Laura By ParaGirl

Hi, my name is Laura, how are you? Thats' good. I'm glad

you came, I really need help, you see, I was in an accident two

years ago, and I'm paralyzed almost completely from the neck

down, I can't move. Oh, it's OK, I've gotten used to it, but I

still need help to do things, which is why I'm glad you came.

First, since I'm just lying here in bed, could you please

dress me? I'd like to go out today, and I' d like to look nice.

In the closet, the red dress, yes, that's it. And could you get

a bra and some stockings from that drawer there, yes, those are

nice. First the stockings, you'll have to lift my legs and

slide them on. Yes, like that, you have to hold my legs because

I have no feeling or control in them, they're totally flaccid.

Yes, They are smooth, I have a nurse come in twice a week to

shave them and other things. Even though I can't move, I'd

still like to look nice for people. There, the stockings look

nice. Yes, my legs are thin, from muscle atrophy, but they

still look OK. I used to dance alot, and go biking, before my

accident, and my body still looks OK.

Now my bra. For this, lift me up into a sitting position.

Ooh, not so fast, you'll make me dizzy. There, now hold me, I

have no muscle control at all. Ok, now lift my arms and put

them through the bra straps. My breasts are still large, and

still firm, even if I can't feel them at all. There, clasp the

bra in the back, yes, like that. Now for the dress.

If you notice, it's specially made for me. Lay me back

down, gently please. As you can see, the dress is open all the

way down the back. to put it on me, lift my arms, one at a

time, and place them in the sleeves. Thank you, yes I think it

is a very pretty dress, I had it made special. I think the low

neckline is especially nice. Now that I'm in it, here comes the

awkward part. The zipper starts at the top, there. Now, sit me

back up and zip it down as far as you can. I can't feel

anything at all, but I'm sure it's right. Now lay me back down.

Ok, to zip the rest, roll me sideways, gently. No, I don't

mind, just do it gently. Yes, thats' fine. Now you can zip me

up. Done? Ok, roll me back.

Now that I'm dressed, could you put me into my wheelchair?

It isn't hard really. first bring the chair up close to the bed

and drop the side rail facing the bed. Yes it is a nice chair,

and light, too, for a powered chair. Yes, the control is on the

handrest, I'll explain that in a minute, after you put me into

it. Ok, now sit me up again. There, that's good. Slide my

legs off the bed. Good. Now slide me over, into the chair, and

fasten the belt. Yes, I need a seat belt to hold me into my

chair, with no control at all, I could just slide out. Ok, now

push up the side rail, good. Now place my legs in the legrests,

and try to make them look straight. I can't move them, and I

hate for them to look twisted and crippled, even though they

are. OK, next we finish dressing me.

I need shoes to go out. Those red hoes there, with the

straps, put those on me. Yes, make sure the staps are held

firmly, I don't want my shoes falling off at the store! Now,

you see the small gold chain on the dresser, with the little

ruby pendant? Put that around my neck, there, that's nice. Now

for the last thing, and the answer to your earlier question. Do

you see a nylon wrist brace on the table there. Yes, put it on

my right hand, like that. Ok, good. You see, I'm not totally

paralyzed, I've regained partial movement in my left arm and

hand, at least enough to drive my chair. The brace is just

because I still really can't control my hand enough to grip the

control stick, so it kind of does it for me. Now can you just

put my other hand in my lap. There, it's totally dead, I can't

move it at all, so it just lays there demurely in my lap. Now

to the bathroom to beautify myself.

Oh my hair looks awful! Could you brush it for me? There,

brush it gently, I can actually feel my head! I used to love my

long brown hair, but I keep it shoulder length now, to keep it

more manageable. It's not like I can just brush it out of my

eyes! There, that looks good. Now for lipstick, I think that

coral color there is fine. Perfect! And could you spray a

little of that perfume onto my neck? Ah, that smells nice,

thank you. Now, before I go out, I'm hungry!

The kitchen. I used to be quite a cook you know. Before

this. Now I need to be fed, but you don't mind, do you? I'd

like some apple juice, and a bowl of soup. The soup is already

made, in the fridge, just microvave it for a minute. Pour the

apple juice into a cup and put a straw in it, the straws are

right over there by the cookie jar. Now just put the straw into

my mouth. Mmm, thats' good. More please. Mmm, I love apple

juice. The soups' done. Can you feed it to me? Thank you so

much. Just blow on it a little and spoon it into my mouth.

Mmm, perfect, Chicken noodle, my favorite. Could I have a

cracker too, they're in that cupboard there, above the stove.

Yes, saltines are fine. Just break them in half and feed them

to me. It's so embarrassing, me a twenty year old bieng fed

crackers and soup, but since my accident, I've had to adjust to

bieng a complete invalid. More apple juice please. I don't eat

much, because I really can't burn calories, and I do try to stay

in shape. I may be a total cripple, but I still like to look

nice. Ok, I'm done with lunch, so let's go out. Follow me, we

can take my van.

