Last Saturday my partner suffered a cardiac arrest whilst out on a run. I was running separately and came across him getting CPR, luckily from an off duty cardiac surgeon, with the ambulance on the phone. He is 29 and very fit, we moved into a new flat a week ago and we were lugging stuff in no problem. He has no preexisting conditions and they haven’t been able to ascertain why the arrest happened.
He was in a 48hour cooling period before they warmed him and tried a sedation hold. He didn’t wake up properly (no purposeful movement) so they did an EEG & MRI, which showed his brain stem is in tact but he sustained a lot of hypoxic brain damage. They’re hesitant to state how he will wake up as they say it completely depends on the person. They’ve done a tracheostomy on him as he was biting down on his tube whilst on sedation hold, so they’ve been able to have him on and off sedation for the last day or so. He’s had some abnormal arm/leg movement and has gone from opening eyes when they do suction (chest infection) to trying to spontaneously open eyes.
I don’t know what I’m asking, but I’m just wondering if anyone has any advice or experience with wake up times and recovery. It’s Christmas Day today and I am in pieces-I’ve been with him since I was 21 and we are engaged with a plan to be married next year. I am just hoping and praying he wakes up.
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Sending all Santa's helpers to you on Xmas Day. Thoughts are with you. Trust that he has the best care looking after him where he is now. Look after yourself. Organise to chat to family and friends on a regular basis to act as a support during this uncertain time. There are many posts about different time frames within this early stage. He has his age working for him and he has your love. He is in the best place being looked after by some clever people. The fact he is opening eyes already is a good sign.
Doctors tend to give worst case scenario predictions and never offer optimistic outcomes. But if you care to use the search tool for terms such as hypoxic brain damage, you will find instances where people surprised doctors and progressed better than expected. Hold on to that for now. Do keep us posted with updates and I will repeat, look after yourself.
Do reach out to the Samaritans if your support networks are not as robust as you would like. Sometimes it helps so much just to talk stuff through with a complete stranger so that you can get a nights sleep. He will need you to be strong. xx Best wishes.
Thank you so much, your words have really helped me during this very dark time. Luckily I am with family, and friends are being extremely supportive, though I am struggling with some dark thoughts that can be hard to ignore. I will of course keep you updated and am so hopeful for his recovery. He was born extremely premature and beat the odds on many occasions-he is an incredible man and I have strong belief in him. Merry Christmas to you xxx
i suffered a cardiac arrest when i was 28. i was without a pulse for 26 minutes in asystole. 3 days in a coma
the physicians told my family that i would likely be brain dead... but i went back to work as an accountant a month later.
it's different for everyone, but do not give up hope
i was out of the coma by the time they did any imaging on me. they only gave me an EEG at the ICU building. When i awoke from the coma, the only thing i knew was my name apparently... literally nothing other than that.
Thank you so much for your kind words. Your story is truly amazing, my partner never went into asystolic and I have been told the odds for him would be much worse had he have done. I am keeping up hope for him xx
Doctors won't commit to a prognosis where brain injury is concerned as no two patients are comparable, nor are their injuries, however similar.
After diagnosis and treatment it's all down to the monitoring and waiting period, which is an agonizing time for loved ones but part of the healing process in most brain injury cases.
So many of us here have been feared lost by nearest & dearest when signs of progress have been absent. But the brain is an amazing organ, and patients being comatose one day and cognizant the next is no surprise to the medics.
My family's distress during their wait for positive signs in me is my main regret in life. I hope your wait will be rewarded with promising developments m'love and with much better days to come.
Thank you so much for taking the time to respond to me, I am so grateful. The waiting is what has been so agonising, I feel like I am in hell. But I am so hopeful that he will pull through this somehow. It is important for me to hear that an absence of positive signs is not always what I think.Thank you again for your words and merry Christmas. Xx
Yes, do try to keep in mind that what your your man needs most right now is quiet and complete rest, and that time isn't taking him away from you but providing the vital conditions for his convalescence.
