|
 Hi,
my name
is
Lindsay
Loflin. I was
brought
into
this
world in
1972,
and up
until
recent
years
have led
a
relatively
privileged
life. I
grew up
surrounded
by a
loving
family
in quiet
Greensboro,
NC where
I
graduated
from
Page
High
School
in 1991
and went
on to
North
Carolina
State
University
to study
English
literature
and
film.
After
graduation,
I held
several
jobs of
varying
ambitions,
including
pizza
delivery,
restoration
woodworking,
furniture-making
and even
professional
gambling.
Finally,
in 2000,
I put my
more
eccentric
aspirations
on hold
and
joined
the
family
business,
working
in
insurance
and
investments.
In late
April of
2003,
while at
the
beach
with
friends,
my life
and the
lives of
all
those
close to
me would
be
forever
altered.
After a
night of
inebriated
celebration,
I
returned
to the
hotel
and
through
a blurry
series
of
events
managed
to fall
backwards,
head
first,
over a
spiral
stair
rail. At
the
bottom
of the
20ft
fall, my
head
struck
the
corner
of a
large
cement
planter
in the
hotel
lobby.
Needless
to say,
the
injuries
to my
skull
and neck
were
severe.
I spent
2 weeks
clinging
to life
in the
Wilmington,
NC
intensive
care
unit,
after
which I
was
transferred
to the
renowned
Shepherd
Center
in
Atlanta.
There I
spent 4
months
slowly
rehabilitating,
getting
acclimated
to a new
reality
that
shocks
me even
to this
day.
Luckily,
I
survived
the fall
without
any
noticeable
brain
impairment,
and the
several
life-threatening
aspects
of my
injury
eventually
stabilized.
However,
the
spinal
cord
contusion
in my
4th and
5th
cervical
vertebrae
rendered
me
completely
paralyzed
from the
shoulders
down,
making
me a
mid-level
quadriplegic.
The
instant
transition
from
living a
comfortable,
normal
life to
that of
a
helpless
quad is
about as
extreme
and
initially
overwhelming
as one
could
imagine.
However,
in the
midst of
such
devastation
grew
something
very
beautiful
and
inspiring,
and that
remains
with me
to this
day. It
is the
enduring
love and
support
of my
family.
The
severity
of a
spinal
cord
injury
reduces
the
essence
of life
to its
most
common
denominator
which is
basically
what
makes it
worth
living -
love. So
tonight
remember
to give
an extra
firm hug
to your
mother,
husband,
children
or who
ever is
close to
you,
because
when
everything
falls
through
and life
beats
you down
to where
you
can’t
get up,
it’s
your
family
who will
be there
to lift
you up
and
carry
you
through.
Since I
was
first
injured
my
mother
stayed
by my
side,
never
returning
home for
over
four
months.
And for
the bulk
of that
time my
father
and
sister
were
with me
as well.
Their
constant
warm
presence
lifted
my
spirits
and gave
me the
strength
to carry
on with
a
positive
attitude,
even to
this
day.
Mark, of
dreamblvr.com,
eloquently
describes
the
reality
that
follows
after
spinal
cord
injury
when he
writes:
"After
the get
well
cards,
casseroles,
constant
visitation
and
newness
wears
off,
life
goes on
and it’s
up to
you to
live it.
That
means
physically,
financially
and
socially.
There is
only one
person
responsible
for you
and you
have to
wear
that
hat.
When
things
are so
different
and
activity
is all
around
you
early on
after
the
injury,
you
don't
have
much
time to
plot out
a
future.
Day to
day
adjustment
is
pretty
damn
important
and it
can
consume
all of
your
time. A
little
later,
this
does
ease up
and
you're
faced
with
planning
a little
further
down the
road. In
this
situation,
people
generally
follow
certain
paths.
In some
of the
public
speaking
I've
done, I
use an
exercise
to help
make my
point. I
ask the
group to
clap.
This is
something
we learn
very
early in
life and
use as a
form of
expression.
It’s a
way we
participate
socially.
Then I
request
them to
hold one
arm to
their
side.
Now clap
for me
again.
The
group
has been
forced
to make
a
decision
and step
outside
of doing
something
the only
way
they've
ever
known.
Some
just
figure
out what
to do,
others
look
around
and see
who's
doing
what,
some
just
wait or
choose
not to
participate.
This is
no
different
than any
struggle
we face
disabled
or not.
You can
forge
ahead
and
smack
the
desk,
work
together
and give
each
other a
high-five,
witness
others
doing it
and
learn
from
them or
again
choose
not to
participate.
We all
vary
between
the
stages
and the
task at
hand
determines
the
course
of
action.
The
things
I've
done and
the
places
I've
been
could
have
never
happened
without
wanting
to live,
being
interdependent
rather
than
independent
and
accepting
help
when
it’s
necessary.
Never
has the
desire
to quit
the game
been the
answer."
To date,
I am
officially
diagnosed
as C6
complete,
which
basically
means
I'm
completely
paralyzed
from the
chest
down. I
have
limited
use of
my arms
and
wrists -
more
specifically,
I have
full use
of my
biceps
and
wrist
extensors,
30% to
50% use
of wrist
flexors
&
triceps,
and no
muscle
control
in my
hands,
just
sensation.
For the
un-paralyzed
readers
out
there,
that
means I
can
ALMOST
take
care of
myself,
but not
really.
The vast
majority
of C6
quads,
including
myself,
must
rely on
the help
of
others
to
survive
and
perform
several
of the
essential
daily
activities.
In my
case, a PCA
(personal
care
attendant)
helps me
each
morning
with
bathing
and
dressing,
etc. and
then
I'm on
my own
for the
rest of
the day
and
night.
In
October
of 2006
I moved
out on
my own
and have
regain a
significant
level of
independence.
My
initial
intention
for this
website
was to
document
this
transition
and the
people
and
things
that
help me
get
along in
this
crazy
life...
one that
I’ve
learned
to love.
Over the
past six
months
I've
made
great
strides
while
living
on my
own. I'm
now able
to go to
bed at
night
100%
independently
and on
occasion
have
gotten
myself
up in
the
morning
and
dressed
when
necessary.
I
continue
to reach
goals
that I
once
thought
would
not be
possible.
When I
look
back,
the
biggest
impediment
to my
progress
remains
to be
the
moments/stages
where I
succumb
to
self-doubt
and fail
myself
with
insufficient
faith &
determination.
I
continue
to live
and
learn...
for
which I
am
thankful.
make
contact
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