Aid Brent's Journey to Health and Home

This is Brent (my dad). Lover of crossword puzzles, birdwatching, adventuring, and surrounding himself with good company.

On Sunday, August 4, he suffered a massive stroke that landed him in the ICU — where he'll stay for the foreseeable future. His road to recovery is going to be a long one, and we're just trying to take it day by day.

Between the hospital and ICU bills, required ADA home updates, and potential at-home care fees, the costs my parents are facing are growing exponentially. If you have the ability to help in anyway, I know it would be deeply appreciated.

Love,

Laura (Daughter)

UPDATE 8/7

Brent was intubated last night, and is now on a respirator. We're currently waiting on EEG results. It's still an hour-by-hour situation.

UPDATE 8/10

Brent is still unconscious and is currently battling pneumonia on top of everything else. The doctors are hoping to ease of his sedation soon so he can start to wake up.

UPDATE 8/11

Brent's lungs are sounding more clear today. The doctors are hoping to take out his breathing tube tomorrow.

UPDATE 8/12

Brent's breathing tube was removed this morning and the nurses got him sitting up in a special chair. He was talking a bit, but still has a hard time communicating. He has a long way to go, but we're hopeful.

UPDATE 8/17

Brent has had his feeding tube and oxygen removed. He'll will be getting another CT scan soon to see if the bleeding and swelling in his brain have eased up. The staff has also mentioned that he'll be moving out of the ICU soon into a normal hospital room. He still has moments of confusion, though. And, he's seeing an occupational therapist to help him regain some function of his left side.

UPDATE 8/22

Brent had another brain scan, which showed no change (not necessarily good or bad news). He'll be starting intensive physical therapy soon to (hopefully) help him regain some more function on his left side. We're hoping for more progress in the next two weeks.

UPDATE 10/19

I apologize for the lack of updates these last few weeks, life has been busy

My dad has been home since mid-September. The healing process is slow, but he's been working hard -- attending OT and PT a couple times each week. He still does not have movement in his left arm, has minimal movement in his left leg, and decreased vision in his left eye. He requires the use of a wheelchair and walker to move around the house. The doctors say that there's typically no major improvements until the 6-month mark.

I want to take a moment to thank everyone for their generosity and support during this tough time. Your donations mean so much and will go far to help my parents cover the costs it takes to heal from a stroke of this severity.

And a special thanks to my uncles, Terry and Dave, for making the drive down to Florida to build beautiful ramps that would make mobility a possibility for my dad.

I'll try my best to provide more updates, but they may come every couple weeks.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart,

Laura