SAD..please help!!!!

[ajpupper24]

I am having a hard time here. I got severely injured in a sunday afternoon football game at the park with friends. I am left now having to have major surgery on my arm and was told I will never ride again.

They are going to fuse together my ulnar and radial bones in my arm. Then take a 10mm piece of bone out of the middle of my ulnar bone. Not only have my days of riding ended, but my career too. I was a correctional officer while going to college to become a law enforcement officer...in hopes to become a homicide detective. I had 24 hours left of school to complete my degree. My doctor said that unfortunately I cannot ever be a police officer much less a correctional officer. I am now stuck having to start over in college with some degree sitting behind a desk.

I am forced to sell my bike. I really can't keep her since I will never be able to ride her again. Not only that, but I will need the money from selling her to pay for my surgery. My insurance through the state has gone from short term disability to long term. That means my income has now dropped to less than $500 a month and sadly that won't pay for the surgery. Luckily I have good insurance so it is going to cost me around $7000 for the surgery and physical therapy afterwards. I haven't accounted my perscription costs into that, so who knows what that will be.

I write to you all in hopes of prayers first and foremost to help me get through this very difficult time and change in my life. Also, to have your support and help with passing the word that I am in need of selling my bike.

I have a 2006 Triumph Speedmaster with 3100 miles on her. I was just getting to where I could start putting real miles on her when all this happened. She is a one owner, garage kept since the first day in June 2006, and I have put about $3000 extra into her. I am not asking much for her, just enough to cover my surgery. I also am going to sell my two motorcycle dual axle utility trailer and brand new leather jacket and harley chaps as I won't be needing them anymore either. I posted a sale on the classifieds here. If any of you might be interested or know someone who is, please put them in contact with me. If you don't know anyone, keep in contact with me and just keep me in your prayers. I am having a really hard time with all of this.

I greatly appreciate everyone and their thoughts and prayers. Please know, I will be okay, I am just going to have a bumpy road to getting through all this. I have God on my side and know that I will eventually get through this and move on in my life. Again, thank you for all your support and help

[Jay313]

Don't give up so easy, my friend. First, many people have gone on to recover from things when the doctors said it couldn't be done. Second, there may be other areas of law enforcement that you haven't considered. For example, you might consider becoming a probation officer. What are the physical requirements of that job? Check it out. Have you considered Child Protective Services? The Constable's office? Dallas Police Dept. also employs many civilians in the department. Do you know what kind of jobs are available there? Check it out.

In short, you need to check out your options. Don't just throw up your hands and give up. The Lord may have put an obstacle in your path, but that doesn't mean he intends for you to stop and turn around. It may be that he intends for you to become a stronger and better man by overcoming it.

Joshua 1:9. Lord bless you.

[Clint]

Welcome, Amanda. Seems to me like you're letting your doctor tell you what you can and can't do in life. I personally know of at least two riders that have only one arm. Certainly one slightly limited arm won't prevent you from riding if you really want to.

Also, I'd be pretty surprised if that kept you completely out of law enforcement. Don't give up there, either.

Finally, if all this is a scam, and it does smell a bit like one, be assured no one here will be taken by it. I don't see an ad in the For Sale forum yet.

[Uncle B]

Best I can remember the Doctors told Robert Craig "Evel" Knievel that he would never walk again after his Caesar's Palace crash, he did walk again as well as ride bikes.

[ajpupper24]

I really do understand where you are coming from when you are thinking this might be a scam. I assure you I am not scamming you. I wanted to join the forum first, get some advice, and then post my bike. I didn't come on the forum just to post my bike and I surely didn't want anyone to feel that way. I actually have it posted on craigslist in Dallas. Look up triumph speedmaster and you will see a 2006 for sale...that's me.

