My brother was in an accident

[SpeedRacer 1]

My brother Sean almost died in an accident up in New Hampshire on Sunday 2/17. He and his 13-year-old son Joseph were on a bus on the way to a ski resort to go snwo boarding. It was snowing & the driver was going too fast. The bus skidded, hit a bridge abutment & then went over the median to the other side. 24 people had minor injuries, 4 were seriously injured, including my brother.
Click here to read the Boston Globe story about the crash
My mother called me at about 12:30 on Sunday 17th & left a message on my machine saying that Sean had been in a bad accident. I got the message at about 4:00 & called my mother..at that time we weren't sure if Sean was going to live. My mother was catching a 7:30 flight up to New Hampshire. I threw some clothes into a suitcase & was able to make the same flight.
All the way up I was praying for Sean. When we got to NH my mother called up & it was then that we learned that the doctors figured Sean would probably pull through. The whole immediate family had shown up at the hospital.
Sean's injuries: Brain trauma (blow was on the left side, causing a hematoma on the right side of the brain. Hairline cracks in spine, broken right hand, black eye, etc.
He was in intensive care for five days. For the first three days he was hooked up to a ventilator. He was transferred to the neurology wing on Friday. I returned to my home in Maryland on Sunday 24th & have heard that he's talking a lot more now. The left side of his body is very weak (due to damage to brain on right side) & his wife says that his thoughts are very confused sometimes. It's going to be a long road to recovery. He'll have to got thru a lot of physical therapy befoer he's back to normal.
Anyway, that's where I've been for the last week.
Just wanted to let you know: Don't ever take the people you love for granted! This accident was the kind of thing that's only supposed to happen to "other people." But this time it happened to us. Anyone of us, or anyone we love, could be snatched away from us at any time.
Oh, and one other thing re. skydiving: ALWAYS wear your helmet! Brain trauma is nasty shit.
Speed Racer
"Fill your hand, you son-of-a-bitch!"

[lummy 4]

Glad to hear that your brother will pull thru.....
praying good things for you, your brother and your family
Still a man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest....

[bbarnhouse 0]

Glad to hear that your brother will recover and that the family all came together. I was in a similar situation on the 4th of July only the outcome wasn't as happy. Don't forget what you learned about expressing your love for your family each time you walk out the door. You may not have another chance to do so.
Peace
It only takes a little pixie dust......

[JDBoston 0]

Speedy,
Very glad to hear your brother is going to be OK. That's very fortunate. Apparently that dumbass bus driver was just speeding along on the ice. The accident probably could have been a lot worse than it was. Never take anything for granted...
Joe

[Divadiver 0]

Quote

anyone we love, could be snatched away from us at any time.

Amen to that!! Squeeze them and don't let go for a long, long time!!
Best of everything for your brother Speedy, I hope the road to recovery is a soft, short one!
Diva

[ADRNALN 0]

All my prayers are with you and your brother.
Take care!

[freeflir29 0]

Dude ...That blows.....Sue the bus company and live happily ever after. Seriously...glad he is OK. I've been pretty lucky. Haven't lost any family members. I sure gave my Mom a lot of gray hairs while I was in the military though....
"I only have a C license, so I don't know shit..right?"-Clay

[hisgoofyness 0]

wishing your brother a speedy recovery
and clay, i sure gave my mother plenty of grey while i was in the air force as well. nothing like sitting at home (in alaska, where i was stationed) one day, only to get sent on a TDY the next day to lebanon then over to korea then to japan all one after another
hisgoofyness
it ain't easy being goofy, but i do what the little voices in my head tell me to do

[jfields 0]

Terrence,
I hope things improve quickly for your brother! I'm thinking of you all.
Justin

[hooked 0]

I almost lost my son from an auto accident. It took me a long time to get over that "scary feeling" everytime the phone rang, thinking it was another one of "those calls" that is every parents nightmare. Not a nice thing to experience. Hang in there, he will make progress every day!
J

[Tee 0]

Hey Speedy. I am very glad to hear that your brother is okay. Let him know your other "family" is rooting for him. Tee

[SpeedRacer 1]

I've been reading up about TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury). It happens much more often than people think. And it's a lot more serious. Doctors say that the public believes in the "Hollywood Head Injury Myth" also known as the Three Stooges Myth...In the movies people get hit & kicked in the head & usually just look momentarily dazed...Or they get knocked unconscious, and then someone just tosses some water in their face & they just wake up & are fine. And movies & TV often try to make fights look fun or manly or glorious somehow.

The reality is that brain trauma causes damage that needs months of treatment, and can cause permanent damage or death. So wear your friggin helmet. & stay out of fights!
Speed Racer
"Fill your hand, you son-of-a-bitch!"

[skymedic 0]

What he experienced was classic Coup contra coup....Melon gets hit on left side....brain accelerates till it hits the right side ending up in traumatic injury to the Right side of the brain.....
I hope it all works out for him speed.....if ya have any ?'s regarding anything I can help ya out....
marc
BSBD

[Billy 0]

Hope he continues to get better,, sounds promising and actually like he's progressing pretty fast,,, so explain to me now why buses don't have seatblets??
Don't read this shit down here,, it's nonsense,,,

[SpeedRacer 1]

I think this bus might have had seatbelts- Sean was badly injured because he was either in the rest room at the back or on his way there & was NOT in his seat.
Speed Racer
"Fill your hand, you son-of-a-bitch!"

[kmcguffee 0]

We'll keep your brother and family in our prayers. God Bless.

[DENGOPHER 0]

hey man i hope your brother pulls through ok !!!! we will be thinking of you guys!!!! good luck...
just jump!!!!
gopher

[skymama 35]

Sorry to hear that, Speedy and I hope his recovery is, well....speedy! Let us know if he needs a pick-me-up at some point, and we'll flood his e-mail account with dirty jokes and well wishes!
Andrea
The brave may not live forever, but the timid may not live at all.

[Lindsey 0]

Man....I'm really sorry to hear about your brother. My family and I will be sending lots of good thoughts his way....and yours. I hope he recovers well.....
Peace~
Lindsey
"I live with fear and terror, but sometimes I leave him and go skydiving!"

[Iflyme 0]

Speedy, I hope your brother will recover fully from his injuries... news like this really puts things into perspective. Family is so important, and when we come close to losing a family member, everything else seems so unimportant.
I'll keep my fingers crossed for you.
Frank

[jtval 0]

hey speedy there's nothing really to say here except i hope he gets well soon.
i also heard that if you hit your head hard enough in the situation marc explain that your brainlobes(left-right side) can actually separate and stop the synapses from firing.(dont know the exact info on it but ,damn) I am so glad it wasnt as bad as it coulda been. he's really lucky if he was standing up when this happened!
getting high is fun, but coming down is the best part
JT