Wow! What a day! I'm not even sure where to begin! I guess the beginning of the day would be most logical!!!
First of all, our drive to Charlotte was very quick and easy! When we got to the airport, we were able to park in one of the first spots in the parking garage. That was definitely a blessing to mom and Meghan, who had to do all the walking, pushing, and dragging along luggage! We were quite the trio! Meghan was dragging 2 suitcases with bags on top of them, mom was trying to push me along while trying to drag another suitcase, and I just rode along with a stack of stuff on my lap! It was very funny to see! We did have some difficulty with sidewalks and maneuvering the luggage, but other than that, we had an easy time getting through the airport! God certainly blessed us with short lines and very helpful workers!
I wasn't sure what to expect when I got on the plane, seeing as this was my first flight! Our plane was NOT like the ones I saw on TV that were huge and noisy! Our plane was small with only one isle dividing a row of 3 seats and stayed fairly quiet. We all had window seats and were seated close together, which was great! The take off was very exciting for me! I was afraid it would hurt, but my neck brace stabilized my neck, so it wasn't bad at all! Once we were in the air, I stared out my window the ENTIRE TIME!!! I was so amazed to see how high we were, and how small everything looked! Once we made it above the clouds, I was in awe of how beautiful God's creation was! I was shocked at how beautiful such a simple thing as clouds could be! The rest of the ride was very smooth overall.
As we started descending, I felt something that I haven't felt in a LONG TIME! The pain in my back was gone!!! My headache wasn't so bad!!! My knees did not hurt! The weightlessness that occurred when we had descended relieved my pain! It was only for less than a minute, but I was so excited that I almost cried! The pain returned as soon as the plane evened back out, but I was so happy that I had the few moments of relief! It felt like God was showing me that we are on the right track in thinking that EDS was allowing my joints to be compressed! It was the most incredible feeling I have ever experienced! The whole way down, I sat in anticipation for us to descend more so that I could have a few more seconds of relief! I was VERY thankful for those moments!
The landing was fairly smooth and did not cause me any more discomfort. It was difficult getting through the airport to the place where the shuttle took us to our rental car, but everyone was very helpful and patient! After we got the rental car, we had an easy time getting to our hotel, which is in Great Neck, NY, where the Chiari Institute is. We checked in with ease and again, everyone was so helpful! God really blessed us with wonderful people!
Then we were off to the big city! After a train and subway ride, we were there! This was Meghan and my first time to NYC, so we were very excited! We were able to see The Waldorf, Rockefeller Center, Saks, Time Square, the Chrysler Building, Broadway, and so many more incredible places! We took TONS of pictures! We had a wonderful dinner at an Italian restaurant and had a great time together! The sidewalks were definitely NOT ideal for a wheelchair, but we managed! I had to get up several times so that mom could lift the chair over the curb. I am very lucky that I can still stand and walk short distances. It would've been much more difficult, if not impossible, if I couldn't!
I have really learned that despite all the ADA laws, many places are NOT very accessible for people with disabilities! It began to frustrate me very quickly! I was able to get in and out of the wheelchair and walk down some steps when there was no way I could use the chair, but there are handicapped people who CANNOT do that! I was angry for those people! Most people do not realize how difficult simple things become when you have to use a wheelchair! I became very discouraged because of this! It seems like common courtesy for business and public places to be COMPLETELY handicap accessible, but they just aren't! This also made me very thankful for the amount of mobility that I DO have!
Well... Those were my experiences for the day! I don't have an appointment until 4pm tomorrow, so we can sleep late and relax until then! I am having a TON of imaging done tomorrow that will probably last until 8-ish. We will have them on disk in our possession before we even leave tomorrow. The images will also be sent directly to TCI so they can be read before my appointments with the nurse practitioner, neurologist, and neurosurgeon on Wednesday.
Thank you for all of your support and prayers! My family and I appreciate it more that we can ever put into words! Please let me know if you have any questions or comments! If you want, you can just leave the comment/question on my blog, or if you would like it to be private, you can email me. Thank you again!
Click here to see pictures from today:
http://s478.photobucket.com/albums/rr149/mackenziemathis/NYC/NY%20Day%201/
Mackenzie
mackenziemathis@bellsouth.net
First of all, our drive to Charlotte was very quick and easy! When we got to the airport, we were able to park in one of the first spots in the parking garage. That was definitely a blessing to mom and Meghan, who had to do all the walking, pushing, and dragging along luggage! We were quite the trio! Meghan was dragging 2 suitcases with bags on top of them, mom was trying to push me along while trying to drag another suitcase, and I just rode along with a stack of stuff on my lap! It was very funny to see! We did have some difficulty with sidewalks and maneuvering the luggage, but other than that, we had an easy time getting through the airport! God certainly blessed us with short lines and very helpful workers!
