Life has been pretty good, if I must say. I am surrounded by so many good people being my family and friends, as well as my paintball team. A few years ago, I had a drastic injury that changed my life. I had to get a permanent colostomy procedure due to the extent of my injuries. It was life-altering at first, but once I was able to get back on my feet and figure everything out, I realized my life is no different than it was before, other than I have to carry around a bag that contains my bodily waste. It is not a pleasant thought or topic to discuss, but many people have them, so there is no need to be afraid of it.
When I had just graduated from high school, and some of my friends and I went to Florida to celebrate. One thing we did not check to see was if there were sharks in the area since we loved to surf along with play paintball. When we arrived in Florida, we spend the whole next day playing at an amazing speedball field, and we had so much fun. We do not have these kinds of fields by us back home. To end the day, we decided to go surfing. Even though most of us were exhausted, we wanted to spend the evening watching a sunset on our boards. As we were paddling out, my friend said he had thought he had seen a shark but was not sure. The next thing I know, I’m getting launched five feet in the air with a shark’s jaws fixed to either side of my abdomen. I immediately began hitting the shark on the nose and eye, and it let me go but not before taking some of my intestines with it.
I woke up in the hospital surrounded by my friends and the doctor. As soon as he saw I was awake, he asked me how I was doing and the steps that needed to be taken if I wanted to live everyday life. He said I would need to get a permanent colostomy procedure immediately. He told me all that it entailed and what I would look like once it was over. I told him to proceed.
When I woke up from my procedure, I was again surrounded by my friends, and this time my family was there too. I told them not to worry as I am alright and there is nothing to worry about. Shortly after my procedure, I asked my doctor if I could still play paintball. He told me no, not unless I get some form of protection for my ostomy, and I almost immediately grabbed my phone to begin researching. I was able to find one and was ecstatic. I still play paintball to this day. My team is almost undefeated in every tournament we have played. I get the satisfaction of knowing that the people we beat got beat by a disabled guy.
As a paintballer with an ostomy, there are a few things I can not do, so I primarily play in the back. I have to be careful as not to hurt my ostomy stoma as that could be bad. I love paintball, and I am glad to have it in my life as it helps me forget about my situation. I am surrounded by so many supportive friends and family, and I do not want to let them down.
No comments:
Post a Comment