Just open the side door of the van. Now, hit the green

switch that says down. The lift will do the rest. It takes a

minute or two. What? What was it like to wake up after the

accident? It was very scary. I remembered the accident, and

bieng hit, and I knew I was hurt, but I didn't feel any pain.

Then I realized I didn't feel anything from the neck down. My

whole body just didn't seem to be there. Then the doctor came

in, and when he said that one word- Quadrapalegic- I started to

cry. I just couldn't belive that my whole body was dead,

useless to me now. I tried and tried just to sit up, but I

couldn't move at all. I couldn't even move my head, because

they still had me in a neck brace. My legs were in casts,

because the were both broken in the crash, and for the first

four months out of the hospital I was completely crippled, both

my legs in full casts sticking straight out in front of me, and

at first I had a wheelchair with a mouth control I had to learn

to use, because I didn't have enough control of my left hand

yet. I cried every day, sometimes refusing to get out of bed at

the rehab center I was in. That was when I met Audrey. She was

my age, 18, and had been in an accident on a motorcycle eight

months before. She had lost both her arms at the elbow, and

both her legs just below the crotch, too short for even a

prosthetic. She was even worse off than me, but she was so

nice, and so full of life! She convinced me to start living

again. I can remember when she finally got her prosthetic arms,

she cried with joy, because she could finally control her own

wheelchair. (until then she had been pushed by an orderly.) I

remember looking at her, fibreglass arms and little stumps for

legs, sitting in her wheelchair doing circles in the main rec

room, and I looked down at my own crippled legs, still in casts

straight out before me, and my hands, laying useless in my lap,

and deciding that if this girl, who had lost all her limbs,

could be so happy, than I could too. Audrey and I went shopping

together sometimes, Oh what a sight that made!! Two young girls

in motorized wheelchairs, one with no legs and prosthetic arms,

and the other a quadrapalegic wearing stockings and high heeled

shoes in a miniskirt. You see, it was Audrey who always said I

should look my best, no matter what. In the rehab center I'd

wear sweatpants, because they could fit over my casts, anf big

shirts, because they were easier for people to put on me. Also,

I didn't want to see my body, because it was so crippled. It

still looked the same, but that didn't matter to me. Audrey

changed all that, thank god. Here's the lift. Now when I'm on

it, hit the other green button, the one that says 'up'.

Now that I'm in the van, can you lock my wheels to the

floor with those straps there. Good. Make sure there tight. Do

you like my van? I figured what the heck, I'll never drive

again, but why not have a nice cruiser for whoever's helping me.

There, let's go shopping. Anyway, where was I in my story. Oh

yes, Audrey and I shopping together.

You see, at the center, after we had progressed well, they

let us go out, with assistants, and get back into society. The

first time Audrey and I went out, we went to a large shopping

center, totally wheelchair accessable. Well, I had decided to

dress up really nice, and I was getting over all that had

happened, so I had them dress me in a nice knee-length skirt, a

light blouse, stockings and high-heeled shoes. You may ask why

high-heels, but even though I'll never walk or move my legs or

feet again, I still like nice shoes. Anyway, this was the first

time I'd worn anything but sneakers, and I wasn't very

experienced with life outside the center. About an hour into

our day, I rolled over a doorjam, one of the low ones sliding

doors ride on, so it was more of a speedbump. Unfortunately,

the bump jarred one of my legs a bit, and that nice high heel

fell off! I didn't know, because naturally I couldn't feel it,

but Audrey, who was behind me, callled out and told me I'd

dropped something. When I turned around, she was holding my

shoe in one of her prosthetic hooks! I laughed, but I was

embarrassed, too. I looked down at my legs and saw the one was

hanging at an odd angle and barefoot, and that's when I really

realized my situaltion. I couldn't feel my legs, couldn't move

my legs, they might as well have not been there. I started to

cry a little, and audrey wheeled over and gave me a big hug,

then she tried to put my shoe back on. (the assistant with us

was in a store) She couldn't manipulate the dead weight of my

leg with her hooks, and couldn't get the shoe back on, so she

did the next best thing- She pulled my other shoe off! So there

I was, with no shoes on, and I looked down at my crippled,

stockinged feet, now both hanging at odd angles, and started to

laugh. Later on the assistant came back and put my shoes back

on and straightened my legs for me, but I just kept laughing.

She couldn't figure out what was so funny! Well, we're here,

just park up fron, I've got handicapped plates, of course.

Now, before I get out of the van, could you fix my legs,

one of them fell off the footrest when we hit a bump, and it's

just hanging there. Yes, that's great. Now, lets' go shopping!

To be

continued??