Natasha and Len were devastated when they got the news. The police officer had come to their door when Len was at work, so it was Natasha who took the blow first. She almost fainted and the officer had to help her into the lounge and on to the settee.
Her son Chris had crashed his car into a tree and the car had then bounced down an embankment.
“He’s alive,” said the officer, “But I’m afraid he’s rather badly injured. He’s in intensive care at the Royal City Hospital. Would you like me to take you there?”
Natasha accepted his offer but before leaving rang Len at work. Struggling to maintain a composed voice she simply said that Chris had had an accident in his car and was in hospital. When Len asked for details Natasha fended off his questions. She thought it better not to alarm Len too much, otherwise if he drove from work to the hospital knowing how bad things were, he might himself end up having an accident.
The police officer drove Natasha to the hospital where she was shortly joined by Len at Chris’ bedside in the intensive care ward.
Chris was still unconscious and the doctor told them they still had to investigate the full extent of his injuries. He tried to sound positive, but it became clear that he suspected the injuries to be severe.
From that day on there were seemingly endless tests and investigations. Chris came round and when he could speak said to his parents, “It’s strange, but I don’t seem to be able to feel anything from the neck down.”
Finally, after months of treatment, it was clear that Chris was now quadriplegic. Some sensation was restored to his fingers, but that was all. Chris was now faced with a lifetime of heavy dependence on other people.
One aspect of his condition had both positive and negative side. His brain was as alert as ever, and that was positive, but because of his unimpaired brain activity, he could recall what he had been before the accident, and this tormented him.
Chris had been one of those boys who seemed to have it all. Highly intelligent, a scintillating personality, popular with the girls, several of whom had surrendered their virginity to him, excellent at sport, in short, an outstanding achiever all round with a great future ahead of him. Now it had all come crashing down.
When Chris was finally told about his prognosis, he at first seemed to take it well, speaking philosophically about all the people in the world who suffered from similar problems, but this didn’t last. One day he announced to Natasha that he wanted to die, but no one would help him to die.
“I’m so bloody helpless,” he lamented, “I can’t even commit suicide.”
Natasha and Len shared his anguish and felt helpless in the face of it. This pain was increased when after months of being in hospital, they were faced with the choice of where Chris was to end up.
The choices came down to two possibilities. One was for Chris to be taken in to an auxiliary unit of the hospital that cared for what they called, “Totally incapacitated people”, or for Chris to come home.
They agonised over these choices, especially as they dearly wanted him to come home, but doubted their ability to care for him properly. On investigated they learned that the State Government provided some financial help for people in their situation, and this included having experts come into their house to set it up and equip it with what would be needed. In addition, a nurse would visit daily to help in the care of Chris.
Armed with all the information they could muster about the auxiliary unit and the possibility of his coming home, they put the situation to Chris. Without hesitation he opted for home.
So their house went through a storm of modifications to prepare it for Chris’ arrival.
Having some sensation in his hands Chris was able to use a somewhat sophisticated wheel chair with a joy stick that responded to his touch. Both Natasha and Len, but especially Natasha since she would be the principle carer, were given a course of training in what to do physically in the handling of Chris, and also some insights into dealing with his moods.
On the day of his arrival Chris arrived home in an ambulance and was carried in to his bedroom now laid out to allow for the manoeuvring of his wheelchair, as were other parts of the house, including the bathroom.
At first Chris seemed to come out of the depression that seemed to be constantly with him. He began to make plans for the future, announcing that he thought he could take a university course by correspondence and it would be great to have his parents and old friends around him again.
Sadly, and with the best will in the world, the old friends did call in at first, but most of them fell away. It was just too much bother to spend time visiting a cripple when the world was calling them. Gradually Chris descended into the gloom again.
Natasha’s devotion to her son was absolute. The nurse came in daily to help wash Chris and check on his condition, but it was left mainly to Natasha to deal with his other needs and wants. Len helped where he could, but as he was the main financial support, he was more limited in the time he could give.
One aspect of Chris’ condition oddly, had not been discussed by either the doctors or the people who had instructed them; Chris’ sexuality.
There seems to be a view that people like Chris no longer had sexual needs, or if they did, they ought not to. Whether or not he ought to, it became clear to Natasha that Chris did have sexual needs. This was evidenced when helping the nurse to move Chris from his bed to the wheel chair, and when changing the bed sheets, it was obvious that Chris was having seminal emissions.
The nurse, maintaining her professional stance, made no comment. It was only when Natasha quizzed her about it that she said, covering her embarrassment with a stern visage, “Oh yes, poor things, they still have sexual feelings,” and left it at that.
Natasha, herself having a very insistent libido, and still young enough to understand the sexual pressures of youth, was troubled by the lack of fulfilment Chris must be suffering. This, she felt, would be especially painful for her son since he would still be able to recall that girls who had once been so free with their bodies, but who now came nowhere near him.
The situation became even more poignant when during the times Natasha gave Chris a bit of a clean up, he would start to get erections. Self-conscious by his unbidden arousal, he went so far as to apologise to her saying, “Sorry mum, it’s about the only thing that still seems to work properly.”
Natasha tried to smooth over his embarrassment saying rather lamely, “It’s all right, darling, it’s perfectly natural,” and nothing more was said, but the erections continued whenever she had reason to touch his body and especially his genitals.
She thought she would let Chris managed with the wash the nurse gave him, but soon realised that Chris did need to be given a further if less thorough washes at least a couple of times a day in addition. The emission of semen and the erections began to trouble her, and she discussed it with Len.
He too realised that for Chris to undergo a lifetime of sexual deprivation was painful for the boy, but he could come up with no solutions.
They discussed the possibility of hiring a prostitute to come in and service Chris once a week, or perhaps he could be taken to a brothel to gain some relief, but when the idea was put to Chris he rejected it, saying he wasn’t going put his “cock in some slut’s cunt” that had probably had half dozen other cocks in it that day.
So the matter rested for a while, with the involuntary emissions and the erections continuing.
While Chris could use his hands in a very limited way, he was unable to use his arms. When he was manoeuvred into his wheel char his hands had to be lifter up to the control joystick. So at one stage Natasha thought she might lift Chris’ hands to his penis so that he could masturbate. On consideration she decided against this because the control of his hands was so limited he might end up achieving nothing and being more frustrated than ever.
