Willie Davis
A NEW BEGINNING
My life changed that night and when I awoke on August 31, 1980, the next day, I was a different person. I was in a lot of pain and kept dozing off and each time I woke up, there were different people in my room. I was later told that I had a big family with many brothers and sisters. I found out later all of my friends were saying they were part of my family so that they could see me in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). I was also placed in something called a “Striker Frame” that allowed me to be rotated 180 degrees. The nurses came to turn me about 60 degrees every hour. This was very uncomfortable but necessary to allow circulation and blood flow throughout my body. Each time they turned me the pain was so excruciating it felt like I was going to die. I was in this frame for weeks after my surgery. I was in this place for a few days before I started to stay awake longer. It was during this time that the doctor told me how severe my injuries were and that I was never going to walk again. He told me I was going to be a “paraplegic” confined to a wheelchair for the rest of my life. This information was more than I could take. I wept for days.
LIFE'S LESSON
I learned just how important family and friends are. No matter how much we may want to be alone or get frustrated by something in life, I can always count on my family or friends to be there for me. My mother was there beside me for comfort and to let me know things would be all right. My dad and brother were also there to carry me in and out of the house or to the bathroom during those early days of my recovery. Even in my later years, some 20 years after my accident, I have maintained a close relationship with family members and now have nephews and nieces to teach. I have spent and continue to spend time teaching them the skills and knowledge I have gained. From the simple things such as playing catch with a baseball or football or sitting with them to read, I have tried to be their teacher. When it comes to having hope and dealing with changes in one’s life, I have found that it is best to have something to believe in, such as a higher power (GOD or Great Spirit). This has helped me to accept things as they affect my life each day. I pray daily and give thanks for my life and for all that is good. Without this in my life, I feel emptiness and often have feelings of depression. My faith helps me in a serene manner that compares to nothing else I have experienced.
What does all of this have to do with independent living skills? I say this because it is a long, sometimes painful, often difficult struggle to become independent again. There is a lot to learn and there is physical pain and frustration. If you are anything like me, you will need the love and support of your family to get you through it.
| To learn about the services and the support from his family as Willie learned to live independently again, click here |  |