Trip to Joliet: Joy's Story

Trip to Joliet, IL

 

It was a beautiful Friday afternoon and I was traveling to Fort Wayne to pick up my husband Jim from work at North American Van Lines. We were heading to Joliet, IL to spend the weekend with our daughter, Jada, who works for Caterpillar.

 

After a long day at work Jim was ready to ride and relax, so I drove. Everything was going great until we were approaching the city of Valparaiso, IN. A man made a left hand turn in front of me, and I T- boned his car. Our Chevrolet Blazer flipped once and rolled twice. While we were in the air, I actually told Jim "goodbye”. That is how slow the moving of our vehicle seemed to me. For some reason we ended up on the wheels and not on the side or top of the vehicle.

 

It was rush hour and there were so many people coming out of their cars to help. Our windows were blown out and our clothes, and other belongings were scattered everywhere. An ambulance showed up on the scene and took the driver and his son to the emergency room (ER). Another ambulance came and took Jim and me to the ER. The driver had a broken hip and his son had multiple injuries including brain. Neither the driver nor his son, were belted in their vehicle and they both hit the glass rooftop of the car. Jim and I were both in a daze, plus I ached a lot as the airbag opened up and hit me in the chest. Later during the stay in ER, we were told the driver had a blood alcohol level of 2.5 times the legal limit. The driver’s family and ER personnel were all concerned about his son, Philip, as he had head injuries and was transferred to a Chicago hospital. Some of the ER personnel told Jim it was hard to care for the driver knowing what he had done to his son. I immediately turned to anger, which lasted for several months; to have the knowledge of what Philip’s father did to him and also what happened to Jim and me. How could he drive with alcohol in his system? Later we found out he was not a bar room drinker but, a vodka drinker who drank all day every day.

 

A police officer, who was trained in vehicle accident reconstruction, saw the accident happen and stopped by the ER to tell us we should have been killed in the accident and he didn’t understand how we survived with no major physical injuries. We called family to come pick us up, as we no longer had a vehicle to return home in. We ended up staying in a hotel over night as we were kept at the hospital until wee hours in the morning. We were very concerned about the child, who spent many weeks in the hospital trying to rehabilitate.

 

Here at home, I saw a psychiatrist and later a clinical therapist who saw me every week for a long time. I was put on medicine (Zoloft) to take the edge off my anger and feelings towards the father. I was on medication for more than three years. To this day, if there is a close call on the highway, I get so upset and want to go home as soon as possible.

 

I don’t think there will ever be a time when I don’t think of the accident when we get on the high way to go on a trip.The PTSS has lasted a long time. Sometimes I wonder if I quit the medications too soon.

 

When I did start driving, I never made a left hand turn. I had discovered I could turn right three times and get to the right place without making a left turn. This worked for me for so long, until Jim and I decided I needed to face reality and try left turns.

 

I have struggled for a long time. I still get very anxious when I ride with anyone else doing the driving, and am still learning how to deal with the PTSS this tragedy put in my life.

 

I cried the day Jim called and said Mr. Howard went to prison for three years and then cried when he was released. (Jim asked me what exactly did I want from the man) and I had no answer. There are still days when we go somewhere and I get really anxious and can’t really give an answer as to why. Also when we plan a trip to go out of town, I have sleepless nights before we leave.

 

Sometimes Jim and I both wonder if I got off the medication too early, but I kept telling me I needed to overcome and move on. It’s been 15 years since the accident and some days it feels like it could have been yesterday.

 

 

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