I didn't plan on just giving up. There is a long story to my wrist and arm since I was 14. I had a severe go-cart wreck at the slick waxed tracks in Beaumont, tx....where I grew up. I broke my ulnar and radial bone and almost 10 years later found out that my TFCC was torn in the same arm due to that accident. I found that out when I worked in physical therapy as a physical therapy technician (my title was FIT TECH) with geriatrics. I was working with a man that had a stroke. They never said he would walk again. He and I worked together 4 days a week. I told him we would get him walking again. Long story short, I had him walking. About 4 months after he started walking, he and I were in the hallway walking. Due to being paralyzed on one size, he lost his footing and almost fell. Mind you, he was 6'4" and about 300lbs. Instead of me watching him fall, I pulled his gate belt that was around his waist, broke his fall with my arm, and pulled him into the wheelchair I kept behind him. He would either have fallen and broken his hip or me take the chance of hurting myself. I was willing to do so and I did. I tore the TFCC again...actually ruptured it.

I had surgery again, only to find out that the entire TFCC is not repairable as there is no blood supply in that area of the cartilage. Due to the severe blow to my arm as a kid, my ulnar bone apparently grew into a positive ulnar variance and that is what is causing my hand to continue to re-tear. The last accident in football put my arm to a point that it cannot handle anymore trauma. That is why they are having to fuse the bones and shorten the ulnar bone by leaving a section out of the bone completely. I am not a pesimistic person by any means. I have lost both parents as a child. My dad died in my arms of a heart attack when I was 16. Right after that, my mother was diagnosed with terminal cancer. She passed when I was 18. I have been through alot of difficult times, more than alot of people my age. But never once did I give up on life or myself. I got my own apartment at 18 and have supported myself ever since. Put myself through college and more. I am not looking for someone to hand me a cookie or anything. It is just part of life. Obstacles come to everyone. Some may be considered to be harder than others. It just depends on the person and how they handle it.

I know with not being able to rotate my arm to any degree and my hand locked into place that I will not be riding. Not because I can't....but because I would kill myself or someone else riding unsafely. How can I handle my bike, squeeze a clutch in, avoid possible wrecks, etc. with no motion in my arm from the elbow down nor my hand?

I greatly appreciate the positive attitudes as that is what I greatly need at the moment. I know I will be okay. I have made it through much harder times.....losing both my parents in high school. And someday, maybe my partner can learn to ride and take me places. But I refuse to have my bike sit for years to come because I physically cannot ride the bike, pull the clutch in, or steer.

I know I may be coming off a little defensive here. But it was really hard to read the one post that says I smell like a scam because I haven't had time to post my bike yet on this forum. I had planned on doing it now, but instead I am sitting here feeling like I need to defend myself against someone being aggressive to me because I didn't post my bike yet. If you feel that way, just talk to me.....communicate in a non-confrontational matter. I am not mad, just hurt a bit. This isn't easy for me right now.

And thank you to the person who suggested looking into different fields. The reason I didn't consider the parol or probation career is usually you have to be able to physically be able to defend yourself in a parol or probation officer type situation. Working in the correctional facilities, we see offenders attack their probation officer every once in a while. However, I will look into the civilian side of the job in law enforcement. It is just hard right now as I was almost done with school and was so close to my career I always dreamed of. I know I will be okay. God has a plan for me and I will have a full life of happiness. Doesn't mean that right now I am having a hard time with all this change. I was coming to this forum because I have heard alot of good things here from a new biker friend I met on craigslist last month ironically when I sold my pool table.

I am having to do what I need to do to make ends meet. Sadly, I do have to sell my bike just to pay for my surgery. If there are any of you out there that work for the state of Texas you know what kind of benefits we have with short and long term disability. I just went into long term disability and my income went down to less than $500 a month. That won't pay a third of my bills much less this surgery.

With that entire long, drawn out message, I really do greatly appreciate all of you and your encouragement. And to the person so worried about my bike being posted? It is now 11:33pm so I will not be posting it tonight. I spent the last hour typing this message hoping to keep my good name clear of any false accussations and to tell all you out there thank you for everything. I feel like this was a bad start to something that didn't have to be that way. I hope it gets better from here as I was hoping to make a few acquantances and possibly some more friends. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers.

