Quote:
Originally Posted by Trailer Fire
The opposing team was on a line change as I was swinging around the back of our teams net. Except for one kid apparently. And when I say kid I really mean a 6'4" 220lbs farmboy with a vicious mean streak. Comparatively I was 5'10 and 115lbs at the time. At any rate is came out from behind our net at practically full speed and crouched over a bit. I bobbled the puck and looked down to settle it down. That was the las thing I remember until later that night, when I woke up in the hospital unable to move, or breath, under my own free will. I could barely even talk a couple hours after I woke up.
I was told later that the big boy was hunting me down because I was pestering him throughout the game. He caught me in the head with his elbow while my dead was down. There was a sickening 'pop' sound and the whistle didn't even have to be blown. I was just laying there like I got shot. I was out. No lights, nothing. I was gone.
It wasn't until the next day that I really was able to comprehend what had happened. They call it internal decapitation. My vertebrae was dislocated between C3and C4 I believe. I'm still very foggy on the details of the event, as well as the following month or so. I spent over 2 weeks in the hospital, most of the time I was hooked up to a catheter and colostomy bag. For a couple days I was actually on a respirator because my brain seemed almost confused about breathing.
I still have some problems to this day with my neck as well as my brain. It's really easy for my neck to stiffen and I often have to go to a chiropractor to get work done on it. In regards to my brain, I have no idea when or what is going to happen. Sometimes I forget what I'm saying in the middle of a sentence, other times I forget how to pronounce words properly. I get headaches frequently and sometimes have sleep paralysis or night terrors, which never happened before.
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Incredible story, thanks for sharing!
What happened to the kid that hit you?