Max's Stroke Recovery

What happened to Max?

On June 28th, Max was relaxing on his couch at home when he realized he was losing feeling in his left arm. At first, he thought his arm was simply falling asleep, but as the numbness crept down his left side, he began to feel something was wrong. He realized his vocal cords were fading, and any control of the left side of his body was lost entirely. Max quickly dialed 911. 24 minutes later, doctors had successfully administered the first dose of a life-saving drug as Max was experiencing a Middle Cerebral Artery (MCA) stroke. Thankfully, it was administered well within the window the doctors say Max has the best chance of recovery.

The long road to recovery

Max’s recovery journey has been and continues to be a daily battle, but as his long-time friend I’m amazed at the level of positivity that he is approaching this situation with, and his insistence that with God’s help he’ll get through this even better than he was before. At 49 years old, Max is now re-learning how to do even basic things, i.e. moving his hand, eating, walking, and using his beloved iPhone. Every 10 minutes throughout the day, an alarm goes off reminding Max to check the position of his left arm and leg, to ensure for instance they’re not in a position where his wheelchair could cause injury without his knowledge. The doctors estimate it will be about a year before he gains most of his functionality back, and today, I’m asking you to believe for a 110% recovery with us.

                 Max: “I am working diligently to regain my strength and mobility. In less than three weeks, I went from not being able to feel my left side to now being able to walk with a cane. I still have a ways to go… I invite you to be a part of this miracle story and journey as I continue to make daily progress toward experiencing a full recovery.”

What it’s going to take to get Max up on his feet…

Max has been so blessed by the support he’s received from the Mannahouse community and many, many others (he’s had the maximum visitors to his room every single day he’s been in the hospital). As you can imagine, with hospital expenses, rent, utilities, groceries, and everyday needs, and Max not working since the day before this happened—the expenses are really piling up. There are also parts of Max’s on-going treatment that will not be covered by his health insurance, such as chiropractic care, a physical therapist, medical equipment, and healthcare staff to care for Max on-going as well as to assist him in getting situated back at his home once they decide to discharge him from the hospital.

                 Max: “So much of my regular life has been turned upside down and in need of change for things I never thought would be needed like special equipment, and so much more.”

There are 3 things, at least one of which I’m positive you can do today to show your support for our brother Max:

1) Financial gift via this GoFundMe—any amount you can give would be of great help to Max.

2) Pray for Him. Pray God would give Max a deep sense of strength, courage, and hope as he faces the greatest trial of his life. Pray for wisdom for the medical staff in charge of his care, that Max would find favor so they are motivated to give him their very best. Pray God would sustain Max financially throughout this time and thank Him for the great miracles we know will emerge through this very challenging situation.

3) Share this page and help spread his story to others via Facebook, Twitter, email, or by copy/pasting the link to this GoFundMe. In the upper-right hand corner, simply click the yellow ‘Share’ button, and a dialog will appear with several options.

                 Max: “Thank you all for your participation in this journey and making the decision to support me and join in victory of this recovery. I am taking every opportunity to be thankful that I can. This experience has been so eye opening about how I am going to approach this new way of life. You have no idea how thankful I am for all of your support relationally and financially. Thank you all so, so, so much! #strongtothefinish” Maximilliano Bravo

On behalf of Max, his close friends, and family, I thank you for your partnership with Max during this trying season.

Blessings,

Mark Nashif