Try to picture the passage of each day as one more day of recuperation and one day closer to his safe return. Stay strong m'love.... x
I do feel for you! The uncertainty is so very hard to handle... at the time I found it so difficult to accept the neurologists' statements " time will tell". My husband was asystolic and the hypoxic brain injury was severe... after months of rehab he came home- he can't read or write but he speaks clearly and is mobile. Things improved, enabling us to travel and enjoy things but he suffered 2 strokes during our lockdown here in NZ in April due to undiagnosed AFib which set him back significantly. Sometimes this stuff feels so hard and hopeless - and I dont want to give you any false hope but your man is young- mine was 63 when the cardiac arrests happened - so please try and stay optimistic. Take all the help that's offered and reach out to your friends... you may be in for many months if upheaval and maybe years of support so please look after yourself!
Thank you so much for responding, I’m so sorry for your husbands health struggles. How brilliant that you were able to travel again, I hope you are able to get back to that. My partner and I spent most of the year in India as we were locked down there due to COVID, and he really wants to go travelling again. I will take heed of all your advice. Xx
You hold on to that goal of doing things like travelling again! I am actually quite grateful in a bizarre way that right now we cant do anything too ambitious travel-wise (his coordination and balance is a bit dodgy...) but as I said my main advice to you is look after yourself because this can be so all-consuming and that's not good for your wellbeing. Listen to those who love you and care for you. You are young I believe but none of us a super-human and resilience has its limits if we are not careful. I wish you all the very best in these trying times. All I can tell you is that despite everything we still have laughs, so while things may not be the same again in future they may not necessarily be worse- just different. Take care!
I will hold on to that, thank you. Yes, I am 28 and the shock of it has been enormous-it’s not something I’d ever even considered. He drives a motorbike which I find scary, or the thought of someone in our families getting COVID, but I’d never thought this could happen.I will try my best to look after myself during this. Thanks xx
Hi - no he didn't- they initially had him sedated but he would not wake up the first time they tried to bring him out of the coma - it took about a week all up to open his eyes. Reactions started a few days after that but he did not speak in a meaningful way for about 3 weeks
I do feel for you. My Husband had Hypoxic injury over two years ago.These early days are very frightening and all people can say is only time will tell.
Just try to take things day by day as it can be a very long road to recovery.
Every person is different but my Husband is home now and although he could never work again due to short term memory loss he and I are living a fairly good life.
Thanks for your lovely response, it’s amazing to hear you are back to living a happy life together. They have said if he wakes up, he won’t be the same man I knew before, but that he alone will tell us what’s going to happen next. So I am staying hopeful. Xx
I find it curious that doctors feel comfortable prognosticating on such things during the acute stage... by doing so, they only leave themselves open to being incorrect.
i imagine it would be much safer to say "there's no way to know for certain at this point".. why is that so hard for them to say? it's much more accurate.
they told my family that i would likely be brain dead.. but here i am. my friends and acquaintances cannot believe what ive been through - because according to them, they cannot discern any difference in me.
i have no disability whatsoever... just feel a little "loopy" - which i am not even sure is resulting from brain damage, or if it's simply a chemical imbalance that is correctable (hoping for the latter, of course).
i have a friend who went into cardiac arrest after overdosing. they told his family that IF he woke up, he would never be the same.
they were wrong... he's been fully functional for over a decade - granted the first year was a little concerning.. as he was not all there - so to speak.
Thank you for this advice and info. They do not seem to want to prognosticate on how he will wake up, but I think they were preparing us based on the MRI and EEG reports. It’s clear to me from all the experiences I’ve heard here that no two stories are the same, and time is a valuable and crucial element of recovery. It’s great to hear about you and your friend’s recoveries, and I hope you are able to ascertain why you have a “loopy” feeling and get it sorted somehow. I imagine that the traumatic experience in and of itself is incredibly hard to process.
Yes, 4 days in and although my sister is making daily progress they made us talk to a pallative care team just because the mri shows edema/inflammation (ischemic?), but the eeg shows there is good brain activity. Are they trying to make up for lost $$ from being closed due to covid? How can you ignore physical progress and go by a report? 4 days in. And then to shoot us down when we see her blink on demand or turn her head to us when we talk yo her? What is really going on?
