Tuesday the 13th of January
My Tuesday forenoon took me to the grocery store. I might have said in my blog of yesterday that Dennis and I were headed to the store.
Well . . . that never happened. Dennis was standing by the back door and his legs went out from under him. The slow decline of standing and then slumping down in a sitting position had enough momentum that his body turned 45 degrees. There was nothing to stop his body from sliding down the basement concrete steps head first. His legs were on the bottom two steps and his head was on the basement floor.
I didn’t even say anything or ask any questions of Dennis, I dialed 911. Dennis was conscious and trying to move his limbs. I did not touch Dennis but assured him help was on the way. I stepped outside as there was nothing I could do. There were two men running up to our home before the ambulance arrived. A half block from our home the city crew was working, some apparently on the ambulance squad. When their pagers went off they ran to our home.
I put my hands in my pockets. Two nurses and five men worked to get Dennis flat on the basement floor, beginning their evaluation. Dennis was talking and answering questions. Out of the ambulance came a folded looking chair full of straps. Dennis sat in it and was tethered in with his head secured in a brace from the back of the chair. It took the five men to get Dennis up the steps and outside. By that time the two nurses had a gurney on the driveway by the back door. The chair began collapsing and Dennis was almost flat when he was lifted from that chair onto the gurney with blankets being wrapped around and over him.
All of this happened around one thirty. I sat in the ER waiting room until I thought I was going to storm the nurses station. Dennis had x-rays of his head, his torso, some with contrast, some with not, EKG, blood work, etc. At six thirty we were told if he could walk with a walker to the end of the hall and back he could go home. WTF!
No open wounds, no skinned off face. No broken ribs to have punctured his lungs. The T2 vertebra has a fracture. There is nothing that can be done with that.
Home sweet home. Bedtime was early. I found out I could nap in my Teak wooden rocking chair as I kept an ear out. This morning I doubt that Dennis could point out one spot where his back didn’t feel the ride of the seven steps. Because of his cold and that he has experienced having phenomena in the past, he is on an antibiotic. Extra strength Tylenol, 2 every six hours.
Yup. Life on Stauffer.
I won’t be doing a post tomorrow, as I have a three pm appointment in Mankato with my cardiologist. Catch you all on Thursday.
With that I will take my leave. ♥