[frostbitevinnie]

You will do just fine AJ, time and a determined will is what you need. I feel for you but at the same time there is always a way if you have the will. Today I was on a PGR mission and one of our riders had a prosthetic left leg. Not an arm mind you but a missing leg nonetheless. Not sure how he shifted but he found a way.

Good luck to you and stick around!! Don't mind Rowdy's last comment. He is an OK dude. I will run over to his house and smack him around for ya. J/K Clint.

[Clint]

Originally Posted by ajpupper24

I posted a sale on the classifieds here.

Amanda, while it doesn't exactly say it in my posts, I am a lead administrator on this site. Whether "confrontational" or not, it's my responsibility to keep our community free of scams and other potentially harmful activity. The statement I quoted above is what raised my suspicion. In that light, there's no reason for you to be defensive.

Also, from a social aspect, it is a bit strange for you to show up and pour your heart out to complete strangers (in cyberspace, no less). I strongly urge you to find actual, warm-bodied humans to collect comfort from. We can offer a little, but it's not much in the grand scheme of things. It sounds like you're suffering from depression as well as physical pain, and you need human contact.

Best of luck.

[ajpupper24]

Thank you for your reply there. I saw that Rowdy has been here a while and am sure that he is just protecting his fellow riders. I just felt he could have asked instead of accussing. Like I said, I am not mad, just was a little hurt as a new member. I have never in my life been accussed of something so horrible. I truly am a good person and that is why I am here. I have never met nicer people in my life than the riders I personally know and on forums. I just found out about this one and wanted to join because of all the good things said about it.

I won't ever give up completely, but for at least the next year or two, I will be recovering. It is a major surgery and I won't be safe riding. I can't let my bike sit that long, so I need to sell her. Besides, money is tight and she is going to get me better by paying for all this. If I ever ride again, I can always get another bike. It is just material when you get down to it.

Thank you again for being so kind. I hope I can stick around here. Just had a bad start. Not used to that.

[Jay313]

Yes, I understand what you're saying about occasionally having to defend yourself as a probation officer. I work at a juvenile detention facility in Dallas. Not all PO's work in the field with adults. There are PO's posted to our facility who do not work in the field. There are also PO's who work strictly with the courts, assessing kids and making sentencing recommendations to judges. You should check into what the actual physical requirements of the job are before you write it off as impractical or impossible. I was also serious when I suggested that you consider something such as child protective services, and it might especially be appropriate considering your background. There are a lot of kids in need out there. CPS might not seem as glamorous to you as homicide detective, but they probably have more chances to save lives than any other public servant you care to name. So, as I said, you need to investigate your options. Don't write something off so quickly.

[Clint]

Wait... ask a potential criminal if she's a criminal?

Mmm-kay. As a criminal justice student, doesn't that approach seem a bit ineffective? Apparently you aren't very familiar with the recent rash of motorcycle sales scams. If you were, you'd understand my concern.

[tricker]

ummmmm.... ?

[ajpupper24]

Rowdy, I never meant to come across to you as disrespectful or rude. I saw all of your achievements attached under your name. So, if you read all my messages you will see that I said I understood where you were coming from by protecting all the riders here. I completely understand that, you do care!

First off, I have not been riding long so I don't know all the "rules, proper approaches" to a new forum. I do have an amazing group of friends that support me. I also have my two older sisters. However, none of these people understand my feelings of sadness to riding as none of them are riders. My best friend of 18 years is a paramedic and never wanted to see me on a bike as she has seen too many motorcycle fatalities. My friends know how much I love to ride, but they don't understand the connection of one with their bike. Like I said, I just started riding not long ago but it was a dream of mine my whole life to ride. I finally got out there, took the safety course, got my license, got the perfect bike, started riding and never felt so complete.

