Personal Narrative: The Event That Changed My Life

One event that changed me forever is breaking my back, but it gave me a more positive and thankful perspective of the world that will influence my decisions for the rest of my life. This event made me realize how lucky I am and how much worse the situation could have been.
Five years ago, spring was arriving and the weather was beginning to feel like summer again after a long cold winter. My best friend, Taylen, and my brother, Elliot, and I, decided to celebrate the warm weather by going out to jump on the trampoline. After Taylen began showing off her skills she had learned in gymnastics, I couldn’t fight the urge to try out this back flip. She gave me a short lesson, and I began to hurl my body backwards over and over, fail after fail, until I finally did it. I felt a rush of accomplishment and pride take over as I attempted what would be my final backflip. A combination of jumping too high, and waiting too late to flip over caused instantaneous disaster. My body plummeted to the trampoline head first, and when it hit I

folded up like a lawn chair. Groans of agony poured out of my mouth like vomit. As I took my focus off the pain and turned it towards reality I could hear my brother asking "Are you okay?". The grin on his face quickly turned to shock as I replied "No!" in between groans. Taylen ran inside to get help and Elliot refused to leave my side.
A terrifying thought that I might not be able to walk caused my to climb down off the trampoline and make my way up the steps and to the back door where my step mom, Ali, and my dad, Curtis, met me to see what had happened.

I told them "I'm fine," and made my way to the couch where I quickly realized that I was not able to sit down. I attempted to lay down next but didn’t because I was afraid I would not be able to get back up. Judging from my tense body, my shaky breath, and the sweat rolling off of me, Ali decided to call a friend and ask where they should take me for my injury. In the heat of the moment, an unintelligent decision was made to take me to a local chiropractor in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky. I felt as if I were in the waiting room for hours while my dad filled out paperwork. Quickly after they x-rayed me and diagnosed me with a pinched nerve, they began popping my back. They advised me to ice my back every hour and sent me

home.
Two weeks, filled with lots of pain and ice, passed and my mom, Kylie, realized that I was still not back to normal like I should've been. "I'm taking you to the hospital tomorrow morning to get you checked out again." she said. The next morning arrived and we headed to the Frankfort Regional Medical Center emergency room. I described what had happened, along with my current pain level, and all the other seeming useless questions they ask you before admitting you. The nurse showed up at my door with a wheel chair, and wheeled me back to the x-ray room for yet another x-ray. After a short wait, the doctor came in with a concerned look on his face as he informed me and my mom that I had four compression fractures in my lower back. He allowed me to go home since I had been mobile for two weeks after the incident, but he insisted that I get a brace as soon as possible. That same night a guy came to fit me for my brace, and from that point on I had to wear it everywhere for the next couple months.