I just posted the following on GQ2, realizing that not everone knows the whole story about the accident.
Thanks for the support folks.
For Honey and the folks that don't know the saga of [censored] accident, I'll run it again. It will be good for me to tell it and get it out again.
Sadly Honey, his health will never return. <img border="0" title="" alt="[Frown]" src="images/icons/frown.gif" /> I am glad that you are better though. <img border="0" title="" alt="[Smile]" src="images/icons/smile.gif" />
Scott was in a suburb of Utah on business doing a final inspection of a Sysco building. We were at home in Milwaukee, WI.
On July 12, 2000 Scott was in a scissor lift on a construction site 4 1/2 stories above a parking lot. The hydrolic outriggers that held the lift in place failed and retracted into the lift base on the side away from the building. The lift went down.
He was flown by the Flight for Life to University of Utah Hospital and Trauma Center. He used 26 units of blood in the first day. He was placed on life support right away.
I was busy with the kids that day, looking for the perfect poster to frame for our bathroom and at Pier One getting some cute towel racks there. We just finished remodeling our downstairs bath, and I wanted it to be perfect when Scott came home the next day.
The police rang the doorbell at 8:10pm and asked if I was Louis Scott Wilkie's wife. They said that there had been an accident, but that they would find out the detials for me as soon as we called some friends or family members to come here for support. They don't do it like the movies. The young male police officer played with the kids, and the young female started calling from my address book.
When our neighbors and good friends who recently moved cross town, but came within minutes were there the woman called the station and got the information. Scott had been injured at work and was at the University Hospital, the work secretary would make flight plans for me and she wrote down the number, little information was avalable regarding his condition.
While the officer was on the phone to the station my neighbor was calling my SDad on the cell, SDad sent my sis and her fiancee up - hour and 10 min drive in 42 mins. They took the children and made flight plans with secretary. First flight to Salt Lake City was very early next morning from O'Hare. Mom and SDad live in Chicago, they would take Chris, Sis would go with me and bring baby Amanda who was still nursing. I would get some clothes together and take an hour to get my thoughts calm and drive to Chicago on my own.
I called my cousin the Doctor in New York City and woke her up. She called the Trauma Surgeon and got more information, it didn't look good. 25% chance of survival.
Fast forward to list of injuries:
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), shattered scapula, shattered all ribs on left, shattered left elbow, shattered small area of pelvis, broken/fractured pelvis, twisted and shifted tailbone, L1 - L5 broken spinal and transverse processes, spinal cord damage between C3 - C4, right ribs some broken or shattered, both lungs punctured and (forgot the word - deflated), lacerated spleen, internal bleeding, internal organ bruising, and there are a bunch more but I'm starting to depress myself here....
They encouraged me to sign a DNR and discontinue life support, but with a 6 & 2 year old I just couldn't.
None of his family will care for him. That leaves me. I take care of the man who betrayed me over and over. The one who called me a cun...
The one who told me I was fat.
The one who told me that I was a terrible Mother.
The man who decided I was not good enough to be his wife must now depend on me for his very life. I control his medications for seizures, for pain, for everything. I drive him to his Doctor appointments and keep track of them. I clean his house when there is no home health. I get on the social workers back. I deal with work comp. I deal with the lawyers. I deal with the court and the judge because of his mental illness committment.
I am the one who laid next to him in bed night after night after the accident and said "It doesn't matter honey, I love you" when he would lose control of his bladder and pee on me.
OK, I think I am done now.
Expect more later.
E
