Feeling

Chapter 30 - Getting Better

 

** I just want to say thank you for so many reads and votes. Unfortunately this story is coming to an end, but it’s likely that I will write another one :) thanks again**

 

A few months have passed by, Richard and I haven’t spoken since he texted me about being good friends, a week or so after that text I got another from him apologising again but I didn’t reply. I reckon he’s gone back home now. I haven’t left the hospital since my first operation, and I’m still getting around via wheelchair, however I’m recovering well says my doctor. Yesterday I had my first therapy session with my physical therapist, Georgia. She’s really nice, yesterday we worked on some exercises with my muscles, and she said that today she’s going to try and get me standing.

Dad’s been staying here too, he comes to my therapy with me. He told me all about how him and Richards mum just weren’t meant to be together, and although it was heart-breaking for him he had to let her go. I guess I have to do the same.

Dad and I make our way down to the therapy room. Georgia helps my dad lift me up into the white bed and she begins to massage my legs. Georgia is Spanish, and she begins to speak with her soft accent, “Ah, your muscles are getting stronger I can tell, your exercises must be working” I smile at her and nod, she carries on poking and pressing down on my legs and hips.  

Georgia walks over to the door on the other side of the rooms and opens it. The door scrapes the floor and she leans inside briefly to pull out a pair of crutches. My dad takes them from her hands and passes them to me while Georgia closes the door back up. I swivel myself round in bed so my legs are hanging off of the side of the bed, I can feel the sheets on my skin, and the blood rushing to my toes. I slip my hands through the gaps and hold the crutches to the floor.

“Try holding yourself up” Georgia says coming over to me and putting one hand on my shoulder and the other round my wrist. She moves her hand down my back and gives me a gentle push off of the bed, I place my feet on the ground and feel the coldness of the floor on my toes and my heels. I hold myself up with the strength of my arms, putting my lower back against the bed to balance myself.

“Now try adding more pressure onto your feet and legs” she speaks confidently, and removes both hands from me and holds them clasped together at her chest. I begin to lower myself more onto the ground, I can feel the pressure building up in my hips, they are weak, my knee’s suddenly feel collapsible, and unable to hold my weight. I lift my feet off of the floor and fling myself into bed. The release of pressure on my legs causes sudden searing pains all round my hips and spine. The pain is unbearable and I freeze in concentration of the pain. I feel like crying but I can’t, my body won’t let me, I feel uncontrolled, and stiff. Georgia rushes to my side and dads face goes into shock.

“Are you okay? What’s matter?” Georgia looks are me intensely and pushes and pulls my body into a comfortable position on the bed.

“I’m not strong enough to hold myself up, it hurts” I spit it out before crunching my face up and turning it into the pillow.

“It’s going to be okay, we will fix this.”

Georgia whispers to me, “I’ll give you some time to rest and then I’ll come back, we can try again” she leaves the room and dad kisses me on the forehead and then follows her out of the door. I lay in bed staring at the ceiling.

The only way I’m going to be able to walk is if I keep practicing, and I’ve wasted enough of my life in this chair, and not doing anything. I’m in Canada, it’s time to live my life, there’s no time to wait.

I push up my body and try to use my leg muscles to pull my body round to sitting on the side of the bed, like before. It starts to work but begins to tire my legs so I pull them round with my hands. I lean myself across to the end of the bed where I pick up the crutches and hold them against the clean white floor.

I slowly shuffle my legs off of the bed and add pressure onto them. I lift myself entirely off of the bed, without even using it to balance myself, and place almost all of my weight on my legs. The pain is unbearable but I stay standing until my knee gives way. I lean quickly onto the crutch to hold myself up but it slips on the shiny floor and I collapse to the ground.