My husband had a heart attack 8 months ago. He has a hypoxic brain injury also. We did chest compressions on him for 25 mins whilst waiting for the ambulance. The ambulance crew shocked him 5 times before he was stable enough to go to hospital. He was in a coma for 2 weeks, they said he wouldn't survive but he did. Then the said he would probably not recover, never walk etc but he's now in neuro rehab. These walking, talking, can read. He still has problems with confusion and agitation but he is so much better than we thought. It's a long tough journey but try and keep positive and I wish you all the best for the future. Your man is much younger and fitter and stands a good chance at recovery. The best of luck to you and look after yourself too. X
Thank you so much for your response, it’s really helpful. Was his coma induced? Did he have any movement whatsoever during the 2 weeks? My partner hasn’t been off sedative properly for long but we are still waiting on him waking up properly, though he is opening eyes in response to suction and moving spontaneously. Xx
Hi, yes his coma was induced. He did move after a few days when they lowered sedation, he moved his arms and legs and his eyes opened. He appeared to look at things but without being focussed. He would turn to face noise but not follow noise or movement with his eyes. They kept trying sedation stops but his blood pressure would shoot up so they took it slowly. It took a long time but eventually after two week he was awake and turning his head to face me when I talked on Skype. Not long after that he was trying to talk jumbled words and trying to move around in bed. Small steps every day but look for the improvements however small, they keep you going. Keep positive. If you can't be with him Skype or zoom every day, it will help him to know you're there for him. X
Thanks for all this info, it’s really helpful. He’s been on and off sedation and seems to move a little more each time-eyes only opening in response to suction but some spontaneous movement, though nothing purposeful as yet. Luckily he has been breathing for himself consistently for a while now, and he’s receiving no blood pressure support. Body wise, he seems to be doing well, it’s the neurological side that’s so unknown and scary as he’s just not waking up properly. Unfortunately the hospital doesn’t do video calling as he can’t consent and there’s no chance of visiting, but we are dropping a phone off tomorrow-it’s got our numbers plugged in so we can call to speak to him and I’ve added lots of his music, plus bought headphones so he can listen. I’m hoping our voices help to bring him round. Xx
That's a shame about the video calling. It really helped us to see him and talk to him even if he couldn't hear. We got in touch with the hospital chaplain who would go to critical care with the iPad and then sort the call out. The nurses were too busy but he was great. Don't be afraid to ask to do anything that you think will help you. We sent an iPod in with his favourite music on and added some recorded messages from me and the kids. The nurses would put it on for him every day. It took a long time for the sedation to wear off enough for him to make purposeful eye contact and movement so don't be disheartened. As for the long term outcome, don't think too far ahead. Everyone is different.
A long time to wear off properly, days, weeks even. He was having jerking twitching movements when he was in the high dependency ward after he had come around from the coma. The after effects of the sedation. When I say that he'd awoken from the coma after 2 weeks, he was still asleep a lot and not moving much.
All the best, stay positive it does wonder for own sanity at such difficult times. I agree with the above, everyone is different with recovery and response but bare in mind the sedation and drugs in system will make him sleepy through this very early period of holding eye contact.
Thanks for your message. He’s not on sedation at the moment and it’s still taking some time, though I wonder what the residual impact of the sedatives could be (not a complaint at all-just an observation). Unfortunately there’s been no spontaneous eye opening as yet and I’ve not been told about any eye contact, though I am really hopeful that he is just taking his time
i am not sure. i dont remember anything of this time. i just remember being told later on that my family was very upset at how i appeared after they brought me out of the coma.
a good friend apparently visited me during that week. he too was very distraught at my appearance. he told our mutual friends that i was "gone for good"... he was a bit premature in his diagnosis - as it would turn out.
I'm late to ur post,but just wanted to send u a gentle virtual hug😊🤗I thought u could use right now.
