Opps! I Fell Off of my Horse!

Yes it is true. I have not fallen off of a horse in years..even those that bucked and reared up...but it happened to me this Sunday. Actually though, I must admit it was neither mine or the horses fault. The saddle actually broke. The billet (that is the strap that the girth buckles into) ripped, so there was nothing holding the saddle on! I could have stayed on if we were going in a straight line - but we were cantering in small circles. More weight was on the inside and that is the direction I went down. The scarry part was that I fell directly under the horse and he had to jump over me with his back feet.

I laid on the ground on my right side in a fetal position with the saddle still between my legs. My horse stopped a few steps ahead. Pain rivited through body. The red clay soil was unforgivingly hard since the last rain we saw was over a week ago with Hurricane Ike. Thankfully I was not alone. Both Cherryl, a friend I met at work and a horse trainer were there. They rushed over to help me, but because it was my back that hurt the most, they were cautious about moving me. I lay in the grass for an eternity.

Because I did not have any numbness in my limbs, they brought a chair into the paddock and sat me in it. I immediately started to feel faint. Both commented on how white I was. It was apparent that I was not going to be riding any time soon, so the horse was put up. The trainer carried me to Cherryl's truck and placed me into the front seat. My skin was cold and clammy. They drove me to the hospital. Every bump and turn caused pain, mostly on my left side which I thought quite strange since I fell on my right.

The people at the hospital were very nice, even though they seemed extremely busy. After they took my vitals and assessed what they thought was the problem, they ordered x-rays and gave me medication for the pain. It did as much good as bad. Although it made many of my aches go away, it brought on terrible nausia. Once I was able to lie flat, the doctor did the usual "does this hurt?" test, until he found my GEEEEEE spot...you know the one that makes you both jump off the table and cry at the same time. Mine was the midline area of my pelvis. He thought I did indeed break a small bone on the posterior pelvic bone. Thankfully, he was wrong! Both x-rays and a cat scan confirmed that all bones were in tact. I just had deep tissue bruising.

Don met us at the hospital and on the drive home, we stopped only to pick up my medication. He pulled me on the wagon from the drive to the stairs and had to carry me up the stairs in his arms..(poor guy!) He was so gentle, setting me down so softly on the bed.

So today, I can get in and out of bed by myself and with the help of a cane, I can walk to the bathroom...even though it takes me about 10 minutes to get there!