th, 2018, Cody Carlson (22 years old), who is a beloved son, brother, grandson, nephew, cousin, uncle, and friend was in a horrific car wreck. A Drunk Driver collided into his car head on around 1:30am as he was on his way home from hanging out with friends... With his car completely crumbled and burnt to nothing, luckily he made it out alive by the grace of God. 

Cody has over 10 broken bones, some of which include his left femur,  left foot, right ankle, the bottom part of his right tibia, his entire left arm, right scapula, nose, and several ribs. Also, he has two missing teeth that were pushed up into his gums.

He will be having a total of 6 major surgeries. Around 12:00pm on Monday, he underwent his first surgery which took a total of 8 hours. His second surgery on his arm took 3 hours, and he did extremely well. The next surgery is scheduled for September 5th. He is also going to need dental surgery at a later time once all of his major surgeries are out of the way.

With all that being said, he has a LONG rode to recovery and we are not sure of how long he will be in the hospital. Cody has a professional job and he could potentially be out of work for a year (possibly longer) depending on how well he does when he starts therapy. 

Cody's life has changed drastically. He will be learning to accommodate to his new lifestyle by wheelchair. My family will have to make a ramp for us to get him in and out of the house for check-ups and doctor appointments. Once he comes home from the hospital, he will be needing a hospital bed and porter potty. My family will also be needing a rental car to transport my brother to and from check-ups since our SUV is not compatible for him due to all of his injuries.  Since his injuries are critical, he will not be able to do anything on his own, therefore my parents will be out of work taking care of him. 

For those of you who might not know my brother, this is not the first time something spontaneous has happened to him. Whenever he was in high school, he had spontaneous pneumothorax (collapsed lung) and he had to undergo lung surgery. I am informing you on this because my brother is one heck of a trooper. He is my families Iron Man, he is my families Incredible Hulk. He has been through it all, yet has never given up. As I watch him lay in the hospital bed with agonizing pain and not being able to do anything for him, breaks my heart.... My brother has always asked, "why do I always have the worst things happen to me"? And that's a question I cannot even answer... We always ask the question, "why"... and at this time, all I can say is, don't ask why, just count your blessings. My family and I are counting ours.

I'm starting a GoFundMe for my brother because I am hoping to somehow raise awareness to everyone on how deadly drinking and driving truly is. You see it all the time on the news, but you never imagine it to be you, or one of your loved ones....until it actually happens. The person who wrecked into my brother has caused his life to drastically change. The person who wrecked into my brother has caused him so much excruciating pain that no words could ever describe. My entire family has been extremely stressed and emotionally drained, physically and mentally. Trying to figure out how to accommodate a new living arrangement, to watching my sweet Cody scream in pain... Words cannot describe our pain we feel for him. I almost lost my brother due to someone's bad habit...  I cannot stress this enough... STOP DRINKING AND DRIVING!!!!! And lastly, make sure you always tell your loved ones that you love them... Tomorrow could be their last day. Life is too short. I'm serious.

At this time, my brother and the entire family need all the prayers and support we can possibly receive during this difficult time. 

Thank you for taking your time to read my story on my beloved brother Cody Carlson.

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STOP DRINKING AND DRIVING!!!!!

***** If you have any questions or concerns, you can contact me on facebook. ******

https://www.facebook.com/ciara.carlson