Thanks so much for your response. great to hear about your husbands recovery-did he suffer cardiac arrest too? I’m so sorry to hear his health has taken a turn for the worse, life can be so unfair and unkind to some of us. I hope you are both doing okay under the circumstances xxx
Hi, he is doing well body wise, off the ventilator and they are doing some stuff with his trachy today. Neurologically, he is opening eyes spontaneously with a GCS of 7, no awareness yet. Still waiting on him waking up properly.I’m having good days and bad days to be honest, some I can barely stop myself crying and others I manage to hold it together. I am still praying for him and hopeful, trying not to have too much hope if that makes sense. Xx
Of course it does. Look after yourself too. It sounds like he is doing okay and pretty much how my husband was. Hang on in there. It just takes time and resting is healing.
Thank you, that is really helpful to hear. It’s the waiting that is so agonising-how long before your husband regained some awareness? My partner is just opening eyes but not responding to anything at present
Hi, it really did take quite a while. I've just been looking back on my Facebook page where I kept family updated. For him it was around 3 weeks and then it was only turning his head when he heard our voices and looking for a second or two but your partner could be different. He is almost half the age of my husband so that stands well for him. Keep positive. I've got everything crossed for you and know exactly how you feel. X
Thanks so much for letting me know, it’s so helpful. It’s just so hard not to be with him, but I am calling and chatting to him every day if I can which is helping me somewhat (and hopefully him!) thanks for your kind wishes, I hope all is well with your family xx
I have only just joined this forum and only read a half of the full message as yet. Sorry. But I felt I had to comment.
I sustained a TBI four years ago and my wife was told to prepare for the worst. At best I might be a vegetable. After two months in neuro intensive critical care part of it in a medically induced coma, I had a final operation. Two days later I decided to get up and walk around as I was no longer connected to life support. The neuro surgeon on call that night saw me and was amazed I walked normally in a straight line at normal pace.
I have since been back to say thank you and they recalled that they had written me off as a goner, in theatre, so were delighted to see the ‘finished product’ as they put it. So humbling. And whilst in a coma I dont recall a thing with only snippets in between. Sensory overload...yes I recall that too.
So it is much harder for you looking on, feeling helpless and wondering. But trust me, he will not be in pain, probably will not recall much about events that have traumatised you, and he certainly has age on his side which is a significant factor. The surgeons and the medical staff can do the relevant medical stuff, but if your other half is resilient and determined, then he will have a good chance. In the meanwhile as others have said, make sure you look after yourself and get relevant support and assistance.
Thank you so much for your reply, it has made me tear up and brought some light during this very dark time. I know him to be a young, fit and healthy man, full of vitality and energy, and so I am feeling as hopeful as I can. He is off the ventilator and has a tracheostomy now, as of the last few days, and is doing well taking all his own breaths. He has a chest infection, but they don’t seem too worried about that. In terms of awareness he has today started making eye contact with nurses and following things with his eyes, though not following commands as yet. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers, it means so much to me. Xx
I do hope so. The nurse has just told me he seems much more alert when he has his headphones on with music/us speaking to him, which is brilliant to hear. Thanks very much for all your continued support, it means so much to me xx
No problem, it helps to know that you're not alone. Others have been through the same and come out of the other side. Got everything crossed for you for continued progress. X
Just one more thing....keep talking and playing any favourite music to him. He will hear it. When in that state, it is weird what your mind pieces together.
In my coma, I went to the pub across the road, had a pint and saw a band play there plus thought I was at a private party for the emergency services.
Didnt make any sense, until much much later when I rationalised that all the medical staff were planning their Christmas parties and I could hear their conversations about it in the ambulance and in theatre.
Stupid I know but just proves I heard what was being said.
Best book on medical traumas is by Grace Maxwell, falling and laughing the restoration of Edwyn Collins. Double stroke victim at a young age who made a recovery from that and went back on stage in the music business. You will be able to relate to her fears and anxieties for her husband.
Thank you for this. I bought a phone and headphones in, added music and podcasts, and have been calling every day to chat and read a short story to him (he’s very into books-we met at uni where he studied English literature). I am really hoping that this is helping him, so I am asking the nurses to put music on for him when possible.It’s so interesting to hear your memories from the coma, I hope he can tell me his one day.
Yes i agree with music, i sang our songs special to us to my husband, but be warned hearing those songs in the near future brings tears even at happier times.
