Ever feel like you've been run over by a truck?

[Esther]

Well I'm asking for prayer for my dad. He was run over by a truck literally. What follows is the email I sent to family and friends.

Please pray for my dad, Orlin Bestrom. Tuesday morning he was on the job at Pine Ridge Bible Camp and had just gotten out of a pickup truck. Evidently he had not put it in park but had left it in neutral accidently. It began to roll backwards towards a garage. He tried to get in the driver's side and when he saw he couldn't, he tried to push down on the brake with his hand. Somewhere along the line, he fell and the truck rolled up the side of his right chest, breaking ribs and that caused the lung on that side to collapse. As the wheel progressed it was rolling further onto his body and broke his scapula (sp?) at the base of the side of his neck. I'm not sure if that is "collar bone" or shoulder bone. Front I think. I'm not sure if it actually went over the side of his face. But his left eye is blacked and swollen shut. He has stitches in the back of his left hand and behind his right ear. He had a broken lower jaw just a little to the right of center and broken facial bones but I'm not sure which side. There are big patches of missing skin on his right arm and both sides of his face that has the skin all off.


He was so upset that the truck had hit the garage that he got up, walked around the truck to view the damage and then decided he maybe ought to lay down. Just then the camp maintenance man came along and called 911.


He is taking this just as you might expect, calling himself an old fool and making sure everyone knows it was all his fault. He has been talking a mile a minute the whole time. But has a lot of pain in his chest from the damaged lung and ribs. I don't know how he'll handle having his jaw wired if that means he can't talk or chew. You know that talking and eating are two of his favorite things to do. Then on top of that, his right shoulder hurts badly and so it hurts to move his hand. Naomi, his wife, said that she couldn't think of anything worse for him than to not be able to talk or move his hands because he moves his hands a lot when he's talking.


The hospital staff is amazed at how well he is doing and his good health, considering that he is 85. But at this time he is still in intensive care. His blood pressure was doing some odd things and they wanted him where they could better monitor it. Some time tomorrow he will have surgery on his jaw at least. There is a possibility of more surgery but I don't know what or when.


Naomi is holding up very well and wouldn't stand for me to spend the night with her. The camp director, Kevin Grifhorst, and my son Kevin spent the whole day with us at the hospital. Naomi's son Mark came for the afternoon and the pastor of West Cannon Baptist Church was there for a while.


We are praising God that he is doing so well and not hurt any worse.

I just talked to the nurse this morning and he had a good night and the surgery on his jaw is scheduled for 2 this afternoon.

[Joyce]

OMG am so sorry Esther!

You can be sure I am praying for your dads speedy recovery!
He is a good man, to be able to blame himself.
A good positive attitude will make ALL the difference,
so keep his spirits up, and he will heal faster.
Negativity only slows the body down and does more damage.

Once again, you have my prayers and powers of positive thinking!

[CT]

Oh Esther, I'm SO sorry that happened to your dad. That has to be very painful and scary. I can't even imagine. I'll keep you all in my thoughts and prayers. I hope the surgery goes well and your dad has a speedy recovery.

[EagleEye]

Very sorry to hear about your dad Esther.
Sounds like he's got the right attitude though. He will be in my thoughts and I sure hope everything goes well for him.
And of course a speedy recovery.

Steve

edit
Just got home from work and was rereading your dads story. I can just picture myself doing the exact thing, for sure! Like your dad, when I hurt myself due to something that I have done, I get very pissed at myself. And sometimes I even learn
But to quote Joyce:   powers of positive thinking!
If only people would realize how important this single thing is in their life. I have believed in this for many years, and have proved it to myself many times over.
Your dad is obviously a believer, and that's a great thing!
My best to your dad

[Teresa]

What a horrible, frightening accident.  I hope his recovery is quick and his pain doesn't last long. 

[Desertponder]

Esther, I'm so sorry about your dad. Best wishes to him for a speedy recovery.

[Loony]

Esther, I'll be praying for a speedy recovery for your Dad.

[Gizzy]

Esther, I'm so sorry about your Dad. My prayers are with him and your family. I'm sending lots of special hugs to you.

Gizzy

[barb]

I am so sorry to hear that, how horrifying!  I will keep your dad and your family in my thoughts and prayers. 

[Esther]

Thanks everyone for the kind thoughts, prayers and hugs. Here is the "one size fits all" email for today.

Daddy had surgery on his lower jaw today. They took him down a little before 2 and he was done by 5:30. There was a break just to the right of center all the way through and the left side had dropped down quite a bit. They put a plate underneath to reinforce the jaw. It will remain there. There was another break way up by the ear and because it was not out of alignment and a very difficult break to try to put a plate on, they wired his jaw shut instead. It has to be that way for about 6 weeks. With proper nutrition, the second break should heal without any surgical procedures.
 
