31 year old Scottish female from Geel

This was my identity on Monday 3 August.

Our offices had been closed for 2 weeks for the summer holidays and Monday 3 August was our first day back. After a good night's sleep on the Sunday, I got up and set off for work early eager to get started.

It was a beautiful morning, the sun was coming out and I was looking forward to my week ahead. As I passed through the last section of road before the motorway my day took a dramatic turn. Ahead of me, on the other side of the road, I saw a grey car trying to overtake very quickly and by doing so coming in to my lane. At the same time, the car in front of me tried to swerve to avoid collision and the next thing I know is that the grey car is heading straight towards me and I have no where to go.

"Oh shit!" was my last thought just as our cars impacted and the noise and entaglement begun. Luckily, my brain forseeing the potential for damage, shut me down and I passed out as our cars collided. We proceeded to do a 180 degree turn before coming to a stop and ended up facing in the oppositite direction.

I woke up, I'm not sure how much later, with my head on the air bag of the steering wheel. I could feel my nose dripping and could see blood on my hand. Dazed, I looked around the car and saw the shattered windscreen and the passenger's air bag. I was shocked and confused.

Not too long later, a police officer opened my door and asked me if I was ok. I asked him in Dutch if he could speak English. I had some pain in my arm, legs, back and abdomen. I noticed that there was smoke coming from the car so I tried to get out. He calmly advised me to wait until the ambulance arrived and asked me if there was someone I could call. We called Sarah and told her what happened. I can't remember too much of the conversation but I remember thinking that I must be ok if I could still dial my mobile.

Soon after, I was taken to our local hospital to receive x-rays, CT scans and an ultrasound. Fortunately, everything proved to be in order apart from a compound fracture on my L1 vertebrae. Whilst this was all being investigated, the driver who caused the collision, seemed to be in a much worse condition than me. I considered myself to be very lucky.

I was released from hospital on Tuesday with a back brace that makes me look a cross between a transformer and a power ranger. I was also preparing for approximately 2 months off work but Sarah went to my GP yesterday and we got some unexpected results. My GP has cross-referenced my notes from the hospital to my old medical records, so it turns out that the fracture on L1 is from my sledging accident that I had in Stirling about 8 years ago. Fantastic news! She's also advised that rather than having bed rest, i should try to be more active. I will call her later today for more information as I feel like I want a second opinion from the hospital results.

Are we there yet? The weekend is just around the corner.

Bit of a stressful day. I had to stop myself, countless times, from pressing the button on my Bumblebee Transformer to try and relieve my stress. Bumblebee is fab. My Girrel sent him to me a couple of months ago. Bless her, I was opening the packaging when she was on the phone eagerly awaiting my reaction, when I noticed the sticker at the bottom of the packaging. It read (or words to the effect):

"Please note that toy doesn't actually transform. It makes noises instead."

Devastation. There was a long pregnant pause at my end of the phone. Dilemma. Do I want a Transformer that actually transforms or do I want one to really bug my workmates with? *starts to sing the theme tune* you know the one "Transformers, there's more than meets the eye. Transformers robots in disguise..." When I weighed up the odds, there was no argument. I wanted the non-transforming Transformer! I'm kinda hoping *hint* that maybe I'll get a transforming Transformer for my birthday folks. Oh, and I've also decided that which ever comes first, a pet or child, they're getting called Optimus Prime.

Anyways, so I've been a wee bit stressed, but my friend Helen popped round unexpectedly tonight for a quick cup of tea and a blether. Not long after Helen left my girrel called. It never ceases to amaze me how friends and loved ones can help put things into perspective. How sometimes they come into your life at just the right moment, just when you need them. They may not realise what they've done, but they've had an impact nonetheless. Moments like these cast away the grumpy shadows of a stressy day and make me feel thankful for the people that I have in my life.