My husband had a cardiac arrest in his sleep aged 36. We had been together since we were in Uni at 21 too. In the coma he was neurostorming and had decerebrate reflexes (abnormal leg and arm movements). We were told there was no hope of recovery.
18 months later he is back at work. Still struggling with memory and fatigue but my word the brain is an amazing organ that is capable of so much given time.
Please feel free to message me with any questions, I find the injury from cardiac arrest to be different from tbi recovery so if I can help clarify anything from my experience please let me know.
Thats great news. The brain is a surprisingly resilient organ that can learn to ‘reconnect’ neuro pathways around damaged areas.
I cant comment on cardio issues other than knowing the obvious knock on effect of what the heart function failing, can do.
I am also a big believer in ‘where theres life, theres hope’.
A couple of work colleague have suffered major medical traumas, and recovered, one a stroke, the other, pneumonia and sepsis and the family were asked for permission to switch the life support machine off. Luckily they didnt and he managed to make a near full recovery within weeks.
So really pleased to hear the good news and hope your experience can help and inspire others.
Thank you so much for replying to me. What was his downtime like? I know every patient is different, but how long did it take him to start moving up on the GCS? My partner is making small gains, from 3 up to 8, but I am interested in how long it can take people to regain some awareness. It’s amazing that he is back at work, that really is such incredible news and so encouraging. Xx
It happened in his sleep so it’s tough to know exactly but since he was suffering hypoxic seizures when he woke me up the doctors estimated about 17 minutes downtime. He was GCS of 3 for nearly a week. Then he started spontaneously opening his eyes. Then we thought he was following people around the room but we couldn’t be sure. He started talking a little around week 2 but was speaking total nonsense. He really wasn’t in touch with reality for around 4 months. He kept imagining things. But since then he got really slowly better. I found the rancho los amigos scale very helpful: waiting.com/rancholosamigos...
My heart goes out to you, it’s such a horrible time but do hang on to hope x
Okay thank you for this. They think he had a long downtime but they state this is the time from when it may have happened until the time he got to hospital I think. His GCS started at 3 and was at 8 yesterday, with eye contact, but his chest infection has caused him trouble today so he’s back down to 6. I will have a look at that, thanks so much. All the best xx
Hi, we heard from the physiotherapist yesterday and he’s been seen by the neuro specialist. All have noticed he is more alert when I’m on the phone to him and he has now started to move his mouth and yesterday he followed commands-lifting his arm and sticking out his tongue!His chest is still bad, he’s having lots of secretions and has a strong cough, which is concerning me a little. Hoping they can clear it and get rid of his chest infection. Xx
That's wonderful news. The fact that he's following commands so early seems like such a good sign to me. My husband didn't do that for ages. I'm sure they will sort the infection out and he's in the best place. Stay positive, I know it's hard especially not being able to be there physically. X
That is indeed great news! I know it seems like a small thing but following commands means a whole swathe of brain function is able to do its thing! Do keep us updated x
Thanks both 😊 yes I am super hopeful, it’s scary with COVID at the moment as he had to be moved to a new area due to an overflow of COVID patients but they moved patients out before moving others in. They are also very invested in his wellbeing of course, and have taken samples to see if there is any further bacteria-he is still on antibiotics. I will do. X
Thats brilliant news. Yes chest infections quite common during and after life support machine, my husband had it and physio and support from science really helped. Hes doing really well responding to commands and thats a really good sign. Really glad to see this post and heart warming hes responding with your voice. His Speech and tone will be really different at this stage dont be put off by that, plus his throat be pretty raw.
He still has his cuff up so not able to make noises at the moment, but he has apparently moved his mouth-when I was on the phone and when the physiotherapist was speaking to him.Thank you for sharing that, I have been very worried that his chest hasn’t cleared after a couple of weeks but they’re taking samples and he’s still on antibiotics so hoping it will be cleared soon. Xx
He has recognition to your voice and making mouth movements is good news. Everyone is so different, i was there when my husband came round he wouldnt respond to anything he couldnt do eyes, grasp hand, move head, they put him back to sleep, even when they finally brought him round again he didnt respond to command but he wasnt responding well to apparatus either, and glad they took him off, they still left tube in mouth like a smaller tubr than life support one for any emergency for 2 days and then just nasal with ng tube, he still had drips in neck, arms and icp monitor in head.