They said that the breaks in the facial bones between the eye and ear on both sides will heal on their own without any surgery.
 
They are going to deaden or numb his chest area so he will breath more deeply and keep the lungs properly inflated. This will also keep him from relying on the morphine pump so much.
 
At first this morning, his blood pressure started fluctuating again but it settled down and was fine for the rest of the day.
 
 We still don't know if there are one or two breaks in the collar/shoulder bone/s and if they will require surgery.
 
Yesterday there was talk of skin grafts on his arms and face but we don't know any more about that either.  He does look better today but the purple bruises are extensive.
 
Naomi's children and brother have come in from out of town, one clear from California. Her daughter will be here tomorrow from Texas.
 
Daddy was back to his room about 7PM but sleeping of course. We decided to let him  rest and left. We are not going back until after lunch tomorrow. He tries too hard to entertain us by talking and be polite and stay awake.
 
Thanks so much for all the prayers and concern for us all. We certainly appreciate it. I am amazed at the number of individuals and churches who are praying for us. We can certainly see the results of the power of prayer because of the peace that is exhibited by Daddy and the family. Sure there have been tears at times but knowing that he is in God's hands gives such comfort.

You should have heard him pray this morning while the hospital staff stood around his bed. He prayed for each of them by name and asked special wisdom and guidance for them as they performed their duties today. It was neat and not a dry eye in the room.

[Krista]

oh my word!!  What an absolutely horrible accident! Your dad and entir efamily is in my thoughts with wishes for a very speedy recovery.

[louis]

OMG Esther, thats terrible. i am sure he will do well with his spunky attitude.

lou

[Jerry]

Dad sounds like a man of steel.  He will make it back!

[livetogarden]

Esther,
  I have been praying for your dad and the rest of your family. Prayer is an amazing thing and can be such a comfort. Your dad sounds like such a great example of God's love. I bet there will be people in the hospital who will see God's love through your dad, many may not have ever known God's love in their life. So out of this bad experience may come so good.
Blessings to all of you,
Cath

[maryvonne]

So sorry to hear about your Dad Esther. My thoughts are with you and your dad.

Maryvonne

[Indiana Karen]

Esther, so sorry to hear about your Dad.  My Mom fell last year at age 85 and broke her leg, we were so worried about her recovering, but she did!!!!!!  I know your Dad's injuries are so much more severe, but I'm betting that he makes a full recovery too!!!!!!  Positive attitude means everything........we are fortunate to have parents with such great attitudes.
Karen

[Esther]

As I entered the hospital room about 12:15 I about fell over. There he sat in a chair all by himself talking on the phone. Here I expected he'd still be lying in bed. They said he had Cream of Wheat for breakfast. I have no idea how he strained it between his teeth. He sat up for about 4 hours and I managed to get him to take a little nourishment around 1. He was put back to bed about 2:30 and slept like a log for 4-5 hours. He slept so long he thought he had slept all night and was confused about what time of day it was. LOL He looked so much better after that.
 
The abrasions are healing already on his cheeks. It is very difficult for him to suck on a straw because the surgery has interupted some of the feeling in his lips, let alone not being used to straining everything through his teeth.
 
The orthopedic surgeon was in the room when I got there and said they were doing surgery Tuesday on his shoulder and as long as they were in there they might as well fix both the collar bone and shoulder bone at the same time. This surgery is being delayed because the surgeon is out of town over the long weekend and then they couldn't get him on the surgery schedule until Tuesday. So they warned us that he might be sent home Saturday and then have to come back for the surgery.
 
He is very alert and remembers everything he should. The poor nurses don't know what to expect next out of him. Tonight the nurse evidently has to ask them questions to make sure the patients are "with it". He told her it was 1926. She turned to me and asked if he was joking. I grinned and told her he was. I wish I could remember as well as he.
 
There were several visitors today including relatives, church friends, his old business partner, and a boyhood friend. We worry that he is not resting enough but he seems to enjoy the attention and visits.
 

[karen J]

Esther, best wishes for your Dad. He sounds like a strong man, and able to withstand such injuries and come back like a Champ. Good for him! I'm glad he is doing so well.
Best wishes and prayers to your Dad and your family.

[Esther]

My father will not be going home Saturday. Naomi just does not have the strength to care for him in this condition and they have just a half bathroom down and no bedroom downstairs and a very small living room. I was going to suggest they make a sick room out of the garage. We could always wheel him out in the drive and hose him down for a bath.

I learned a few things today to add to the story. He has tread marks on the inside of his leg just below his knee. The shin is bluish before the tire mark. So the tire must have run over his leg and I don't know at what point it crossed his pelvis. This just sounds more awful and awful. But he has no injury to his pelvis or internally until the ribs. Scarier even!

The therapist took him walking down the hall today and he was moved from ICU down to the orthopedic floor.

