Credit: @loren.schauers/Instagram
Man Who Was Cut In Half By Forklift Reveals The ‘One Thing’ That Made Him Cry After Accident
A man who had more than half his body amputated following a horrific fork lift accident has revealed the ‘one thing’ that has made him cry following the incident in 2019.
Loren Schauers has overcome more in his young life than most people do in an entire lifetime, after his world was turned upside down as a result of a horrific accident.
He was just 19 years old when the forklift he was operating drove off a bridge in Montana, plummeting more than 50 feet.
The lower half of the teen’s body was completely crushed and in order to save his life, doctors were forced to perform an incredibly rare and complex procedure known as hemicorporectomy, amputating from the top of his hips down.
Schauers’ arm was also crushed in the incident, so that also had to be amputated.
Loren Schauers remained conscious throughout the accident
Perhaps one of the most shocking things about Schauers’ ordeal was that he remained conscious the whole time and has a complete memory of what happened, despite the fact most people would be keen to forget.
Recalling what happened following the horrific accident on that life-altering day, the now 24-year-old said: “As the edge of the bridge collapsed and the forklift started to tip up, I unbuckled my seatbelt and went to jump out.
“I now know that was the wrong idea but it was just fight or flight.”
He continued: “The seatbelt ended up wrapping around my leg as I jumped out so I actually swung out instead and broke one of my ribs off the floorboard of the forklift.
“I tried staying on top of the forklift as much as I could as it rolled and then I was thrown from the forklift at the end of the hill once it finally landed.
“I was conscious the whole time. My eyes were wide open and I saw the forklift come down and land on my hips and my right forearm.”
Injuries changed every aspect of his life
Following the life-saving surgery he received, Schauers went from being almost 6 foot tall to just 2 feet 8 inches and weighing around 90lbs, with his remaining organs forced to live within a significantly smaller space.
According to family nurse practitioner Brandon Hawk, the surgeon who operated on the teen had to ‘remove everything from his hip bones down,’ which is where the intestines would usually be.
“To get everything to fit right, they had to move everything up, which then would push on his stomach, his lungs, his heart,” he explained.
“And then they had to make room for a colostomy for his stool to pass through and then a urostomy for urine because he no longer has a bladder.”
Fortunately, Schauers’ long-term partner Sabia Reiche, who had been in a relationship and living with him for 15 months prior to the accident, has stayed by his side and remains his full time carer to help him with nearly every aspect of his life.
One thing that made him cry wasn’t his injuries
Schauers has shown unbelievable levels of resilience since his accident, however he admitted there was one aspect of his new life that reduced him to tears, and it wasn’t his injuries.
One of the most unfortunate repercussions of having the lower half of his body amputated meant that he was told he’d never be able to father any children, which was ‘one of the hardest things’ to come to terms with.
He told the New York Post: “I didn’t cry over not having legs or a pelvis, the only thing I cried about was not being able to have kids.”
Despite this heartbreaking set back, Schauers and Reiche have continued to go from strength to strength in their relationship, and one of the most commonly asked questions they receive on social media is whether they’re able to have any kind of a sex life.
“When it comes to intimacy, we’re not different than any other regular couple,” Schauers said.
“I might not have all the parts that I need, but it doesn’t change how we’re intimate with one another or how we love one another or how we show affection to one another.”
Related Article: Wife Of Man Cut In Half By Forklift Issues Devastating Health Update After He’s Hospitalized
Related Article: Man Cut In Half By Forklift Shares Horrifying Photo Of Moment It Fell On Him
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