The father of a high school wrestler who was left partially paralyzed in a ‘freak… one-in-a-million accident’ has posted heartbreaking pictures of his recovery.
Dominic Haines was left with ‘no feeling with the shoulders down’ after suffering a broken neck during last month’s state championship in Georgia.
The Jefferson High School senior, 17, is currently confined to a wheelchair – weeks after suffering the grim injury during his quarterfinal match in Macon.
His father, Zach Haines, has been giving supporters regular updates on Dominic’s recovery ever since he was taken to hospital.
Initially, the teen was in ‘excruciating pain’ and unable to eat or drink. He was also left feeling ‘hopeless, angry and scared’.
A few days ago, however, Zach Haines posted a promising update on Dominic’s condition.
Dominic Haines was left with ‘no feeling with the shoulders down’ after suffering a broken neck
The high school wrestler was left partially paralyzed after a ‘freak… one-in-a-million accident’
Dominic Haines has gone from ‘complete paralysis to incomplete paralysis’, his dad revealed
‘He got testing done and went from complete paralysis to incomplete paralysis, which means he can feel sensations at the bottom most part of his spinal column,’ Zach wrote on Facebook.
‘They can’t say exactly what the end results will be, but it’s a very good sign. The fact his fracture and SCI (spinal cord injury) is so high up and he can feel so far down is something they are very excited about! When doctors get excited, we get exited!!
‘Dom also has had new muscle function happening. He’s able to engage his deltoid muscles and his biceps are starting to fire as well!
‘He doesn’t realize how huge these ‘little’ achievements are!’ He wants it all now and while we understand completely, this is something that HAS to be celebrated!
The teen required surgery ‘to fuse the vertebrae from the back’ given ‘the muscles and ligaments were all completely torn’.
He has been left with a ‘huge scar’ down the back of his neck. His dad revealed earlier this month: ‘Dom got his staples taken out of the back of his neck where they did surgery and it looks really good!
‘He’s afraid he’s gonna have a huge scar, but I don’t think it’s going to be too bad. I think it’ll mostly be covered by his hair.’
A GoFundMe page was set up to help Haines and his family on this ‘tough road ahead’. At the time of writing, 1,000 donations had raised nearly $80,000.
A GoFundMe page was set up to help Haines and his family on this ‘tough road ahead’
Following surgery, the 17-year-old has been left with a ‘huge scar’ down the back of his neck
The injury was described as a ‘freak… one-in-a-million accident’. Haines was then taken away on a stretcher to the hospital.
Doctors had to ‘put a cage around his spinal cord’ and give the 17-year-old a breathing tube. He soon required a feeding tube to be inserted through his nose, too.
According to his dad’s social media posts, the teen remains at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta.
‘If this had not happened, I think he would have achieved that goal of being the state champion,’ his coach coach Kyle Baird said.
