HeadphoneAddict seriously injured in car accident

[grawk]

that's why you involve lawyers.  Find a nice country lawyer, they're good at that.

[CarlSeibert]

With the emphasis on good lawyer. Lawyers are that way. Good ones are a godsend. Bad ones are beyond useless. Get a really good one.

[HeadphoneAddict]

Keep on keepin' on Larry.  And don't take no for an answer from those fucking health insurers.  At least not the first time around.  Remember that's how they make money.

 

 

You should have someone working to get the other driver paying for all this.  You should end up with no out of pocket costs, given the situation. 

 

 

Shouldn't Larry's insurer basically be handling this?

 

And hang in there Larry.  It's going to be a long road to recovery for both of you.  10+ years ago my sister was involved in a similar circumstance while driving cross-country with a friend and it was way more difficult than necessary to get the insurance companies to cover what they should have.  

 

 

that's why you involve lawyers.  Find a nice country lawyer, they're good at that.

 

The other guy's insurance will pay out to the limits of his auto insurance policy.  My insurance will then kick in, but will try to hang onto their money just the same.

 

And there are some bills that we've already been lined up to pay for (wheelchair rental, purchase commode chair and shower chair).  In 10 days I go home and someone's gotta be paying for a home health aid to come into the house for two wheelchair bound victims, while my wife's works full time and my other kids go back to school.

 

I started off already disabled, and my status was fragile due to my lung disease, fibromylagia/tendonitis, and chronic upper body weakness with obesity. This is starting to push me over the edge of what I'm capable of.

 

So, I've retained a very nice lawyer whose daughter goes to school with my girls.  He'll let me focus on recovery instead of juggling insurance companies.  He has a very good reputation.

[roadtonowhere08]

Sounds like you have it all together, Larry.  Just keep the "it'll get better..." drumbeat going, because it will.  There will be light at the end of this long and shitty tunnel.

[bhjazz]

One day at a time, Larry.  I know there is a lot to consider, but you can only do one day at a time.  If that turns out to be overwhelming, go to one hour at a time.  That's all that can be expected.  I know you are trying to get all these things in "pre fetch" in your brain so you can choose the best way to make sure they all come out right.  And the pain meds will certainly keep you from getting too far.  But pick one or two for now, then maybe write down some brainstorm ideas so that next time you are clear headed you can pick up where you were earlier.  We're all behind you.  

Edited December 28, 2014 by bhjazz

[HeadphoneAddict]

I'm going back into surgery today, for a revision on my left ankle.  Well wishes and prayers are welcome!

 

My daughter had her repeat surgery done Monday, and we're waiting to find out when she can go home.

[acidbasement]

Good luck!

[MexicanDragon]

Good luck to you and your daughter, Larry!

**BRENT**

[guzziguy]

This.

[Pars]

Best wishes

[skullguise]

All the best Larry; you seem to be posting a bit more about other topics, so hoping that's a good sign of progress.  Good luck to you both!

[Looser101]

Good luck.

[shellylh]

Good luck Larry

[Dusty Chalk]

Well wishes and wishes of correct alignment!

[HeadphoneAddict]

Surgery was canceled because the damage is more extensive on CAT Scan, and I have to wait for the ankle specialist to re-do everything, but he's still out for the holidays.  So, it's not as simple as it first looked.

[skullguise]

Well, that's annoying, but at least it hopefully means it'll be done right/better.....

[eggil]

I hope for a meaningful recovery Larry. I don't know you but I kind of remember reading somewhere you have had a lung transplant in the past, which means you are as tough as nails.

I hope for better days ahead for you and your family.

[llamallama]

Stay encouraged!

[HeadphoneAddict]

I'm back in the hospital for another ankle surgery to revise the first one that was not successful. I'm staying optimistic that my ankle can heal better from this point forward. Looking forward to going home in a day or two.

I can't bear weight on my left leg for 10 weeks, and in six months I'll have to have a pin joining two bones inside removed. I've had a total of four different surgeries with four doctors on my case, and two of them have differing opinions about my femur surgery result. One of them wants to replace the rod, and one wants to take a wait and see approach. Because I elected to take the more conservative approach, I'll be forced to do follow-up care for that in Denver with my first surgeon. Sigh...

McKenna seems to be feeling better, finally. So there's that.

[skullguise]

Sorry to hear it lingers, Larry, but every step is hopefully getting you better, even if there's side-steps along the way.  And good news about McKenna.....

 

Stay strong!  Home should be good for recuperation, just don't try to extend yourself.

[MexicanDragon]

Larry, glad to hear McKenna is doing better; I know from personal experience how I'd rather deal with pain and frustration than having to watch my child go through something.