He has already broken one of the wires holding his mouth shut. Are we surprised? When you bend a wire enough times it usually snaps.

The hospital still can't seem to get it straight about his eating needs and continues to send things that need to be chewed and milk based stuff that he shouldn't have. Thank goodness for Instant Breakfast and soup broth. Tomorrow I'm going to the health food store and get some powder protein.

We are a little concerned that he's getting too many visitors and they are staying too long. There are just no restrictions and the poor hospital staff has to work around the visitors. He did not get a nap today at all because of it all and he was exhausted tonight. We are going to talk to the doctors about it.

They took the tube out of his lung today so that is a good sign. The abrasions on his face are drying up nicely. The bruises are changing colors and spreading out as expected. He looks like a map gone amok.

[livetogarden]

Esther,
  My mom is no longer living  :'( but here's a thought for you. The last time she was in the hospital she was getting worn out from the visitors also. There was no medical reason why she couldn't have them so the staff couldn't actually post anything but my sisters and I put up our own sign on the door saying 'please limit your visits, Mom tires easily' and everyone pretty much did so after that. Since it came from her family the hospital had no probelm with it.
Cath

[Esther]

Yes, Cath. Now I realize I should have put in my two cents right away. So we put up a sign yesterday and left it up today limiting visitors and length of stay.

He's doing pretty good I guess. Yesterday he mostly slept so that was good. Today they had him walking in the hall and he tuckered out very easily so I left him to sleep. My stepmom and her kids are with him right now and we'll go down this evening.

They have the best food in the cafeteria and the icecream is to die for. Well that wasn't a good analogy was it? Anyway, I look forward to sneaking down and getting a .50 squirt of soft ice cream every so often.

He has surgery on his shoulder Tuesday.

[CliffandJoann]

Just read this, wishing your dad a speedy recovery. The thing about the elderly is they feel pain less
than a younger person, something to do with the nerve endings. Just wanted to mention that this is still
a car accident and if there is any shortfall in his insurance coverage, it would be covered with his car ins.
check with his car insurance co.
joann

[kaz]

Thinking of you and Dad Esther.  I can see you are worried about the amount of visitors... but isn't he lucky to be soooo loved

[Esther]

Thanks Joann and Kaz. Yes, I was surprised to learn that his car insurance should be notified even though it wasn't caused by his vehicle. So their agent said that my stepmom should come in and they would fill out the papers for/with her. That was nice. I just thought that the camp insurance would be liable for it all. We'll see what comes of it.

He had a bit of setback Saturday but today is better again. He's all discouraged because he's not healing quickly enough. But like Joann mentioned about the nerves etc, the old body doesn't heal as quickly as when it was younger. One of the doctors said his body was in the shape of a 60 year old. So he has that going for him too.

[Krista]

Sounds like he's progressing better than he should And definately on the visitor thing.. glad to hear you have your own sign up. it may be a hospital room, but it's still his room for the duration of his visit.

I LMAO at your idea of rolling him out of the garage and hosing him off... 

Will they be keeping him then until the surgery on his shoulder etc?


Can you pm me an address that I can send a GWS card to him Thanks!

[Viv]

What a terrible unfortunate accident!

Most of the wards in the hospital where I work have limitations on the amount of visitors allowed at one time. I wish your father a speedy recovery Esther.

[Esther]

Sure Krista, that is sweet of you.

The surgery on his shoulder and collar bone is tomorrow sometime. I suspect that after that the pain problem will let up. When he coughs, I press my hand on his collar bone and it helps support that bone. I swear I can feel the bones moving. Maybe it's my imagination. I don't like it much though.

One of the nurses hinted today that if everything goes well, he should be released by the weekend to a local rehab hospital that is usually used for younger people and they do a fast paced therapy there. But I don't think he'll put up with some pokey procedure.

Viv, our hospitals here used to have limitations on numbers of visitors at one time, age of visitors, and visiting "hours". But they don't any more and it looks like it has to be pretty bad before the staff puts the brakes on. So I did it instead. There was one couple who stayed two hours. They were with him in the intensive care area and then followed us down to the new floor and stayed longer. Don't ask me what is the matter with people's heads......   Obviously the visit was for their benefit, not the sick guy's.

[Esther]

Bad news guys. He has taken a turn for the worse. There was fluid built up around his lungs and it caused a breathing problem. He is back to ICU where he is totally sedated. They had to cut the wires in his mouth so who knows what will become of the mending bones. They will remove the fluid today and put in a feeding tube through the stomach wall. They are monitoring his heart closely. The shoulder surgery went well and his minor scrapes and bruises are healing well. It took 15 screws to put his collar bone back together. I just talked to the hospital and they said it was an uneventful night.

[Joyce]

Sending extra strong healing prayers your way!

[Kittyzee]

Oh good grief Esther, prayers, prayers, prayers.....

LuAnn