Day 2

01/03/08

She remained stable throughout the night and was still responding well to the doctors and nurses requests. Around 9:30 am she was taken off the intubator and the sedative because she was breathing on her own.

That morning Dad and Wende went in to see her and she mouthed "help" to them. She continued to have many visitors throughout the day. Her first words were "I have to go to the bathroom." The nurses explained to her that she has a catheter. We soon realized that visitors speaking to her agitated her and would cause her to thrash around as much as she could while her extremities were restrained. We tried to calm her as we did at Kennestone (where our voices seemed to really calm her), but it did not seem to work this time. The nurse then explained that the blood is causing extreme pressure on her brain and the vessels surrounding it. This pressure then causes what he described as 'angry brain'. She is very irritated and uncomfortable, so once she is comfortable we would try not to disturb her so she does not thrash around more.

Jessica and Wende went back to visit her and the nurse was doing a routine check of her cognitive abilities. When they asked her to squeeze their hand she was able to with her left hand! All of her extremities were working. Her left eye still had not had any response. When visitors came in she would turn her head towards the voice or even open her eye to them. She would then get very agitated, so we had to not talk or touch her so she can rest. 

She had more visitors today and we were very thankful for them and everything they did! 

Day 1

01/02/08

Once brought to Emory hospital they began a drain in the brain to get the blood off her brain at 4:15 am. All four kids were there with her. Dad was able to get a flight out first thing that morning. He was called twice to get approval for her to have the procedures. They then began surgery to fix the aneurism at 7 am, which was located at the base of her brain where her head and neck come together. Only 10% of people who have aneurisms have them in this location. This is considered the most dangerous place to have an aneurism. Lisa and Bob kept us company while she was having surgery. Bob took Wende to get dad at the airport. Thank you so much Lisa and Bob! 

The surgery was very successful and ended around 11 am. We worried because it took three hours, but when the doctor came out to give us the good news he reassured us that this is normal. She stayed on the intubator, which helps regulate her breathing. She was completely sedated to get some rest after the surgery and keep the drain still. 

She remained stable throughout the afternoon. When they would wake her up she was able to squeeze with her right hand but not her left, wiggle both sets of toes, and open her right eye but not her left. Our nurses explained that this is normal and may come back after time. 

We didn't want to visit her too often and disturb her, but someone was back there with her at least once an hour. The nurses explained everything very well and reassured us that everything that she was having done is very normal for an aneurism. Each time we went in to visit her we all asked about 100 questions about all the machines, tubes, and cords that are attached to mom. The nurses were very patient and put things into perspective so that we could better understand the medical terminology. Craig, Katie, and Jessica spent the night with her.

After our experience at Kennestone Hospital, we are very thankful that she is at such a wonderful hospital. Not to mention it is the leading hospital in the United States for neurological disorders such as aneurisms. 

We enjoyed all of the visitors throughout the day. They were very supportive. We played a competitive game of Monopoly to pass time while she was resting from the surgery. Thank you everyone!