Honestly despite the situation looking back 3 weeks ago with now positive progress being made is good news. Stay focussed on positives it really does help, your doing really well with communication with hospital.
Thank you for sharing, that’s really helpful. It feels like it’s going on forever but I’m holding on to the positives and so very proud of him. My sister is an ITU nurse which is so helpful, as she is able to explain and I can chat with the healthcare professionals about him with more confidence. They hear from me a lot and I chat to him every day, so I think they are all quite aware of me now! Xx
It really is helpful your sisiter being in profression, especially with communication as even now near 10mths i struggle to digest information as my mind thinking to much on the daily demands, so very reassuring you have someone close to go over information and explain areas you not sure about.
Just wanted to say it is sounding positive - so hopefully good news. It must be agonising watching on.
I can only speak from my own limited experience but hope it helps to understand that during early recovery you are not aware of many things, not least being able to speak and communicate in a way that others can understand.
After my first op and relapse I thought I was making perfect sense (although aware I could not process large amounts of information quickly) and talking normally, but it was apparently not so. More a croaky slurred growl.
Everyone is different but do keep positive.
It took a long time for my white blood cell count to get back to where it should be and they could operate again.
But it did (at one point they brought me out of the medical induced coma, which I do recall, and I reacted apparently in a common way......pulled the oxygen and tubes out of my mouth and started ripping off the attached monitors on my chest. “Where am I and what are they doing to me, I dont need these things”. At which point about eight people including my wife held me down whilst they put me back under.
Many weeks later and after a second op, I eventually made a 100% recovery so every case is different although the neuros do understand this very, very well.
I still have anxieties and stresses however which vary by the day dependent on how kind or demeaning others are to me. (Again neuro warned to stay away from mean people and conflict)
As I say, I can only give a perspective from where I was and now pass those on as words of hopeful comfort to you to show that a full recovery is possible.
So it must be very difficult to watch on.
Good you have medical connections in the family for explanations.
Make sure that you look after yourself too. You need to keep fit and healthy to be able to offer that close support that you will no doubt provide.
Thanks for such a detailed message. Hearing your story is truly amazing-whilst I know TBI and hypoxic injury are different, I am so hopeful he can make a good recovery. Hearing he seems to be recognising my voice was a huge moment, as was hearing about him following commands. The staff at the hospital are amazing and he has been seen by a specialist neurology professor and will be again. I am working so hard on staying strong for him, keeping our new flat going & paid for (we moved one week before it happened), talking to him every day and telling him not to worry about anything but his health and recovery. Xx
My husband had a cardiac arrest as well as a tbi after an accident. At the start of being in ICU it wasn't a good prognosis. It happened April 2017 and after nearly 4 years, he is doing amazing. It's been a long hard road, but we are now married 😊.
The lack of oxygen, has affected his memory long and short term, long term very sketcy for the last 20 years. We have found ways to manage the short term with a daily diary and photo's.
Life has been a slog but thankfully, he didn't lose his sense of humour and improvements are still to be had, that's down to private speech and language and Alan’s hard work.
The road ahead seemed long and emotional, but stick with it and take up any help and advice, especially get in touch with headway, they are so helpful. Take time out too for yourself. ❤
Wow thank you so much for your message. If you don’t mind me asking, how old was your husband when he had the arrest? And what was his recovery like?It’s amazing to hear that you are now married. We have been engaged for a couple of years and I want to marry him so badly, I wish we had just had a small wedding before instead of waiting. But hopefully I will be able to in the future. 🙏 x
He turned 41, 5 days after the accident. With Alan, he also had the trauma of the brain haemorrhages too. Also lots of fractures. The Dr's twice wanted to withdraw treatment and didn't fix his broken pelvis for 5 weeks. I don't want you to compare Alan’s recovery with your partner, as everyone is different, but I do know that he has been left with a poor memory and even getting married last year, we had to get his capacity checked, to prove he was able to understand the decision to marry. His lovely neuro consultant checked.
