A Hard Blog to Write

Dear Family and Friends,
As you know it has been 3 months since dad's accident. It is very difficult to share bad news at anytime, and we are so sorry to have to even write this blog.
We have faith and hope that everything will be OK for our family, no matter what happens.

We do feel it's important to share some information we have received lately and more on dad's actual injury.

When dad was first in his accident we were happy to hear that he was talking while being assisted, however, what we learned later is that while they were stabilizing him, his blood pressure and oxygen levels were so low, they were no longer able to support his brain.

The result is an "anoxia brain injury", or lack of oxygen to the brain. The injury is not just confined to one location, like most trauma victims. Unfortunately, his entire brain was affected. The doctor said--"little patches all over his brain are dead"--in my non-scientific mind I picture Swiss cheese, and the holes are where the brain has experienced a stroke and is no longer working.

We want to make it CLEAR that dad will not "wake up". Dad HAS woken up. He is NOT in a coma, as we previously thought; therefore he is passed the "wake up" point. His current state is where he is since he WOKE UP. So stories of people miraclulous "waking up after X number of days, weeks, months or years" do not apply to my dad's situation anymore.

He is in a vegetative state. Angie has done a lot of research on what that means exactly and has some great links for anyone interested in finding out more.
http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/330/22/1572

Because Dad’s brain injury was caused by a nontramatic event (lack of blood to brain) we are learning the painful news (and coming to the realization of what Dr’s have been telling us) that Dad’s prognosis is very poor. We feel so sad. We also feel so bad to share the news with all of you. Maybe you all have already realized this. . .

Also I have found out that all the great things we thought were improvement, really are just the body reacting naturally. His brain stem is still attached, which is why the phenomenon occurs. Meaning, his body is working the way the body instinctually will work, even if the brain is not registering it to the other parts of the brain, or to the actual person. While this is a good sign in many others who have brain injuries, because of the nature of dad's injury the chopping ice and following sound with his eyes were great signs. The doctors have made it clear, that there is no consistancy with any improvements, therefore they can't be considered improvement. Plus, for the last week (since before I arrived) he hasn't followed any commands.

It is always so difficult to share such hard news with those who love us and care for us. We also feel so sad that this is our Dad we are discussing!! What a great & wonderful man! We love him so deeply.

We are SO grateful to all of you and for all the blessings we have received from the Lord and from your hands. We, as a family, have great hope for whatever the future holds. Again a huge thank you to EVERYONE who has prayed, fasted, served, worked, listened, and all the other ways our family has been blessed by YOU. We love you so much. Thank you for loving our Dad, being interested in his progress and life. We feel your love.

Since this is a difficult time for us all, and mostly my mom, we ask that you only call her with support and love and not alot of questions. If there are any questions, please feel free to call me, Amy at 719-274-5711, or post a comment on the blog asking your questions and we will try to answer them. It is very difficult on my mom to go over details again and again.

We know that prayers are sent up for dad and our family ALL the time! We still need prayers more than ever, please pray of gratitude, clarity, and comfort--keep the prayers coming strong! :)


Thank you...
Love you,
Tandy, Angie, Amy Jon and Mom