'She's the strongest person I know, by far'
SEATTLE -- In photos of 14-year old Megan Absten, you can't help but notice her radiant smile.
There is another feature that her parents can't help but notice -- her arms.
"I was just looking at pictures this morning," said father Tim Absten. "In most of them, you can see both her arms and she's not going to have that. And she's not going to have it her whole life. It's not just today or next week; it's her whole life."
Doctors at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle tried to save Megan's arm after an ATV accident on Dec. 28. But there were complications, and it came down to saving her arm or saving her life.
On Jan. 7, they took Megan back into surgery and amputated her left arm.
Megan remembers everything that has happened.
"The whole vehicle flipped and the bar landed on my arm, and basically ripped it off my body.
"I didn't really feel anything when I was laying there. It was numb, and I knew it was off. I was like, 'My arm is off my body.' My friend was like, 'Get up.' And I was like, 'No, the only (thing) holding my arm to my body is my jacket,'" she said.
Doctors compare losing an arm to losing a loved one. It's normal to be angry and terribly sad.
"She won't be able to hug her kids with two hands, or pick 'em up and throw them in the air," said Tim. "So it's hard."
But in this family, those moments of despair are overshadowed by smiles. Megan jokes about "the hot firefighter" who treated her at the scene.
And that bright smile spreads across her face as she recalls, "They told me if we go in for another surgery and try to save your arm, there's a slim chance it will work. So I was like, 'Just cut it off."'
Some of the optimism comes from the promise of possibilities.
Harborview's Dr. Doug Smith is one of only a handful of orthopedic surgeons in the world who can perform the procedure that will allow Megan to control a prosthetic arm with her mind.
"If we could keep the nerves physiologic instead of dead-ended, it might really give our brain an outlet to still run signals through those nerves to a piece of muscle where there can be a communication," said Smith.
It's called a nerve transfer surgery.
"It sets people for the technology that currently exists, but more importantly, for the technology that's coming down the line," Smith said.
"The muscle can contract and make new signals. Those signals can actually run the devices that are being invented now. There are prototypes out for arms that better connect to our thoughts.
"She had that surgery. She had the nerve transfers to hopefully give her some signals. So when she thinks about closing a hand or opening a hand, that she will actually be able to run the prosthetic device in that way," the doctor added.
While Megan seems intrigued, she's not against taking on life with one arm. This high school wrestler will be back.
"It's not really common for a girl to wrestle, but I'm in love with it," Megan said. "I'm not going to quit something just because I lost something. Why not just try."
Megan, a freshman at Burlington-Edison High School, says her wrestling coach is already studying moves she can make with one arm.
The school and the community have rallied around the family, hosting fundraisers and selling bracelets that say "Magnificent Megan."
A typical teenager, Megan rolls her eyes while talking about that slogan. But she also smiles and is clearly touched by the support from her friends.
"She's the strongest person I know, by far," said Megan's mother Jennifer Absten. "By far."
"She's an amazing kid," added Smith. "She's very smart. Very tough. I'm confident that she's going to heal. I'm confident she's going to move forward with her life. She'll make great choices.
"She has the most amazing smile."
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Anyone who'd like to help the Absten family can make a donation to the Problem Solvers Fund. Be sure to designate the donation to Megan Absten.
There is another feature that her parents can't help but notice -- her arms.
"I was just looking at pictures this morning," said father Tim Absten. "In most of them, you can see both her arms and she's not going to have that. And she's not going to have it her whole life. It's not just today or next week; it's her whole life."
Doctors at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle tried to save Megan's arm after an ATV accident on Dec. 28. But there were complications, and it came down to saving her arm or saving her life.
On Jan. 7, they took Megan back into surgery and amputated her left arm.
Megan remembers everything that has happened.
"The whole vehicle flipped and the bar landed on my arm, and basically ripped it off my body.
"I didn't really feel anything when I was laying there. It was numb, and I knew it was off. I was like, 'My arm is off my body.' My friend was like, 'Get up.' And I was like, 'No, the only (thing) holding my arm to my body is my jacket,'" she said.
Doctors compare losing an arm to losing a loved one. It's normal to be angry and terribly sad.
"She won't be able to hug her kids with two hands, or pick 'em up and throw them in the air," said Tim. "So it's hard."
But in this family, those moments of despair are overshadowed by smiles. Megan jokes about "the hot firefighter" who treated her at the scene.
And that bright smile spreads across her face as she recalls, "They told me if we go in for another surgery and try to save your arm, there's a slim chance it will work. So I was like, 'Just cut it off."'
Some of the optimism comes from the promise of possibilities.
Harborview's Dr. Doug Smith is one of only a handful of orthopedic surgeons in the world who can perform the procedure that will allow Megan to control a prosthetic arm with her mind.
"If we could keep the nerves physiologic instead of dead-ended, it might really give our brain an outlet to still run signals through those nerves to a piece of muscle where there can be a communication," said Smith.
It's called a nerve transfer surgery.
"It sets people for the technology that currently exists, but more importantly, for the technology that's coming down the line," Smith said.
"The muscle can contract and make new signals. Those signals can actually run the devices that are being invented now. There are prototypes out for arms that better connect to our thoughts.
"She had that surgery. She had the nerve transfers to hopefully give her some signals. So when she thinks about closing a hand or opening a hand, that she will actually be able to run the prosthetic device in that way," the doctor added.
While Megan seems intrigued, she's not against taking on life with one arm. This high school wrestler will be back.
"It's not really common for a girl to wrestle, but I'm in love with it," Megan said. "I'm not going to quit something just because I lost something. Why not just try."
Megan, a freshman at Burlington-Edison High School, says her wrestling coach is already studying moves she can make with one arm.
The school and the community have rallied around the family, hosting fundraisers and selling bracelets that say "Magnificent Megan."
A typical teenager, Megan rolls her eyes while talking about that slogan. But she also smiles and is clearly touched by the support from her friends.
"She's the strongest person I know, by far," said Megan's mother Jennifer Absten. "By far."
"She's an amazing kid," added Smith. "She's very smart. Very tough. I'm confident that she's going to heal. I'm confident she's going to move forward with her life. She'll make great choices.
"She has the most amazing smile."
---
Anyone who'd like to help the Absten family can make a donation to the Problem Solvers Fund. Be sure to designate the donation to Megan Absten.