Update August 2006

It has been 10 years since my accident, almost 11, but I am living on my own in an apartment near work. I also work at the hospital in rehabilitation, in occupational and physical therapy for people who have had strokes. I have worked here for 4 years and share my story about rehab. with those going through it now and offer what encouragement I can to help with there struggles.

I am also training for my 4th half marathon with the Challenged Athletes Foundation who my cousin got me involved with. 2002 was my first year participating in this half ironman triathlon in which I do the run porshen which is 13.1 miles. The couple years I participated with other challenged athletes but last year was the first year that my 2 cousins also participated with me and last year I also took 10 minutes off my time from the year before. The first year I participated it took me 3 hours and 18 minutes, then the next year 3 hours and 15 minutes and last year 3 hours and 5 minutes so now I am determined to get under 3 hours.

There is also a picture of my nephew and me when he was 1 but is 5 now and also has 2 younger sisters one of whom was just born in May. So I have 4 nieces and 5 nephews and I am a very proud aunt.

I was also became a lifeguard in the summer of 1990, I really enjoyed this and the kids. I was also a swim instructor as well, teaching all different kinds of people how to swim from age six months to adult. I lifeguarded the day camps in the summer and this was my favorite activity because I loved the kids and interacting with them. My boss always put me guarding it every summer because she knew I loved it and other guards hated it. But the reason they hated it was because they felt the kids didn't listen. Well I became good friends with them and gave them a reason to listen not only to me but my coworkers as well.

When I came to college in the fall of 1992, I became a lifeguard over at the Simon Recreation Center. Lifeguarding was not as much fun here at SLU, but it was a good job. Because I was a lifeguard, that is how I got my other jobs at the Rec Center. I also checked peoples ID when they came in or worked at the equipment desk giving them whatever they needed for their workout, towel, basketball, etc.

In 1995 along with my job at the Rec center, I also became employed as a waitress at a bar called Humphrey's here by school. It was great, because I am such an enthusiastic person, I love waitressing. It was like I got to act every night. Acting was something I always thought a lot about but never did anything about. Because Humphrey's is a bar here by St. Louis University and I'd like to think I was pretty popular, knowing tons of people, there wasn't a time in their that I didn't know somebody I knew. Part of this has to do with the fact that I love to drink and even before I was 21 I would go in there and became friends with everyone. Then after I became 21, I could then try to get hired as a waitress. At first it was hard because she didn't need anyone just yet. Well I waited awhile and by February 1995, got hired as a waitress. Not to long after I started working, I began to date one of the bartenders.

In the summer of 1995, I was working 3 jobs. Working at the YMCA lifeguarding and teaching swimming, working for Tony Glavin ( a professional soccer player who used to play for the St. Louis Steamers) doing soccer camps, and working at Humphrey's waitressing at night.

Well in June of 1995 one night after working at Humphrey's, I was driving home and I feel asleep on the way home. I was almost to my exit on the highway, when I hit the median and my car caught on fire. Luckily I was OK and I got out in time, but I was really shaken up and I had a big old gash on my leg. The place in the highway was right near the Ford company's plant, where I friend who I played basketball and volleyball with in high school, her dad was just getting off the late shift and he called my parents, who came and got me and took me to the hospital to get my leg fixed up. This happened just a few days before the anniversary of my sister Jane's car accident and death. Her accident was June 15, 1988, she was in a coma for one week before her body started to give out and she died on June 22, 1988. I had only just graduated from eighth grade and was going on to high school without one of my big sisters. I didn't realize this till much later, that she too had a head injury and eventually died because the swelling in her brain just became too much.

Then in August of 1995, I moved back to St. Louis University for my senior year of college. On September 15, a good friend of mine and I went out for a night of fun. First we went to Blueberry Hill to start our evening off. After a few drinks we decided it was time to move on and went to my humble place of work, Humphrey's. I was also dating one of the bartenders who happened to be working that night. As usual he made me many free shots; he would just put them in the bar in front of me. But mine only regret is when we decided it was time for a late night food run and I drove. We went down to White Castles which was down the street from St. Louis University where we both went to school. By this time it was after midnight so it was September 16, and we went to Whiteys where I only know this because my friend Kathy who I was with told me we had been making fun of the guy who took our order because he sounded like a little kid. After we left Whiteys, we were headed back down Grand Ave. to my apartment near SLU. When we came into the intersection of Grand and Chouteau and were talking like two good friends do, I ran a red light and was hit by a jeep. The crazy thing is the guy who hit me, was driving on a revoked driver's license in someone else's car and he was also drunk. My only injury was my head injury and my friend's only injury Thank God was a sprained ankle and being really shaken up.

My parents once again received a phone call saying that one of their daughters was just in a car accident with head injury and unresponsive. They immediately came down to St. Louis University Hospital where I was taken. When they came, the whole ER staff heart broke for them because as a sophomore, I volunteered in the Emergency room at SLU Hospital and alot of people remembered me. I remained here until October 4, 1995, when I was transfered to a rehabiliatation hospital. I remained comatose from the time of the accident and over to St. Mary's. That explains why my only memories are from St. Mary's because this is where I came out of my coma. After I came out of the coma, I undured much rehab because I need to learn to walk and talk again. I am convinced that all the peolple at St. Mary's are God's angels taking care of the unconscious and getting us back to life again with much therapy.

Now don't just think that this was something that happened quickly, but rather it took an awful long time and a great deal of patience. My first memory is of Christmas 1995 probably because it was one of the first times I got to go home for the day. In the evening, I had to come back to the hospital. I remained at St. Mary's until February 2, 1996. I had progressed enough with the help of therapy and then went to an outptaient rehab center sponsored by St. Mary's. When I left the hospital, I was walking with a walker. Being the avid runner I was and still am, I asked my physiatrist when I would run again. He told me the same thing that I heard many times before, you just have to be patient with this injury and give it time.

Now because so much time has pasted and gotten so much better, I really believe that to be true even though I didn't at the time.

Slowly I got rid of what I used to call "the stupid walker" and was walking totally independently when I left there after six months.

I was determined to get back to college and finish my degree, but my advisor told me first I needed to take a class at the community college. I tried that in the fall of 1996 but had to drop it because it was still too soon. Then I took it again in the spring of 1997, and finished. After I completed it successfully, I talked to my advisor at SLU about coming back. I then set up time to come down and register for the fall. Thinking I could do it, I signed up for 12 hours. At the time of the accident, I was taking 18 hours and working three jobs. I had to drop one totally and only audit another class. I only ended up finishing two classes and my advisor suggested that I just do one class next semester. I took one class but it wasn't with my advisor and I was convinced that I could do it. But unfortunately I had a lot of memory trouble and had to end up auditing the class. Now I'm working at the Rec Center at St. Louis University where I worked before the accident. I'm working there this summer and taking an independent study with my advisor, in which I am writing a paper about this whole ordeal. Most of it has to be factual, but then I'm writing an epilogue where I'm going to parellel the main body of the paper with my story.

Last ime I saw my physiatrist, he put me on this muscle relaxer which made it easier to walk. So then I started back running and I run 3 miles at a time. I don't run the entire time, I'm still building up to it, I run as long as I can and then walk for a short time only to start running again. It now takes me 35 minutes to run three miles. When I started, it took me 45 minutes to run two miles. When I got two miles down to 30 minutes, then I ran three miles. I like this, because not only is it good for me and keeps me in shape, I really enjoy it and it is just time for myself.

I'm doing that and slowly but surely finishing my degree. When anyone asks me how long it will take, I reply I don't know and I don't care. I have no idea how long it will take but that is not important, what is important is that I'm going to finish.

Email Cathy