A ROUTINE morning drive turned into a scene of chaos and carnage that would change the life of 24-year-old The Bluff resident Amber-Rose Schmuhl, who was left bruised and battered with four broken bones.

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Schmuhl was traveling to work, driving on the Ruth First Highway, when a tyre suddenly burst and caused her to lose control of the car. Her car veered across the middle island and collided head-on with another car traveling towards her. The impact was so strong that it overturned the car back onto the island, ejecting her passenger from the car.

The wreckage created a huge mess, but the real mess was the effect it had on Amber physically. Her mother, Catherine Schmuhl, said Amber was rushed to Addington Hospital hardly conscious.

“The doctors discovered a gruesome list of injuries including a broken collarbone, wrist and knee, a broken vertebrae in her lower back, internal bleeding, internal haematoma to the liver and perforations to the bowel. She required major surgery,” said Catherine.  She added that Amber underwent emergency surgery the following day, which began the start of a downward trend in her health.

Amber’s health continued to wane following the emergency procedure. Catherine said Amber vomited bile daily and her weight dropped severely, to as low as 42kg. Catherine said despite clear indicators of a bowel blockage, Amber was discharged from hospital and they sought private help.  When they met with the gastroenterologist, Amber started becoming recognisable again.

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Amber was almost immediately met with another challenge when she developed Wilkie syndrome, which is a rare condition where a part of the small intestine becomes compressed between the superior mesenteric artery and the aorta, resulting in blockages to the intestine. On July 28, Amber was admitted for another surgery to treat the blockage.

“They performed an exploratory laparotomy by inserting a feeding tube through her neck and began draining out the built-up bile inside of her,” said Catherine.

Despite the physical trauma and mental stress, Amber continued fighting. The next day, with tubes in her neck and arm, she stood up and walked with the support of a physiotherapist.

“She’s in constant pain, but she did it. She is broken, but not beaten,” said Catherine.

Just when it seemed that Amber was on the mend, another complication occurred. Doctors discovered a spinal deformity; the bulge of her spine now curves outward at the site of the fracture. “Instead of curving like a question mark, it starts curving in the opposite direction, protruding out of the back,” said Catherine.

Physicians are worried that it may need to be corrected surgically. Her ability to walk, her life without pain and the return of normalcy depends on expensive physiotherapy, additional surgeries, nutritional therapy and psychological counselling. Each passing day, the burden on her family becomes greater.

So far they have raised about R311 517 from public and private donations, however it is still not enough.

“This has nothing to do with money. This has everything to do with allowing our daughter to live the life she deserves,” said Catherine.

Amber was initially planning to get married this month, but now she lies in a hospital bed dealing with physical and emotional scars of her journey.

How you can help Amber:

The family is reaching out to the community to help give Amber a fighting chance.

•Donate via BackaBuddy (for South African donors)

https://www.backabuddy.co.za/campaign/ambers-medical-journey
•Donate via GoFundMe (for international donors):
https://gofund.me/a4d7ddfc
•Contact:
Catherine Schmuhl- 071 679 2931

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