Lucretia Patterson is in the hospital, recovering from injuries sustained in Iraq. She was in Iraq, as part of "Operation: Enduring Freedom" when she was severely injured when the HUMMER she and a fellow soldier were in went over a landmine. (Her mate was killed in the blast.) She lost both legs (one below the knee, the other below the hip), and she is now an amputee. She was just transferred to yet another hospital to undergo more therapy and counseling.
I look at the young African-American woman lying in bed, her face riddled with pain, and I feel a stab of sadness piercing my heart. This young lady, who is in her mid-20's has been through more hell and heartache than most people go through in their entire lifetime.
Lucretia Rene'a Patterson is only 25, eight years younger than I am, and she was injured in a horrifying accident that left her a double amputee of her legs (one leg was lost at the hip, the other below her knee) and suffering from ongoing emotional trauma. She had been in Iraq for only 6 months, as part of "Operation: Enduring Freedom", and she was badly injured when the HUMMER she was in went over a landmine that exploded. Her companion that was beside her was killed instantly, and she lost both her legs in the explosion.
From Iraq, she went to hospitals in Germany and Japan before she was then airlifted back to the United States, where she was then in Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, D.C. for continuing and ongoing treatment. She then came here to Tennessee, her home state, and she was brought to our hospital as a transferral.
Lucretia is stubborn in nature (you can see it in her dark eyes and on her young, unblemished face); she has had to face much in the way of painful therapy and surgery. She still won't give in to her disability, but you can definitely tell that inside, she is truly suffering. She used to be a runner prior to going to the service (she was in the Marines), and she had won trophies at trackmeets in and around Nashville. She is now afraid that she will never be able to run again, and she is afraid that she will no longer be able to go on with her life.
I understand the fear that this young woman is currently facing, for I have had to face this very fear myself. I nearly ended up paralyzed and spent a few years walking on forearm crutches as a result of a fall from a tree when I was a child. I severely injured my back, and I still suffer from ongoing back problems today as a direct result of this accident. I know the fear of impending disability and not knowing whether I would be able to walk again (but by the Grace of God, I was able to, thanks to therapy and sheer determination on my part!).
I try to be supportive to Lucretia, and I try to tell her about what happened to me, and that she shouldn't give up hope. Yes, she has a very hard and long road to recovery ahead of her, and yes, she WILL have bad days, but I tell her that I will be there for her, and she is somehow comforted by my presence. I tell her that I didn't give up my dreams, even after I had been injured, and she shouldn't either.
I tell her that there have been tremendous advances in medicine, and I tell her that the devices they use for amputees are so much better, and once she gets used to using prosthetic limbs, she will then be able to get around so much easier than she would have been had she been injured just a few short years back. I also tell her that she may have to endure phantom pain (something most amputees must learn to live with and tolerate; they somehow think their legs or arms are still attached to their bodies, and their minds play tricks on them, and they also feel incredible pain that may or may not ebb in time), and depending on how well her stumps heal or how well she cares for them, she should have no problems with the prosthetic legs once they have been custom-made and then fitted according to her needs.
I tell her that I have several children who are amputees, so I know a lot about amputation and what it all entails. I tell her about my oldest son, Anh, 15 1/2, who lost a leg to cancer when he was just six, and he sometimes has phantom pain, even now, but he tries his best to get around it and go on with his life. I also tell her about my two daughters, Deborah and Enriquesa, both congenital amputees, and how they have managed to make a rich and rewarding life for themselves, even without having arms (or, in Enriquesa's case, arms AND legs). I then show her their pictures, and she smiles gratefully as she tells me that I have beautiful children.
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