I made it to Florida for the Feb 12 sailing of the Odyssey, but she sailed without me

[gingersvp]

I cringed just reading that. I'm so sorry that happened to you and I hope you make your May sailing. In 2012 I feel, sprained both ankles and broke my right foot. I was a solo mom to 2 young boys and had a long distance boyfriend that happened to be visiting at the time. He extended his stay to take care of me and I got my first taste of working from home. I spent about a month in a wheelchair and it was 2 months before I could drive again. The boys were 9 and 5 at the time. My boyfriend took such good care of me and stocked my freezer with food for the extra week he was down that I locked him in and married him the next year. It was truly a defining moment in our relationship.

 

It's so hard being disabled, even if only temporarily. Wishing you speedy healing and hoping you have lots of helping hands around you 

[nelblu]

That sucks😒

[emeraldcity]

I appreciate your well wishes and thank each of you for taking the time to respond.

 

I know I will come out of this with a new found appreciation for the difficulties of negotiating life's byways in a wheelchair. One of the ladies at the skilled nursing facility advised that I would find everything takes longer in a wheelchair ... for instance, just opening a door and going through it and then trying to close it behind you. Wow! She is so right. I really had never thought about it.

[puppycanducruise]

Ouch!  Sorry this happened to you.  Hope you heal quickly.

[Chloesimon]

One word. Lawsuit.

[Ocean Boy]

8 minutes ago, Chloesimon said:

One word. Lawsuit.

🙄

[MadamGorgeous]

15 hours ago, emeraldcity said:

Three hours after checking into my pre-cruise hotel 2 days prior to the cruise, I was returning to the hotel after lunch. There was no crosswalk in view in either direction, so I crossed the highway and started to cross the dividing medium strip. What appeared to be a concrete sluiceway in the medium strip to handle excessive rain runoff ended in what looked like a scattering of leaves. It was actually a hole filled with leaves. (My cruise friend checked it out later and told me it was 7 inches deep,) I went down hard and broke both ankles.

 

It was to have been a girls cruise ... the three of us hadn't seen each other since a cruise group get-together in New York City two and a half years earlier. Once I got confirmation that the ankles were broken, I had to cancel my reservation. I'm still awaiting the FCC. I urged my friends to go on the cruise and have a wonderful time and send me lots of pictures.

 

I spent two days in a hospital in Florida before flying home after a great deal of work on the part of friends and family to get me back to Cleveland. As the plane took off from FLL, I kept saying to myself "Don't look. Don't look. Don't look." But of course, I looked. And there was the Odyssey with the unmistakable Northstar stretched across the top ... and I buried my face in my hands and sobbed for quite some time.

 

I finally got home yesterday to a house that has seen considerable modification by my mobilized family to accommodate a mom in a wheelchair.

 

I have subsequently cancelled my March cruise and am holding out hope I can go on the one in May.

How awful this happened. I hope you get better super fast and enjoy many beautiful cruises in the future ❤️

[MJSailors]

@emeraldcity

   So very sorry to read about your accident. When I saw the title of your post, I thought you couldn’t board the ship due to a positive Covid test result. 

     If there is a silver lining for you, I can think of three things.

    Having a supportive family that helped you get home from Florida and making comfortable arrangements when you got home is wonderful.

    Getting treatment at the Cleveland Clinic where there is some of the best medical care in the country.

    Getting the evaluation for no need of surgery is certainly good news.

Wishing you good healing- 

MJ🙋🏻

 

[D4]

I’m curious … were you walking alone when you fell?  Did you call 911?  Thank God you weren’t hit by a car when you were waiting for help in the center area of a highway.

[CatLadyFemme]

Holding so much space for you. I am the queen of random travel injuries (I once strained all the tendons on my left leg stepping into a gopher hole and then while on crutches in the hotel bathroom the next day, proceeded to fall and end up concussed), so sending much love and light. I’m just to your north (near Ann Arbor), and have found much (though not all) of Cleveland to be much more accessible than A2 or Detroit.

