Help for Chris - "That Guy"
Donation protected
On October 8th, 2015, my brother Chris Cade suffered a Malignant Ischemic Stroke - As everyone stated - he was too young for this type of stroke - it happens to people in their 80's - at 53 years old it was quite devastating.
The stroke happened on the right side of his brain - the doctors immediately administered TPA to help remove the blockage. Though it worked to help remove the blockage, it also had a side effect of bleeding in the brain which they attempted to manage through medication. As the 1st morning after his stroke began, his brain began to swell uncontrollably and left him with a 90% mortality rate if they did not do a right skull flap removal immediately to give the brain son room - this increased his chance of survival by 40%. It was successful thanks to the amazing surgeons, nurses, and staff at Mercy San Juan Hospital and because Chris is one heck of a fighter!!!
He spent the next two weeks in the ICU - at Mercy San Juan then at Kaiser - showing us his strength and that he was still in there - but most of the time he was sleeping. He was speaking a few words as the days passed but he used gestures very well to get his point across - Jokingly flipping off his nurse when she asked him to show her his pain level with his fingers - we all laughed including the nurse. We would ask him if he liked things or talk about things in the world and he would give us a thumbs up. We lived for his thumbs up during those days.
He continued to slowly improve with every doctor and specialist saying "he is meeting our expectations" every time we met with them. We were thankful to hear it every time.
On October 24th he had improved enough to be transferred to the Kaiser Rehab Hospital in Vallejo where he continues to improve and is learning adaptive life skills and makes new strides daily.
The stroke has left him with deficiencies on his left side - his left arm and leg have feeling and have been starting to respond in rehab, so we have hope. But it will be a long road back to adapive or regular use and movement. He is working hard everyday.
He does also have some paralysis on the right side of his face, but his speech is excellent - all of the therapists and nurses mention that he talks a lot and has a story for everything - So nothing there has changed for him.
One of his biggest struggles at this point is balance and sitting upright - this is a side effect from the brain swelling and just takes time - but like anyone knows being dizzy just sucks.
The plan is for him to come home soon but he will still need assistance - their goal at discharge is 25% assistance but we don't know exactly where he will be yet. He will need an in-home aide for part of the day, will continue with rehab, and will continue to improve his adaptive life skills. He will be having surgery in December/January to put his skull back on (yes it's in Medical Storage in Virginia - crazy huh!) and he has developed a hernia that they are monitoring and may also need surgery.
So this is going to be a long road back to his new normal life.
Though thankfully Kaiser is covering most of his medical expenses - there is still a lot he is going to need.
He is going to need extra adaptive equipment that is not covered, we will need to adapt his house for him, he won't be able to work for at least a year depending on his progress, and there are his two teenage daughters he fought so hard to get back to, that he needs to support emotionally and financially. Though the family has stepped in to assist, and will continue doing as they can - at this point - the length of recovery and everything needed is overwhelming.
Chris is one hell of a fighter!!
I guess all those years reading and collecting comic books may have taught him how to fight - thankfully!!!
So if you can find it in your heart to send a gift to Chris as he continues his fight back to his life - it is greatly appreciated!
Take care and hug your loved ones extra tight today!
The Cade Family
The stroke happened on the right side of his brain - the doctors immediately administered TPA to help remove the blockage. Though it worked to help remove the blockage, it also had a side effect of bleeding in the brain which they attempted to manage through medication. As the 1st morning after his stroke began, his brain began to swell uncontrollably and left him with a 90% mortality rate if they did not do a right skull flap removal immediately to give the brain son room - this increased his chance of survival by 40%. It was successful thanks to the amazing surgeons, nurses, and staff at Mercy San Juan Hospital and because Chris is one heck of a fighter!!!
He spent the next two weeks in the ICU - at Mercy San Juan then at Kaiser - showing us his strength and that he was still in there - but most of the time he was sleeping. He was speaking a few words as the days passed but he used gestures very well to get his point across - Jokingly flipping off his nurse when she asked him to show her his pain level with his fingers - we all laughed including the nurse. We would ask him if he liked things or talk about things in the world and he would give us a thumbs up. We lived for his thumbs up during those days.
He continued to slowly improve with every doctor and specialist saying "he is meeting our expectations" every time we met with them. We were thankful to hear it every time.
On October 24th he had improved enough to be transferred to the Kaiser Rehab Hospital in Vallejo where he continues to improve and is learning adaptive life skills and makes new strides daily.
The stroke has left him with deficiencies on his left side - his left arm and leg have feeling and have been starting to respond in rehab, so we have hope. But it will be a long road back to adapive or regular use and movement. He is working hard everyday.
He does also have some paralysis on the right side of his face, but his speech is excellent - all of the therapists and nurses mention that he talks a lot and has a story for everything - So nothing there has changed for him.
One of his biggest struggles at this point is balance and sitting upright - this is a side effect from the brain swelling and just takes time - but like anyone knows being dizzy just sucks.
The plan is for him to come home soon but he will still need assistance - their goal at discharge is 25% assistance but we don't know exactly where he will be yet. He will need an in-home aide for part of the day, will continue with rehab, and will continue to improve his adaptive life skills. He will be having surgery in December/January to put his skull back on (yes it's in Medical Storage in Virginia - crazy huh!) and he has developed a hernia that they are monitoring and may also need surgery.
So this is going to be a long road back to his new normal life.
Though thankfully Kaiser is covering most of his medical expenses - there is still a lot he is going to need.
He is going to need extra adaptive equipment that is not covered, we will need to adapt his house for him, he won't be able to work for at least a year depending on his progress, and there are his two teenage daughters he fought so hard to get back to, that he needs to support emotionally and financially. Though the family has stepped in to assist, and will continue doing as they can - at this point - the length of recovery and everything needed is overwhelming.
Chris is one hell of a fighter!!
I guess all those years reading and collecting comic books may have taught him how to fight - thankfully!!!
So if you can find it in your heart to send a gift to Chris as he continues his fight back to his life - it is greatly appreciated!
Take care and hug your loved ones extra tight today!
The Cade Family
Organizer
Christina Cade
Organizer
Fair Oaks, CA