How have you communicated with your family and friends about the experience?

[ICUsteps-Dawn]

Even after almost 14 years I still find it difficult to speak to my family about what happened and how I felt, or what it was like for them. This has felt quite isolating at times.

[barbsky]

I spoke to both my family and friends about my time in Intensive Care. Maybe they didn't want to remember that time at all, but I had no memory of it at all - so needed to piece together my timeline.

What they told me put everything into context - particularly how I had been feeling, and why I could not move, walk and at times even speak, the way I used to.

I still ask questions them now.

I wish you well.

[EJO1]

Three years on, we still find ourselves talking about it fairly often. Not at great length, but it crops up in conversation. Even now, questions pop into my head and we chat things through. I'm very aware that we all went through the experience together but in different ways. I know it's hard being an ICU patient but I can only imagine how hard it is to be at the bedside. It's definitely good to talk. It helps everyone involved.

[Kymmer in reply to EJO1]

I was all by myself no visitors nothing

[Offcut]

I find talking about it, has and still is a great help to me. However I know it seems to make my wife and sons sad and uneasy as it brings it back.

The way that I was plumbed in was not a pleasant thing to see from a visitors viewpoint.

Sometimes when the TV is on and it has a feature that explains the major problems from low O2, heart rates stats etc. it seems I was lower and or higher on one or the other. I look at it as it was not my time. My wife is worried that with the damge I now have, would I be that lucky again?

[Kulta]

Friends and family mostly don't ask since I was discharged from hospital - they are all just relieved to see me outta there and 'better' although the psychological recovery is harder in some ways. I still don't feel right a year on and don't feel I can talk easily to anyone other than ex patients about how I still feel - I am lucky to be in a support group of ex ICU patients. For others, I feel they think I should be looking forward and to back with a 'get over it' message. I want to talk as I think about it every day and whilst many were amazing, I don't feel like I can keep dragging it up.

[Kymmer in reply to Kulta]

How long since your full body movement came back. I was thinking I need a scooter to get around instead of being in

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