Adventures in Australia (part 2)

We had such an incredible weekend camping on the farm, but the day we had dreaded was finally here. It was time for Tommy John number 2.

Both our nerves were all over the place the moment we woke up. Mitch needed to be checked in at the hospital by noon, then we would wait. I laid with him in the hospital bed and put on a movie to keep distracted while nurses were in and out. I continuously reassured Mitch that everything would be okay, but this surgery was a tough one for him.

In 2016, Mitch found out he had injured his UCL, requiring reconstructive surgery if he if he wanted to play baseball again. He was only in his first year of college, and had so much to look forward to. This setback was devastating. But in 2017, he went under the knife in hopes of returning to baseball stronger in 12 month’s time.

Tommy John surgery got its name in 1974 when Major League pitcher, Thomas John Jr., injured his arm during a great season with the Dodgers. His surgeon took a look inside, realized the UCL wasn't repairable, and got a bit creative! He took a ligament from the pitcher's wrist and used it as a new UCL, which saved Tommy's baseball career. Today, TJ has between an 82%-90% success rate.

2018 rolled around and Mitch was just a few months shy of finishing the agonizing 1 year of rehab. He had been working hard to regain strength in his arm so he could go back to college. And then the unfortunate happened. His MRI came back with an image that left everyone baffled. The ligament was completely gone. His surgery had failed in a bizarre and unexpected way. It hadn’t just snapped or been reinjured, but his body ate the graft entirely. Nothing was left but a scar.

So here we were, laying in a hospital bed, watching Transformers and fighting back tears. Mitch would undergo a second surgery in hopes that this one would work. He'd spend another few months in a cast along with another year of rehab. Another year out of baseball.

The next morning, I got up at sunrise and made sure to get to the hospital the moment guests were allowed in. My heart hurt as soon as I walked through the door. Mitch was in horrendous pain. He was uncomfortable. He was in a massive cast, and his leg was wrapped up where they removed the ligament. Every now and then all the medications would kick in and he’d slowly fall asleep, but when his eyes weren’t shut, he was screaming in pain. I felt so helpless. All I could do was hold his hand and reassure him he’d get through this.

Mitch spent 2 nights in the hospital, and I was so ready to have him back home. The first week he had to be in this big, bulky brace that went from nearly his shoulder to his hand. It was MASSIVE and could have very easily knocked me out had he accidentally bonked me in the head. The second week, he’d transfer to a brace with different notches. Each notch gave him more and more range of motion, but he could only change the brace every couple of weeks. He’d start at 90 degrees, and work his way up to a somewhat straight arm again after a few months. He was still in pain and struggling at night to sleep comfortably, as you could imagine. He couldn’t drive, shower, and at times I even had to help feed him. He was exhausted and getting frustrated with the lack of freedom he now had.

And then one night, just a week after his surgery, something none of us were prepared for happened…

Until next time,
Tay

Taylor Thompson & Mitch Neunborn

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