We are happily married 😊 but life has it's challenges and our lives are not how they were, but we hit everything with as much positivity together 😊
Thanks so much for your response. How amazing, I’m so pleased he was able to make a good recovery (both withstanding his memory issues), especially considering he had both TBI and hypoxic damage. All the best to you both xxx
I'm not sure how long he was without oxygen at the scene, as I wasn't there, but luckily for him, in the traffic, there was an icu nurse, off duty and she said she gave him 2 rounds of cpr. The air ambulance Dr Chris put him in a coma. In icu, he didn't show signs of anything after they removed sedation in the normal alloted time, that they allow, but I had support of a HATS nurse and she said to write every little thing he did, no matter how small and to me, he did show signs. I wrote a diary from day 1 too, although I know it's hard now, due to covid.
Alan’s accident was filmed from when the air ambulance arrived, as they were filming for Helicopter ER. Series 3, episode 3. That's how I know about the resuscitation.
They took sedation off 3 days after the accident and they didn't see positivity in him until 5 weeks and it was then, they decided to fix his broken pelvis! Before that, they said anything I saw wasn't a proper reaction and twice wanted to withdraw treatment. As I was at the hospital every day and saw little things with him, I refused to withdraw, for me and his family, it was a constant fight for his survival.
For us, this was the right path, it is not always the case for others. Every person is different.
I am asking because my granda had cardiac arrest 10 days ago and received cpr from people around and then 5 mins later from paramedics and shocked twice.
He has been off sedation for 2/3 days and they are saying he hasn't come round and is brain damaged and that we need to start making decisions.
He is not on any heart support and breathing mainly on his own. I dont think its right, but that's what the consultants keep saying. I don't know what to think! Did he show any movements or anything in his coma?
It's a hard decision for the family, especially as you are probably not able to see him everyday. My decision was based on being able to be with him every day, for most of the day and noting down every small thing he did and they were not huge and the dr said they were a reflex.
It's a tough decision to make about someone's life and Alan was fit and healthy and only 40 when the accident happened and I based the decision not to withdraw on how it was with him. Each person is different and can respond differently.
Yeah, my granda is 66 and fairly fit and healthy. The nurse said he opened his eyes last night and that they've done another EEG yesterday, so we should hear back from them.
Ive heard it can take weeks and months to potentially recover, not days xx
It can take a long time. Also it's nearly 4 years since Alan’s tbi and he has to use aids to support his memory, as it doesn't work very well at all. Sending you positive vibes for your grandpa 😊
Hi Ian, thanks for your message. We are very lucky-thanks largely, I think, to the CPR my partner received from a consultant cardiologist at the scene, as well as the large team of paramedics, emergency doctor, and the fantastic care he received at the QE in Birmingham and then at neuro rehab, he is recovering well. Still hoist transfer and not much functional ability but his communication and understanding is fantastic-we’ve spoken every day since December, and since he started talking in February he has come on amazingly well. We will have extensive conversations on a number of topics and he understands what’s happened to him and is determined to keep working hard towards his recovery. He’s up to normal food and fluids, and does well feeding himself. All the best xx
Yes you are lucky as cardiac arrest is worse than heart attack, hope the person pulls through with little damage done, but must take it easy, I’m in danger of having that as I’ve got heart failure but if there’s no one around at the time it’s almost certain death I’ve been told by the cardiologist, I’m glad the person as at least been saved so stay strong because they will pull through not hopefully they will pull through. Regards Ian
Thanks Ian, yes it’s very scary to think about the survival rates. My partners had an S-ICD fitted just in case it ever happens again, which is a comfort.
I’ve got a loop recorder fitted with a phone link inside my home which data is going to and from the hospital every few minutes and if anything adverse happens it sends the hospital alarm straight away, now when I’m out I’ve got like a key fob with me also linked to my implanted chip in my chest is also monitoring the same thing, plus I’ve got a falls and heart detector which also is monitoring by these people by GPS and they can talk to me through it where ever I am, and it alerts them if anything happens like collapsed and they can trace me up near as one meter, so they know where I am every minute of the day. Regards Ian
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