This has all been really hard to soak in about my arm. I reached out to people here because I know they understand how hard it would or is to possibly lose a part of your freedom that you finally have gotten. I never meant to come across like I was scamming someone. And I am not suffering from depression. I am suffering from a broken heart, but will be more than fine eventually. It is just something I am having to accept and was coming here for support, advice, and opinions. Not because I don't have anybody in my life. I am actually very happy where I am in life. Things could be worse and that is how I have always looked at life. A book I read after losing my parents was called "Keys to Positive Thinking by: Napolean Hill". That taught me to always take the negative in life and find a positive. That is what I am trying to do now. I know that I could be way worse off. I could being losing my entire arm, not have any income, not have a roof over my head, not have friends or family, or even more. So, with that said, I am doing just fine.

I poored my heart out not thinking that anyone would be skeptical of why I would do that to perfect strangers. I didn't look at this forum as perfect strangers. I really felt like everyone here is like family I never met. We all ride, love to ride, and love to talk to people that ride. Any biker I have ever met on the road, at a rally, anywhere, has always been like family. You just have that respect for the rider. That is why I came here.

I apologize if I ever came across as anything other than another rider out there joining a great forum that I just heard about and wanting to talk with people with more experience, maybe have been through something similar to what I am going through, and hoping I could get some advice. I sincerely do apologize. I would like to start over with you somehow. I don't like this edgey back and forth almost pissyness between us. Please accept my apologies for coming across any way other than my true intensions of asking for advice, opinions, and support. Thank you for everything from all of you including you Rowdy. You do seem like a good guy, just trying to keep the a__holes away and I do respect that. Please just know I am a genuine person and have no intensions of abusing this forum or scamming anyone. And no, I had no idea about the scams out there at all. I would like to know especially because I don't want to ever come across as one myself. Thank you again.

[Clint]

Well, we're glad to have you, and I didn't intend to accuse you, just warn you in case. Obviously that warning was merely a formality and no longer applies.

I stand by my statement that if you really want to ride, you still will. My suggestion would be to sell your bike and focus on what's important in your life at this moment. When those things are straightened out, seek out those who have overcome the challenges you face and be inspired by them.

And they are inspiring. I know one rider who is working toward riding again. He's blind. How's that for unstoppable ambition?

[pinky44]

From England
I have a freind who lost his lower right leg last august in a bike smash, He is already working out how he will be able to ride a bike again he has already brought a new bike and is looking into sorting the back brake out so he will be able to use it. Over here we have a group called NABD have put the link to their website National Association for Bikers with a Disability - Reg. Charity No: 1040907. I know you have some healing to do but it might be worth having a look on their site might give you some ideas also they might know if there is a similar group where you are.

[SNAFU]

to M-J Amanda.

Sorry to hear about your arm. Good luck with the sale of your bike. It must be hard to get rid of your bikes but it sounds like you've been through a lot worse than that already.

I hope you have a speedy recovery after your surgery. My thoughts and prayers sent.

[superdave07]

aj
here's a little idea to think about i've been there hwy 121 years ago back when old denton highway used to be a 2 lane out to 121 4 miles west of the colony i'll never forget that day in my life i was 17 years old had a scholarship to play football for the university of kentucky the year was 1983. I was going to lake dallas for a party my girlfreind was on the back of my gpz750 kawasaki. the last thing i rememember was seeing the front bumper of a semi traveling west bound the glare from the chrome bumper blinded me. the next thing i'm told in the hospital was there was a car in my lane some how i managed to get the bike to the right wheel track of my lane before the collision occured. in the accident i broke my right collar bone shattered my right wrist, broke both femur bones and destroyed both platellas as well as the fibula and tibula bones in both legs. i was lucky to be alive and didn't want to be a day later i learned that my girlfreind was launched from the bike and did not survive. they kept that from me while i was in surgery for 16 hours to repair the bones in my legs. there used to be a doctor in dallas he was the dallas cowboys orthopedic surgeon his name is daniel lieu ,i'll tell you right now he is worth every penny he charges for his services. thankfully his services were paid by the insurance company of the woman who hit me. the first doctors said i'd never walk again , but through his support and physical therapy as well as the support i got from my family and my deceased girlfriends family after 14 months i started walking, again it was difficult but that was a long time ago and like i said that's a day that will live with me forever i lost alot that day but i wouldn't trade anything in the world for what i have now, a wife that loves me ,a family that is still supportive and a career that i had to build for myself . but keep this in mind if they say it can't bedone it's just because they don't understand what its like to have the freedom of the open road wind blowing in your face and the true feel of freedom on the road. so in closing i say never give up always keep working and if you want it bad enough you'll suprise yourself as to what you can overcome . just a thought and my prayers are with you.
dave

[Davecm203]

Welcome to the forum.