Hang in there, man. Try to stay positive. Perhaps you'll have some more downtime for listening

**BRENT**

[HeadphoneAddict]

Larry, glad to hear McKenna is doing better; I know from personal experience how I'd rather deal with pain and frustration than having to watch my child go through something.

Hang in there, man. Try to stay positive. Perhaps you'll have some more downtime for listening

**BRENT**

Except that I've sold off the 007/009 and KGSS last summer and shipped off the KGBH last week. So I have HEV-70 driving HE-60 or LNS, but still have all my dynamics. The HE-60 + KGBH was a killer combo, but we needed to cash to upgrade the totaled car and pay for a baby sitter to help my daughter and I when we're home alone and stuck in wheelchairs.

[shellylh]

You don't really need "the best" to enjoy music.  I'd give up all my headphones and listen to earbuds if I could bring Tim back.    It's good that McKenna is doing better - I agree with Brent that I'd rather deal with pain myself than watch a loved one go through it. 

[HeadphoneAddict]

In home care help isn't covered by insurance?

 

Only nursing, PT and OT.  Not a personal servant/adult babysitter.

[HeadphoneAddict]

Well, I'm over 10 months post accident, and I need to have another surgery next week on my left femur which still has not healed (this will be my 5th surgery total for the accident).  It's called a non-union fracture after 9 months.  I'm still stuck using a wheelchair around the house or the mall (or CanJam) and crutches the rest of the time.

In August my local doctor took me off all non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (ALEVE, ADVIL, MOTRIN) because they can delay bone healing.  I also had to stop taking the Tamoxifen that controls my fibrosing mediastinitis, as it not only reduces the scarring around my left lung but can also reduce bone healing.  Since that time I've gone downhill big-time.  I lost strength and mobility due to the pain, and then developed muscle wasting and muscle spasms, with more severe pain as a result.  Now simple movements can take my breath away and Vicodin no longer works (was limiting myself to only 2 a day, so I shouldn't have gotten used to it and I have no other symptoms of too much opioids). 

I went to see the original surgeon after all this, and the bone is in the right position and there is no "varus deformity" like one other doctor suggested.  He says this happens to 4 out of 100 people, and that once people with this problem get to this point (non-union with muscle loss and spasms) that there is no going back without surgery to exchange the rod in the femur with a thicker rod, reaming out the bone marrow cavity more to stimulate growth.

I could have just one of the retention screws in the lower part of the rod removed, to allow my weight to settle the upper bone further down onto the lower part of the bone, but there is only a 60% chance of success with this simple outpatient procedure.  With the full "nail" replacement he says I should be walking without cane or crutch in 6 weeks. Plus, I've met my $3K deductible and $10K max family out of pocket expenses for 2015, and there's no point in delaying this to 2016.

We'd love prayers over my left femur (and my daughter's right ankle which will need a 4th surgery as well).

PS:  McKenna has Avascular Necrosis of the right Talus bone, and will need an ankle fusion, but has decided to delay that until she graduates from Duke in Dec 2016.  She took off school for 6 months, and did physical therapy with me.  Then she took her wheelchair to a 2 month law internship in Portland over the summer, and was only home for a week before she left for semester abroad in Nepal in August.  She is now in Amman Jordan until November, and then in Chile in November-December.  She goes back to Duke on Jan 2nd for 12 months.  She figures she'll have 9 months between graduation and starting law school to recover from the fusion in January 2017.  

She has 2 plates with dozens of screws in her left ankle which seems to be healing well, it's just the right ankle that's not allowing her to be fully weight bearing. She uses a wheelchair more than 50% of the time still, and is on crutches the rest of the time.  Neither of us can walk without assistance.  I found her a decent 23 lb chair with knobby tires so she can get around.  We'll buy her a car in December since hers was totaled, but we're all afraid to drive it to North Carolina in December, 12 months after we were hit head on in an ice storm. So we'll likely have to drop $1000 to ship it.  We want to buy and license it in Colorado to help her maintain residency here for law school, as she wants to come home for that.  We found her a studio apartment about 1 mile away from Duke that's accessible, althogh about 50% more expensive than we had budgeted before the accident.

The guy that hit us only had $25K per person of insurance, minus legal fees.  I had a bit more insurance for underinsured motorist, but after medical bills and lawyer fees about half of that will never reach us.  Still, McKenna's share will almost pay for her 3 years of law school.  I'm using my portion to pay off my wife's student loans and our 4 cars, buy McKenna a car, and pay for her and her sister's last year of undergraduate school.  I still have to set aside some for a medicare trust, in case this needs future medical care.  I didn't want to post more until the releases for the insurance companies were signed today.

Edited October 28, 2015 by HeadphoneAddict