Thank you for lifting Todd up in prayer. He's still in ICU under care of a superbly skilled staff. A long surgery repaired numerous breaks in Todd's upper body, docs essentially lifted and secured every rib with steel bands, anchored the broken clavicle with plates and rods, set aside repair of a broken shoulder for later (also later are more minor things like ACL/MCL knee injuries), still mechanically inflating one collapsed lung while other bruised lung, liver, etc., are watched; chest drain is working overtime to keep things clear.
Requiring a bit more than our usual fix-all up here - Duct tape - some gnarly incisions to enter his innards will be reminders of how life can change in the blink of an eye. (And skating through TSA detectors with bionic parts will now be anything but the blink of an eye!)
So thankful for today's medical technology including 3-D X-rays, temporary pain blocks and epidurals. I'm voting for their continued use until a resting position is found that allows minimal wincing with each breath.
We say Mat-Su Regional Hospital (http://matsuregional.com) is the best place to start life - all our babies are Mat-Su born - and these ER and ICU days show our local medical experts are most outstanding at continuing life, too... by the grace of God.
It's all good though, and I hope whatever challenges you face today - physical, emotional, financial - you'll have confidence in the care around you, and you'll apply Todd's consistent advice: "Don't sweat the small stuff."
Your care for Todd is more appreciated than I can express. Thank you. And thank you to the still-mysterious snowmachiner(s) who came upon the wreck and provided critical help that night. I hope to meet you soon!
- Sarah
Wow. Snowmobiles are not toys. Nor are motorcycles.
More than a few of the riding crowd I knew in my yout’ broke ribs hips and more. I thank my lucky gene.
I cant imagine what lies ahead for Todd as he recupes, likely to be the end of his riding days for awhile.
Hang in there Todd and Good luck.