Acute Medullary Stroke Treatment and Rehab

Hi everyone.  As most of you know, my dad had a series of strokes just a few short weeks ago.  He had recovered quite well from them and had started trying to get back to a somewhat normal schedule.  We left for the beach Saturday and we’re all so very excited to spend the week together loving on one another after the stress of the previous strokes.  We spent a few hours on the beach Sunday.  Dad was a little dizzy after the walk down there but after sitting for a little bit started to seem a little better.  He walked a little down the beach and back, ate some lunch, and decided to come back to the beach house for a nap.  He woke up and realized that part of his face was numb and he was very dizzy.  He laid down in his room for a while because he said he knew we would make him go to the Hospital.  He didn’t want to go.  He kept telling us that he was okay... we knew he wasn’t.  

We loaded him in my car at that time (around 5:30) and rushed him to the closest one.  They got him back quickly and began tests.  Me and my siblings waited outside on a bench for hours just scared and praying.  He hadn’t shown any improvement but we weren’t allowed back there and they made mom leave due to covid.  We know now how big of a mistake it was to leave him.... he text her at 4:39am telling her that he as bad.  He had deteriorated so rapidly.  He tried to talk with her over the phone but she couldn’t understand him.  She rushed back there to find him having seizures and uncontrollable vomiting.  She texted us all and told us how bad it was.  Allie got there first.  She saw him and could t believe her eyes.  She called me crying and saying that we had to get there.  What we witnessed that day will forever be etched on our minds.  He was suffering tremendously.  The level of paint that he was in was unbearable to watch.  He couldn’t see, speak, move his limbs properly, swallow, or talk.  We all thought that he was going to die that day.  That day happened to be Lila’s 13th birthday.  I had no clue how I was going to tell my daughter that her “pappy” died on her birthday... He remained in this terrible state for about 14 hours before starting to settle down at all.  Around 8:30am a nurse that had been with him all night came in.  We asked what else they could do for him!  We were panicking!  She said “pray, he needs a miracle” with tears in her eyes.  I knew he needed one too.  He needed it fast. They finally got him moved to an actual room and he started to talk!!!!  He was speaking!!! The miracle happened!  Vitals were good! 

He still had loss of some functions and total numbness of the right side of his face and left side of his body.  We were just so grateful to see him ALIVE!  He was told that there really wasn’t anything they could do for him there and the MRI that had been done there showed nothing. We knew that he had had another stroke but it wasn’t showing up.  He had all of the symptom and side effects of a stroke victim. 

He rested some Monday night into Tuesday morning but thats when these relentless hiccups started that haven’t fully stopped since.  These caused him lots of trouble eating and sleeping.  I got to the hospital early Wednesday morning knowing in my heart that we had to get him transferred ASAP!  He had to get to a a true stroke specialist team.  We were quickly told that it would be a very long process, days or possibly weeks. This was unacceptable. We prayed and worked all day making calls and advocating for him.  We were told more times than we could count that there were no beds available in the whole state.  God did it again!  Another miracle!  He was transferred about 10 hours later to the number one stroke center in the Carolinas!!  Now it’s Thursday... lots of tests to run now.  We only have this beach house as a “home base” until Saturday at 9am.  We can’t leave mom here all alone.  Us siblings will come and go in shifts each staying a few days at a time.  So many financial needs at this time but we know that God isn’t finished!

We also needs lots of prayer.  Healing for dad first and foremost.  We also want answers as to what the root cause is.  Next for mom, she’s been through so much and seen so much, she also needs rest.  Lastly for us, what we all witnessed will take lots of time to process.  Trauma is real and we all feel it.  We are all doing our best. 

Original Post:  Hi, my name is Sara Ayers. Randy Laughter is my father. I kind of feel like I don’t even need to say much about him because the way he lives his life seems to speak for itself. He has endless wonderful qualities that I could mention, but the ones that are always highlighted to me and most who know him are the way he loves others and his generosity. For him, these two go hand in hand. I’ve never seen someone love, give, and serve others like he does. He has always been this way for as long as I can remember.

Unfortunately, he has recently suffered multiple cerebellar strokes. The first was Friday, August 6th but it wasn’t until later that we would learn that these “episodes” were in fact strokes. We took him to the ER and had multiple tests done. He was sent home that night and told that he had vertigo. We encouraged him to rest as much as possible. He had a rough day Saturday which led to a few more of these “episodes” but they were getting increasingly worse. He was taken back to the ER on Sunday morning because it had become clear that we weren’t dealing with vertigo and something major was going on. At this point, after many more tests, we were told that he was having these cerebellar strokes. He was hospitalized Sunday, August 8th, and discharged August 10th. Miraculously he has no neurological damage! Praise the Lord!

He has not been cleared to return to work at this point.

The goal for this fundraiser is to finally give my dad the opportunity to slow down. He can not physically keep going at this pace. They currently rent a house and both of my parents work full time. Dad works multiple side jobs to provide. At this point he doesn’t have a plan to retire and that’s not because he hasn’t ever thought about it, it’s because of his generosity and always putting others first. As long as he is medically permitted he will continue to work at The Refuge in some capacity.

Dad has previously had a heart attack, a pulmonary embolism, and now multiple strokes. God has spared him once again and my heart is to help provide a solution to his need to work so hard.

I’ve seen the way that he loves but I’ve also seen the way that you all love him. Our plan for these funds is to build a small house on our property in Gold Hill and provide a stable place for them to live rent free. We have the space but need help with the structure. We will need the materials and labor for the house, plumbing, electrical, flooring, tiling, cabinets, septic, a driveway... etc.

We also need lots of prayer. Please pray for complete healing for my dad and for wisdom moving forward. God has had this steady on our hearts and we are confident that He can make a way.

Thank you in advance for everything.

You can also send donations via Venmo @Saranayers or Cash App $snayers if preferred.  100% will go directly to them and this project.