I am sort of in similar shoes. Although I am lucky enough that I can ride. I was an Infantry Marine and was badly injured. They did surgery and physical rehabilitation. But, they finally decided I was unfit for duty and was medically discharged half way through my second enlistment. I loved my job and the Marines were everything to me. When I got out, I went to college and earned a degree in Criminal Justice. I was a police officer for several years and because of my medical problems, I had to give that up. I have been bouncing around jobs for the past 5 years. Trying to find something that fits. I am now planning on going back to school this fall semester to learn another career.

I sometimes get very depressed about my situation. But, things could always be worse. I could be (and almost was) in a wheel chair. I could be staring at a ceiling for the rest of my life. But, I am reasonably healthy and have my faculties (unless you talk to my wife).

I would wait until you have fully recovered from you surgery before you decide what you can and cannot do. Make goals for yourself. Aim for them and do not give up. The doctor that wrote up my med board said that I will be in a wheel chair by the time I am 40. I turn 39 in Aug. and I can still take my dog to the park for a nice long walk without any real problems. Doctors are not always right. Hell, one of my closest friends was told he had less than 8 months to live. That has been almost 10 years ago.

[bikerbabe]

I wish you the best!!!!!!! Heal fast, and accomplish your dreams. If you believe that you will ride again then you will!!!!! I will let who i can know about your bike. Good luck and may the angels in heaven watch over you in your time of need!!!!!

[ajpupper24]

I wanted to thank every one of you. I couldn't ask for any better support from all of you.

Rowdy, I do want to thank you very much for everything, including the things that upset me. I really do understand where you were coming from. I am glad to be here and just want to thank you for understanding.

To the rest of you. All your testimonies really touched me. That is exactly what I was wanting is to find people who have been or are going through something similar to me. I won't give up on trying. I pray everyday for God to give me the strength to prove my doctor wrong. I have all of you to thank as I believe that ya'll are a part of my strength.

I know it will be quite a while before I can attempt to ride again. The physical therapy alone is going to take over a year. And in that time, I am going to go back to school and start over. I have decided to go for Kinesiology and coach basketball, volleyball, and track. This is was something I thought about doing, but really wanted to be a cop more.

I had a band scholarship to South West Texas State in San Marcos back when I was a Senior in high school. I found out right before school started that they gave my mother 2-3 months to live. So, I never took the scholarship. In October, what would have been my first semester, my mother passed away. It was the right decision for me to spend those last couple of months with her instead of being away at college. Sadly though, I didn't start college right after. I spent the next years trying to deal with the grief, learn how to live on my own, learn how to have a bank account, learn to pay bills, and work two jobs just to make ends meet and I did.

The beautiful thing is that I wouldn't change any of it. It made me who I am today and made me a stronger person. I am far from perfect, but I am proud of where I am.

I started college 8 years after my mother passed. I currently have a 3.75 which I am very proud of. I have 33 hours of criminal justice courses. I may not use them now, but I have knowledge and that is a good weapon to have.

So, with all that said, I am going to go to school in the fall and major in Kenisiology. I will focus on my goals and be happy for what I do have. It could always be worse.

Thank you all sooooooo very much for your kind words, thoughts and prayers. I look forward to talking with you all more.

[Easy Rider]

Originally Posted by ajpupper24

Thank you all sooooooo very much for your kind words, thoughts and prayers. I look forward to talking with you all more.

Wow, what a trooper! Such a SEVERE arm injury and still able to type LONG and involved (and perfectly formatted) messages on the keyboard. Doesn't that cause you a lot of pain??