Nov32012

In The Belly of the Whale

An Excerpt from CRASH:

In The Belly of the Whale

At 3:00 a.m. August 21, 2010 I hit the wall: literally.

Crowchild Trail, in Calgary, Alberta, Canada is a major traffic artery. Tens of thousands of commuters use Crowchild to get to and from work during the day. But at 3 in the morning the road is effectively deserted. Ten foot cement ‘fences’ serve as sound barriers at select locations along the road. Fifty fourth avenue south west is marked by a unique feature: A pull in for transit buses. At 3:00 a.m. August 21, 2010 my Baby Blue, 1992 Oldsmobile hit the cement sound barrier, at the end of the bus pull in, head on at 85 kilometres per hour.

It was my entry into the belly of the whale.

What was I doing there? Why was I there at 3 in the morning? What caused the accident? Did I have a stroke? Was I drunk? Did someone force me off the road?

All these questions would eventually be answered. But, first I would have to survive.

When I was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit at Foothills Medical Centre I was classed in “Serious, Life Threatening” condition: bleeding heavily from my face. The skin on my chin was ripped off to the bone, a condition known to the medical community as degloving. And I had a deep laceration through my right eyebrow.

These ‘surface’ problems would need to be addressed immediately. But there were deeper problems that would necessitate 2 months in the hospital – if I survived Intensive Care Unit. And, my survival was questionable.

After surgery to repair my degloving injury and the laceration in my right eyebrow I was thoroughly assessed. A picture of my exact condition began to emerge. Diagnostic Imaging showed:

  • Bilateral internal carotid artery dissociations and thrombus 1
  • C2 fracture 2
  • Right proximal undisplaced fibular fracture 3
  • Right calcaneal fracture 4
  • Left C7 transverse process fracture 5
  • Left posterior frontal stroke 6
  • Bilateral NCA omboli 1
  • Right pneumothorax 2
  • Right rib fractures

FMC (Foothills Medical Centre) is certified as a Level 1 Trauma facility so they had ready access to a team of experts who could assess and address my various problems. This team included:

  • Dr. Lall, who lead the surgical team who repaired the wounds on my face,
  • Dr. Buckley, Head of trauma and orthopaedic surgeon whose team was responsible for caring for my right ankle and leg,
  • Dr. Bouchard, Orthopaedic surgeon and spine specialist who focused on the care of my neck injuries,
  • Dr. Coutts, neurologist and neurosurgeon, specialist in strokes,
  • Various ICU specialists, nursing staff, and other professionals

When my wife, Joyce, arrived at the ICU she was told that there was a good possibility that I would not survive,

Obviously, I did.

This is the story of my time in the belly of the whale; what I did there; and how I got out.

CONTINUED

Copyright 2012 Lyle T. Lachmuth, All Rights Reserved

1What is omboli

2Collapsed right lung

1Ripped carotid artery

2C2 is the so-called Hangman`s vertebrae. An injury to C2 will often result in instant death

3My right fibula was cracked

4My right heel bone was shattered

5Blah blah

6Initial indication of the stroke that resulted from the accident

Posted in Musings, My Story