I wasn't sure what to expect when I got on the plane, seeing as this was my first flight! Our plane was NOT like the ones I saw on TV that were huge and noisy! Our plane was small with only one isle dividing a row of 3 seats and stayed fairly quiet. We all had window seats and were seated close together, which was great! The take off was very exciting for me! I was afraid it would hurt, but my neck brace stabilized my neck, so it wasn't bad at all! Once we were in the air, I stared out my window the ENTIRE TIME!!! I was so amazed to see how high we were, and how small everything looked! Once we made it above the clouds, I was in awe of how beautiful God's creation was! I was shocked at how beautiful such a simple thing as clouds could be! The rest of the ride was very smooth overall.
As we started descending, I felt something that I haven't felt in a LONG TIME! The pain in my back was gone!!! My headache wasn't so bad!!! My knees did not hurt! The weightlessness that occurred when we had descended relieved my pain! It was only for less than a minute, but I was so excited that I almost cried! The pain returned as soon as the plane evened back out, but I was so happy that I had the few moments of relief! It felt like God was showing me that we are on the right track in thinking that EDS was allowing my joints to be compressed! It was the most incredible feeling I have ever experienced! The whole way down, I sat in anticipation for us to descend more so that I could have a few more seconds of relief! I was VERY thankful for those moments!
The landing was fairly smooth and did not cause me any more discomfort. It was difficult getting through the airport to the place where the shuttle took us to our rental car, but everyone was very helpful and patient! After we got the rental car, we had an easy time getting to our hotel, which is in Great Neck, NY, where the Chiari Institute is. We checked in with ease and again, everyone was so helpful! God really blessed us with wonderful people!
Then we were off to the big city! After a train and subway ride, we were there! This was Meghan and my first time to NYC, so we were very excited! We were able to see The Waldorf, Rockefeller Center, Saks, Time Square, the Chrysler Building, Broadway, and so many more incredible places! We took TONS of pictures! We had a wonderful dinner at an Italian restaurant and had a great time together! The sidewalks were definitely NOT ideal for a wheelchair, but we managed! I had to get up several times so that mom could lift the chair over the curb. I am very lucky that I can still stand and walk short distances. It would've been much more difficult, if not impossible, if I couldn't!
I have really learned that despite all the ADA laws, many places are NOT very accessible for people with disabilities! It began to frustrate me very quickly! I was able to get in and out of the wheelchair and walk down some steps when there was no way I could use the chair, but there are handicapped people who CANNOT do that! I was angry for those people! Most people do not realize how difficult simple things become when you have to use a wheelchair! I became very discouraged because of this! It seems like common courtesy for business and public places to be COMPLETELY handicap accessible, but they just aren't! This also made me very thankful for the amount of mobility that I DO have!
Well... Those were my experiences for the day! I don't have an appointment until 4pm tomorrow, so we can sleep late and relax until then! I am having a TON of imaging done tomorrow that will probably last until 8-ish. We will have them on disk in our possession before we even leave tomorrow. The images will also be sent directly to TCI so they can be read before my appointments with the nurse practitioner, neurologist, and neurosurgeon on Wednesday.
Thank you for all of your support and prayers! My family and I appreciate it more that we can ever put into words! Please let me know if you have any questions or comments! If you want, you can just leave the comment/question on my blog, or if you would like it to be private, you can email me. Thank you again!
Click here to see pictures from today:
http://s478.photobucket.com/albums/rr149/mackenziemathis/NYC/NY%20Day%201/
Mackenzie
mackenziemathis@bellsouth.net
2 comments:
Wow! You did quite a bit in a short amount of time. Isn't NY a special place?! I am sorry you are having to go to NY under these circumstances, but I am thankful you are getting to experience the big city...especially during this time of year when everything is decorated for Christmas! It's so beautiful. I enjoyed reading your blog. You are very expressive, especially on your take with your first experience flying! You seem to be in good spirits and very positive (as always). I look forward to reading your next update. You and your family are in our thoughts and prayers. Let me know if you need me to do anything. Take care!!
Well, you have me beat! I have never been to New York.
I hope you get a chance to see those "ugly" buildings you want to see while you are there. The class is in economics right now. I gave them the message about the snow and let them know that you updated your blog.
We'll keep you in our prayers; you keep your blog updated for us.
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