In their 41 years of marriage, Dwight and Christy Mayer have seen and been through a lot. They never anticipated they’d need to care for each other’s traumatic injuries while simultaneously healing from their own wounds.
The couple was in a serious, head-on collision July 12. Dwight fractured his C1 and C3 vertebrae, broke bones in his wrist and kneecap and sustained damage to internal organs and arteries. Christy broke her sternum and several ribs, along with a broken wrist and two compression fractures in her back. Despite the numerous injuries, the couple is using humor to heal.
“I don’t think we’ll be going for a jog any time soon,” Dwight said.
On the bright side, Christy says, their different injuries make caring for each other easier.
“Oddly, all of our injuries are the exact opposite of each other, so we’re going to try and work with that,” Christy said. “I can put on his shoe and sock on the foot that he can’t reach and he can put the shoe and sock on the foot that I can’t reach.”
The pair first went to Nebraska Medicine, where Dwight spent five days and Christy spent 11. They each arrived at Madonna Rehabilitation Hospitals, ready to return to their independent lifestyle. Having a married couple recovering together at Madonna was a unique situation, but they were able to get rooms right next to each other. Their care teams even coordinated their therapies and integrated caregiver training.
“Once Christy got here, we did a joint therapy session so she could learn how to help Dwight with cervical collar management after showers,” Abby McDonald, MOT, OTR/L, CBIS, Dwight’s occupational therapist, said. “It was so fun to see them interact together after getting to know Dwight so well and hearing all about his wife.”
Dwight made great strides on his own, but therapists say they noticed him really start to progress once Christy was also at Madonna. Wanting to walk to her room to spend time together motivated him to take steps with a platform walker.
“I had Dwight walk into her room for therapy and he broke down crying at the sight of her sitting happily in her recliner,” Hannah Moylan, PT, DPT, CBIS, Dwight’s physical therapist, said. “They were finally reunited. He got to see just how well she was doing after all that worry and being apart in separate hospitals. It was so impactful and such a special moment to see them together at last.”
Moylan says she quickly realized that it was important to both Dwight and Christy that they spend as much time together as possible in the healing process.
“I would constantly be going straight to Christy’s room for my session with Dwight because I knew going to his room would be a waste of time,” Moylan said. “He was always with her when we weren’t doing therapy and that was so special to witness. They cherished their time together and really enjoyed each other’s company.”
The pair also kept each other smiling and laughing – the best kind of medicine.
“Sometimes we’d see Dwight working in the gym and set up our session nearby to keep an eye on him,” Kailyn Wiseman, PT, DPT, Christy’s physical therapist, joked. “I think it was motivating for them to see each other working so hard!”
Christy says while the situation isn’t ideal, she’s grateful to have her husband by her side for support.
“It’s just nice to know that at a meal, you have somebody that it’s comfortable to sit down with and we can have a conversation and I know that he’s there,” she said.
Christy and her care team knew she would return home using a wheelchair, but they still wanted to focus on maintaining her strength once she no longer had weight bearing restrictions. They also worked to manage her pain, and she was able to do so on her own as she discharged from inpatient therapy.
“She had to re-learn how to complete all her daily tasks, but was highly motivated and always had a positive attitude,” Wiseman said. “Both of them are go-getters, you can just tell. Most of the time we were having to hold them back from overdoing things, but their motivation and drive is a huge reason for their success.”
Staying positive was important to the Mayers. Having supportive physicians, nurses and therapists at Madonna made it easier to keep things light.
“I have not had one person that I haven’t felt happiness and joy radiating off of them and it’s great,” Christy said. “It feels like home. Well, almost better than home because he doesn’t always radiate joy.”
Over their stays at Madonna, Dwight and Christy made progress both physically and emotionally. Relearning new ways to accomplish their everyday tasks hasn’t been easy, but they’ve been able to lean on each other. Dwight says the situation has also taught them a lot of life lessons.
“There is no promise that tomorrow’s going to come,” he said. “It was a big reality check for me, but we feel very blessed that we’re still here. The crash could’ve turned out very differently.”
While the Mayers recovered, their community in the small town of Shenandoah, Iowa, rallied around them and supported them through their journey. Dwight says residents donated, set up meal trains and helped with farm chores and baling hay.
“Dwight had a new sense of purpose I feel like,” McDonald said. “After going through something so traumatic together, it made him realize how lucky he was to be here and that really drove him to keep going. Having such a strong family and huge community supporting them was also a huge factor that he mentioned often. It was really touching to see how impactful his community had been for him.”
Having met all his therapy and independence goals, Dwight returned to Iowa at the end of July. He says he was anxious about being home while Christy finished her therapy, but felt prepared to care for himself independently.
“I think the learning curve is going to go about straight up for a bit,” Dwight said. “But the case managers and therapists, they’ve dotted all their I’s and crossed their T’s for everything. They’ve prepped me for everything, like picking up the throw rugs and using a movable handle in the shower. It’s just things I wouldn’t have thought of but they do and I think I’m ready.”
One week later, Christy also returned home. The Mayers are glad to now be home and together, but they say they already miss their Madonna care team.
“I’m glad we came here,” Christy said. “I think it’s the best place we could’ve come to. Everyone has been awesome. They’re just amazing people doing a job that I hope they know how it impacts people.”