My daughter turned 26 a few months ago. At the end of Feb '16 she was brought into emergency, her eyes were going in different directions and i could literally see fluid build up in her right eyelid. They put a trache down her throat too far and she almost expired right there, before it was pulled back out a little and her vitals improved. She was helicoptered to a larger hospital and by that time she was unresponsive and bleeding from the esophagus damage to the tube being shoved down too far. They determined it was an anoxic injury and to attempt to save her brain they put this apparatus around her to "cool" her. The next day, they determined it didnt work and after another few days determined that the respirator was the only thing keeping her going and asked me to "pull the plug". They said her brain stem was intact, but there was zero activity, no response to stimuli. But I would talk to her and pray to God looking for guidance on what to do and to give her a chance, and she would respond by squeezing my hand or move a finger when I would ask her to show me she was still here. I said no to pulling the plug, she will determine if she wanted to fight to stay, and I see her fighting, thats what i felt. Doctors told me it was involuntary reflexes, I knew different. Within another week, they gave her the chance to be weaned off the respirator, and she survived. Another week later, she was moved to a sub acute facility, and she started opening one eye, the other eye had rolled completely up into her head, and she started moving her left arm, her right eye, and whole right side had zero activity. She didnt know me, pulled my hair a couple times, tried to bite me, but i stated by her side, i wondered her to see me whenever she opened her eyes. A month later she still had a trache, a feeding tube, and begins moving both hands and arms. Another month after that, no trache, breathing on her own, says "thirsty", or "dad" once in a while, shakes her head side to side, bites, hits, pulls hair of nursing staff. A month after that, gets transferred to rehab facility, I get her off all the "zombie" meds and she starts waking up, getting calmer, talking a little more moving all limbs, eye starts to open. After five months from when this all started, her eye comes back from being rolled up in her head, it starts to straighten out, she gets her feeding tube removed after I was already feeding her some yogurt, because she would always say she was hungry, and asks to go to the bathroom, and has movement in all limbs. After being transferred again to a nursing home in October, we had a final care conference for her discharge this week. Today, she uses Facebook, phone for texting, uses a computer, cooks, feeds herself, combs her hair brushes her teeth, sits on the toilet, everything you and I do. She did lose her hearing due to too much antibiotics they say, cant walk yet, has issues at night with incontinence, but she can stand, use a walker/wheelchair, and has gained weight, but she is who she was, when the doctors told me she would never be who she was ever again. I dont see it, she has humor like she used, laughs at the same things she also has, cant remember what happened to her, but remembers everything else, from being a toddler all the way to thinking she was in a hotel when she first got sick. She will see a doctor for a hearing implant soon, and she will walk again and I see no brain issues. None. I only see the affects from the stroke. She will be home soon, will continue physical therapy, and will have a life. There is hope, there are miracles. I do know those first couple months I asked myself over and over should I have let her go? But I couldnt, after she squeezed my hand when I asked her if she wanted to stay, i couldnt. To those that have a loved one going through this type of injury, keep faith in God, keep strong for your loved one, and if you know they are a fighter, fight with them and FOR them, you have to, if you don't who's going to? Cry if you need to, but never in front of them, get it out of your system, and go back to "war", because that's what it is. Its a long road, but never give up.
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My daughter turned 26 a few months ago. At the end of Feb '16 she was brought into emergency, her eyes were going in different directions and i could literally see fluid build up in her right eyelid. They put a trache down her throat too far and she almost expired right there, before it was pulled back out a little and her vitals improved. She was helicoptered to a larger hospital and by that time she was unresponsive and bleeding from the esophagus damage to the tube being shoved down too far. They determined it was an anoxic injury and to attempt to save her brain they put this apparatus around her to "cool" her. The next day, they determined it didnt work and after another few days determined that the respirator was the only thing keeping her going and asked me to "pull the plug". They said her brain stem was intact, but there was zero activity, no response to stimuli. But I would talk to her and pray to God looking for guidance on what to do and to give her a chance, and she would respond by squeezing my hand or move a finger when I would ask her to show me she was still here. I said no to pulling the plug, she will determine if she wanted to fight to stay, and I see her fighting, thats what i felt. Doctors told me it was involuntary reflexes, I knew different. Within another week, they gave her the chance to be weaned off the respirator, and she survived. Another week later, she was moved to a sub acute facility, and she started opening one eye, the other eye had rolled completely up into her head, and she started moving her left arm, her right eye, and whole right side had zero activity. She didnt know me, pulled my hair a couple times, tried to bite me, but i stated by her side, i wondered her to see me whenever she opened her eyes. A month later she still had a trache, a feeding tube, and begins moving both hands and arms. Another month after that, no trache, breathing on her own, says "thirsty", or "dad" once in a while, shakes her head side to side, bites, hits, pulls hair of nursing staff. A month after that, gets transferred to rehab facility, I get her off all the "zombie" meds and she starts waking up, getting calmer, talking a little more moving all limbs, eye starts to open. After five months from when this all started, her eye comes back from being rolled up in her head, it starts to straighten out, she gets her feeding tube removed after I was already feeding her some yogurt, because she would always say she was hungry, and asks to go to the bathroom, and has movement in all limbs. After being transferred again to a nursing home in October, we had a final care conference for her discharge this week. Today, she uses Facebook, phone for texting, uses a computer, cooks, feeds herself, combs her hair brushes her teeth, sits on the toilet, everything you and I do. She did lose her hearing due to too much antibiotics they say, cant walk yet, has issues at night with incontinence, but she can stand, use a walker/wheelchair, and has gained weight, but she is who she was, when the doctors told me she would never be who she was ever again. I dont see it, she has humor like she used, laughs at the same things she also has, cant remember what happened to her, but remembers everything else, from being a toddler all the way to thinking she was in a hotel when she first got sick. She will see a doctor for a hearing implant soon, and she will walk again and I see no brain issues. None. I only see the affects from the stroke. She will be home soon, will continue physical therapy, and will have a life. There is hope, there are miracles. I do know those first couple months I asked myself over and over should I have let her go? But I couldnt, after she squeezed my hand when I asked her if she wanted to stay, i couldnt. To those that have a loved one going through this type of injury, keep faith in God, keep strong for your loved one, and if you know they are a fighter, fight with them and FOR them, you have to, if you don't who's going to? Cry if you need to, but never in front of them, get it out of your system, and go back to "war", because that's what it is. Its a long road, but never give up.
January 13, 2017 - 2:17pmThis Comment
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