2 replies to this topic

[hbcugal]

Hi

I am new here. On Tuesday, Sept. 15th my brother was shot 4 times. Twice in the hips, and once in the arm...which he had surgery for the next day and once through his thoracic vertbrae which exited through his neck. He is now on a trach. (sp??) and partial ventilator through the trach. The doctors said he will be paralyzed from the waist down. He cannot move his legs.

My brother has had a hard time adjusting to life,,,wrong crowds obviously, etc. He falls into depression very easily and I know this will be extremely difficult for him. My husband and I are his only immediate family here. We are at a lost for what is to come next. They are weaning him off the vent. The nurse said the trach. will be there for some time. How long can we expect him to be in the hospital, he is in the ICU. He has been running a little fever for a couple of days. One of the other nurses I spoke with said that he is exhibiting frantic behavior, and they wanted the doctors to order an antidepressent. Another nurse said that this was typical behavior, constant moving of the arms for a paraplegic. After we get off this bumpy road with immediate medical issues, we head for rehabilitation as I understand. We are completely overwhelmed by this! What do we need to do to support him? I am so angry that this happenend. We have tried to encourage him to do right for the longest, now this! In spite of it all, he is a miracle. He was supposed to be dead,..but God spared him. What do we do now? I am sorry if this is all over the place. Any advice you could offer would be greatly appreciated.

[hooplady]

Your story parallels mine - luckily my b/f was shot only twice . He was so happy when he finally got off the evil trach and was able to speak!

It is horribly overwhelming, I know. You are probably in a daze right now. Every case is different - my b/f spent about 6 weeks in ICU, then another 7 weeks in rehab, but due to complications he ended up going back to rehab a year later; he's just now becoming independent. It is a looooooong road and your brother has a lot of work ahead of him.

Take it one day, one minute at a time. Get to know his doctors & nurses, ask lots of questions, reassure him that he will be able to get through this. This site is a lifesaver - come here often and read up on the various subjects. When he is well enough, let him know about it too (although he may not want to visit - my b/f still has no interest).

Good luck. This is hard but it can be done. Just read a few postings from the other paras, quads, and caregivers and you'll see that life goes on. A sense of humor seems to help a lot.

-Janet

[Yasko]

I always recommend to family & friends to encourage and smile in front of injured person, and let him know that there is a good life in wheelchair as well! Also, hook him up with this web site as soon as he is able to!
Take one day at the time, it is not going to be fast recovery for sure. Good luck!