Prayers Needed....

Well, it's kind of ironic that my LAST post was all about a tumble that Jesse and I took....and it's great that I didn't get hurt, but not long after that post, another incident occurs!  I'm really beginning to re-evaluate my ability to ride.....or at least WHAT ABILITIES I actually have?
I'm sitting here, loaded with pain killers and muscle relaxers evaluating how in the world I will be able to do this for 8-12 weeks!

STORY:

It started out to be such a great day.  I was going to the stables with DR to help give her little Granddaughters pony rides.  We had a great little ride to begin with,  DR had (Stella) behind her and one of the girl wranglers was ponying the older girl (Lilly) and I was riding Lady.
Our short trail ride was nice, except we DID see our first Rattlesnake of the season!

So, we arrive back to stables and took the horses inside the arena so Jesse could give rides in there, and I was just going to work Lady a bit, because she has been spooking along the far wall at every little thing.  We were doing good, She'd spook and I'd take her right back to whatever it was, she'd sniff at it and settle down.  Once, twice, three times we did the entire arena like that.  She only seemed to spook on the FAR wall.
I guessed that she was getting tired of doing the same thing over and over, so I began doing large figure 8's in the middle of arena.  She did fine until once she stumbled and then right after that she BUCKED!  I could't believe I stayed on, but it happened so fast, I didn't have time to react.  So,....I kicked her to start trotting again and she BUCKED again!  DR saw this one and decided that Jesse also needed a little bit of work as he had been pushing his riders buttons by continuing to head for the gate.  Lilly is only 9 yrs. old and she was doing great, but Jesse was getting her number.  At this point, I decided to put my helmet on, WHY NOW!  You say?  Just gut instinct, I felt a bit nervouse that she had bucked on me.
So now DR and I are on the horses, and we began to just trot them around, they were both doing good and we decided to kick them into a gentle lope.
As soon as I got Lady into a lope we were entering a corner of the arena (this was NOT the one where she had spooked before) and in a split second she did a spook/jump to the left and I (with my momentum) kept going straight.....Unfortunately, I couldn't get my balance back and next thing I know, I was in the dirt.

It knocked the wind out of me, so it took awhile before I could even talk.  I somehow landed first on my elbow, then hips and somehow rolled onto my face!  I couldn't move.....but everyone was checking me, asking if I could move my toes etc.  I could, but if I tried to lift my head OR legs, I got a SHARP HOT ROD up my spine.  Oh, Oh, this doesn't feel good.  


So, I ended up laying there "face in the dirt" until the Ambulance got to me.  Little Stella was so sweet, she scooted up right next to me and was petting my head or I should say my helmet, while we waited.

Pretty soon, here comes help.

The Ambulance arrived, They seemed to take a long time examining me, but then they decided they needed to roll me onto a back board.  BAD IDEA!   They did a good job of keeping my body perfectly straight while doing this but I was in AGONY!  My tailbone area couldn't even tolerate laying on the  cushioned gurney.  OUCHY!!!  (but, they kept saying, "we have to"...)


All I can say is: "It's a good thing they had lots of help!  It's at times like these one says to oneself......"Now don't ya wish you'd lost that extra weight?"

In the ambulance, My paramedic (Jenny) was very reassuring and started an I.V. in my hand.
We arrive to the hospitals Trauma Unit and as we are coming through the doors, a nurse runs up to us and says "Is this the Horse?"    I looked at her, and said "Well, I've been called worse."  She laughed and apologized.....I knew what she meant.

I spent the entire evening getting x-rays on my pelvic/spine, right leg, elbow and of course my head.  Everything turned out good EXCEPT:  I had a few fractures on my lower spine.  I guess it could've been worse, but this is gonna RUIN my entire winter down here!   Cowgirljlynn and Dusty Devoe are coming down for a week and I was SOOOO looking forward to riding with them! As well as Paint Girl and Pony Girl were coming too.  So, instead of riding with them....I'll just be laid up, and "simply hearing" about their wonderful rides.  Oh, whoa is me....

Dr. says it will take 8-12 weeks for this to heal!  And THEN it may still hurt to ride.  And I have to be honest, this is VERY PAINFUL!  My DH is lowering me up and down on every seat (including bathroom!)   I'm taking 2 muscle relaxers and a pain pill every 8hrs.  And an Ibuprofen 800 in between there!  And, it still doesn't kill the pain!
I know I'm sounding like a whiner, but I had such GREAT PLANS  for riding with DR and Bossman this winter....:-(
I spent three nights in the hospital (had fabulous care from the nurses!)  As far as Hospitals go, this one actually had good food, Every person was gentle, caring and quick to assist me or help with anything I needed.
So, Im home now in our MH recovering.  Hubby helps me up and down, I can "hardly" move and am trying to get out to the patio at least once per day (which means maneuvering 6 steps down the MH steps.

I have to say, Sometimes I wonder if God is sending me a message....I love riding horses, I do everything as safe as I possibly can....but,  I'm beginning to think that arenas and I just aren't compatible! It's the fast way things occur in there that seem to catch me off guard.  I don't really believe my balance is all that it could be.  (More lessons maybe???)

3 days later:

Well, I'v spent most of my days shuffling over to the pool, and walking in "chest deep" back and forth.  The PT guy at hospital said that would help.  It has!   I have loosened up quite a bit and am now able to get up and down out of "most" chairs by myself.  I also have cut back on my pain meds.  They dried my mouth out so bad I could harldly talk.  But, I can tell it's probably going to be a SLOW heal..... Ugh!  I don't have patience for this.

I'll know I'm making REAL PROGRESS  when I can bend over the sink and brush my teeth.  I know...don't visualize...its not pretty.

Anyway,...I have healed up enough that I'm going to "bite the Vicadin" I mean the bullet, and get dressed up in cowgirl attire to attend a Dinner that kicks off the Rodeo down here.  Bossman has invited DR. and myself to be his guests!  That's my goal, I have a couple more days left.

I'm sorry I don't have many pictures to share of this, I was a bit busy with screaming and all that....Hee! Hee!
So, if you can send your prayers this way for a while, I'd really appreciate it.  Hoping to get back to normal soon.