I was working on the top of a four story building on December 18th, 1989. I had just got to work when the job superintendent said to me why don't you go on top of the building and get Scotty from up there and tell him that i would like to have him down here. I got to the top and told Scotty to go down below and talk to Terry. Scotty was already tied up to his lifeline so he untied his and gave it to me. I put my belt on and tied up not knowing that it was a 16 ft. lifeline instead of an 8 ft. lifeline. The mortar was already made and there was 8 block left to lay. Before we could set trusses on the one side of the block was the roof. On the other side of the block was about 6 in. of wall . Then nothing but air.

I started to lay the block which needed to be done pretty quick so they could set up. I was four stories high it was windy and icy and it had snowed. While i was laying the block i was straddling them, one foot i had on the roof and the other foot i had nothing but ledge. Which i had done hundreds of times. I got all the block layed, but the last one was a little tight. So i took my trowel and was tapping on the top of the block to get level with the others. While i was tapping the block my outside foot slips off the ledge and i fell.

Now remember i had on that 16 ft. lifeline. When i came to a quick halt it broke my back at L4-L5,L5-S1. Then i crashed face first into the wall, which snapped my neck at C2-3,C3-4,C4-5,C5-6 there i hung. I don't remember from that point. I was told later that they took a petibone which is a big high lift. They put a palette on the forks and raised it up to me to keep the wait off of me, while someone called the rescue squad. Alot of this is hear say from my co-workers. The rescue squad got there and they used another petibone to get the rescue squad up to me.

They looked me over and saw that i had multiple injuries. They stabilized me the best they could. They transported me to the hospital during that time i went into full cardiac arrest they got my heart beating again. They got me into the hospital where i went into full cardiac arrest again they brought me back on more time.

I awoke in the hospital 5 days later. I had a halo on my neck, and a half body cast and i was wondering what had happened to me? To make this story a little shorter after 6 surgeries my last back surgery was November of 1993, after that surgery my leg started giving out on me all the time.

On April 1994 my leg gave out on me and i fell and struck my head on the floor and side-board. My car was there and my doors were locked so nobody thought i was at home. After 3 days my mom and girlfriend started wondering where i was at. So they went out to my camper because they thought maybe i just stayed out there for a couple of days, but i wasn't there. So they started to worry about me. My brother came over and busted down the door and they found me laying on the floor. They started talking to me and got me moving a little bit. I got up and walked to my livingroom and laid down on the couch then i wouldn't get up. They did not know what was wrong with me so they called the rescue squad. I knew my name so they would not take me to the hospital. This happened 3 times and they still would not take me to the hospital.

My medicine cabinet looked like a pharmacy, so they thought maybe it was a drug over-dose. My girlfried at the time took all the medicine out of my medicine cabinet and took it to the hospital. When she got to the hospital and showed them all the medicine, they said i don't care how you do it but you better get him here now. I really don't know how they got me there, but i thank god they did. They checked me for a drug overdose and it came back negative. I didn't know what nothing was, i still don't know how i knew my name but i did.

They ran a brain scan, a CT scan, and a MRI and found that i had a closed head fracture. They found that i had a tramadic brain injury. It did damage to my left temporal lobe, frontal lobe, and parateral lobe, and right temporal lobe, and parateral lobe. I had to learn almost everything all over again. It's been tough. I had grand mal seizures for almost 3 yrs. until they got my medicine adjusted. Now i have petie mal seizures which are not that bad compared to grand mal seizures. I have lost my taste and smell, short term and long term memory. I lost my word power, every time I type a word it's like learning it all over again. And my eyes I have lost 100% in my left eye and 85% in my right eye. And like everyone else knows who are TBI you will never be the same person again.

I sat around my house doing nothing until i got my computer it completely changed my life. I want to thank all the TBI chat lines and the people there that brings their heart and soul into them rooms to help a newcomer or an oldtimer. I want to thank the people that has been so nice to me in the last 2 or 3 months that have been on TBI chat. I thank you with all my heart and love you all like brothers and sisters.

MAY GOD BLESS YOU ALL !!!!!!!!!!!!!
(PEACEWITHIN)
SUNDANCE Jeff Spencer