 

I am also a disabled and chronically ill activist, so if you need anything on disability community, reframing the struggle of not being traditionally mobile, etc., let me know!

[SG65CB]

15 hours ago, emeraldcity said:

After several days in the hospital here, I went to a 5-star skilled nursing facility where my daughter-in-law works. It was a little taste to what life might be like down the road if I ever need long term care. They were very warm and welcoming, and I valued the caring staff and the stories they shared of their lives.

 

Can you share the name of the skilled nursing facility? I understand if you don't want to due to privacy, but it would be good to know where this care is available in the NEO area. 

 

[ChutChut]

3 hours ago, Chloesimon said:

One word. Lawsuit.

Suing a city is a totally different animal than suing a private party. Caps on liability, different statute of limitations, etc. If OP proceeds, she must understand (or her lawyer) all aspects of the statute governing sovereign immunity and extent of any waiver.

[emeraldcity]

2 hours ago, D4 said:

I’m curious … were you walking alone when you fell?  Did you call 911?  Thank God you weren’t hit by a car when you were waiting for help in the center area of a highway.

Yes. I was alone. And I fell on the very soft dirt of the medium strip. It had to have been soft, because I landed on my shoulder and I never had any pain in the shoulder from the fall. Several motorists who saw me fall pulled over and ran across the medium strip to help me. One woman practically carried me to her car and got me into the back seat. She then drove to the hotel door and practically carried me into the lobby. After some discussion about options (which included a conversation with my daughter back home) the desk clerk called 911 for me. The ambulance came within minutes, but it was clear the driver had better things to do. She challenged everything I said and tried to talk me out of going to the ER. At one point she said I should have my "friends" who were standing there take me to an urgent care center. "I don't even know this woman's name," I said. "She is just someone who stopped to help." I strongly hope that the local residents get better treatment from the service their tax dollars are supporting that this unfortunate tourist received.

[emeraldcity]

2 hours ago, SG65CB said:

 

Can you share the name of the skilled nursing facility? I understand if you don't want to due to privacy, but it would be good to know where this care is available in the NEO area. 

 

The Welsh Home in Rocky River. It is a not-for-profit facility.

[emeraldcity]

5 hours ago, Chloesimon said:

One word. Lawsuit.

Two words. Not interested.

[D4]

OMG … the ambulance driver tried to talk you out of going to the ER??? 😱 That is so wrong,  

[Bailey & Sophie]

 

The worst thing about my convalescence at hone was we had 2 dogs and I couldn't take care of them. If they had to go out I couldn't get up & down the steps to the back yard. And if there was trouble I would not have been able to get to them.

So my husband got up early on Mon, took them to a doggy day care/boarding kennel that we used and picked them up on Fri afternoon. We had to package and label all their food. But it was so worth it.

These breaks can be do complicated. 

Hope you are well on the way to healing.

[soremekun]

Florida highways are crazy.  Actual footage!

 

[emeraldcity]

10 hours ago, D4 said:

OMG … the ambulance driver tried to talk you out of going to the ER??? 😱 That is so wrong,  

I got the impression she was trying to guilt me into sending them away. Her last attempt was "You have to understand, with Covid and all, it will probably be three hours before they even triage you." and I said "OK". Really what was my option? If I had to wait, so be it. But the thought running through my mind was that the Covid numbers were plummeting in Florida, (I had specifically checked it out on the internet the night before) so her information didn't sound solid.

 

Of course, when we got to the ER, nobody was rushing around stressed, gurneys weren't lined up in the hallways, people in full protective PPE were nowhere to be seen. "Whatcha got." "Seventy-something female, ankle injuries from a fall." "Room 6." And I was wheeled past a large number of treatment rooms, at least a dozen of which were empty.

[Tee & Chilli]

Wishing you a healthy recovery.

[emeraldcity]

8 hours ago, Tee & Chilli said:

Wishing you a healthy recovery.

Thank you.