| HI, my name is Melissa. I am new to this group. I wanted to introduce
myself. I am 38 years old, and my brain injury is from a coma. I got sick
in November of 2002. I was in the coma for 3 weeks. I was also hypoxic for
awhile before I was intubated. When I woke up, I had no muscle strength
left, and had to learn how to do everything again. I remembered HOW to do
it all, but the message didn't go all the way from my brain to my muscles
anymore. So I had to re-learn those connections.
Anyway, I can walk again, and do pretty much everything again except drive,
because I still have seizures, but there are a lot of things that have
changed. My intelligence wasn't changed but my brain was affected in other
ways. I am still adjusting. And I have a bad case of post traumatic
stress. My insurance decided they won't pay for me to see my counselor
anymore. So I have to start all over with someone else who has a sliding
scale that I can afford. I was seeing a psychologist at the rehab center,
who knew all about brain injuries.
Things just don't make sense to me. I don't understand why things like this
happen. I don't understand why people get sick, why some people get better
and why other people die. It is kind of hard to explain what I am feeling.
In 2002, the day before Thanksgiving I was healthy (or so I thought.) On
Thanksgiving day I was in the ER, and the next day I was in the ICU in a
coma. There were no warnings, nothing I could have done. I didn't choose
it. Nobody does. But at the same time, I did nothing to choose to get
better either. I was asleep. Other people that got sick the same time I
did, they died. Who decided that I was supposed to live and they were
supposed to die? I had less than 10 percent chance to live. I had less
than 3 percent chance to not be vegetative. The doctors weren't sure I
would ever wake up, and if I did, they didn't know what kind of life I would
have or how impaired I would be. But I did wake up, and everything is
coming back, some things faster than others.
Nothing makes sense anymore. I just keep trying to figure it all out. Not
so much why it happened, as what am I supposed to do now that it did happen.
Being in the coma changed me. I have been asking to meet other people who
have been through a coma experience but so far I haven't met anyone. I am
so homesick. I miss the oneness of it. Everything was connected there. It
was just all oneness. No separation. Everything is separate here. Or at
least people think it is. People hurt other people, countries attack other
countries, it all makes no sense.
How can I say "I am sorry," to a friend who has a loved one die, when he
looks at me every day, and knows that I was supposed to die but I didn't.
Doesn't he look at me and resent me because I didn't die but his loved one
did? I don't understand it.
Anyway, I guess this is long enough. I have tried to connect with brain
injury groups before, but all I could find were support groups for families
of brain injured people, and all they did was compain about how hard it was
to deal with their brain injured loved ones. Not what I was looking for. I
have yet to find anyone in person who has been through anything like this.
Melissa"
Hi Melissa, please go to the General board to see replies to this message, Members, you are welcome to post replies to this message on the General board. You are also welcome to post your own message on this board. Please look at the General message board for replies, keep you introductions as they apply to experiencing COMA here though. Thanks for sharing Melissa, we're glad you are here and welcome! I am the founder of this room, I have experienced coma as a result of a high speed head on car accident. Check the blue pages in your telephone book to see if there isn't some free counseling available for you offered by your state, county or city before you go sliding scale. I too had to learn everything all over again after coma. It was confusing and difficult. It's a long road to recovery Melissa, and we're all here with you to support you. You've come to the right place and you're very welcome here. Keep coming back, check out the site, put a picture or two in your photo journal, see the "pictures" section where you can make your own photo album. My best suggestion is, just do the best you can each day and don't worry about tomorrow until tomorrow okay? Try your best not to try to figure out things that just can't be figured, like, why some people get to live while others have to die. That's a toughie question. I prefer to think of it as, some have to stay here and serve longer while others get to go home to Jesus, know what I mean? Much love and empathy to you Dear Melissa, Welcome to the Brain Injury Support Group, please, keep coming back, feel free to chat any time you see someone in there, you can sign up on the chat host list for when you have time too. Send an email to BrainInjurySupportChat@groups.msn.com and let us know when you're available and we'll try to meet you there or schedule a time to meet you. Currently we're working on priority issues so time is tight, but we'll make time for you because YOU are TOTALLY WORTH IT! We care, and we're here to help you in any way we can, we want to be your friends. Thanks again for the post Melissa, hope to see you again soon! Hugs, Brain Injury Support Group Managers and ImaLady __________________________________________________________________________ Melissa, I am so proud of you and of your Mom! It sounds like both of you are doing really great! Congratulations! See you on the General Board! Thank you for posting your coma story here. (hugs) ___________________________________________________________________________ Michael's Coma Story Hi Melissa! on since you were here last. Stop in when you get a chance. We have two email and the other is for correspondence right to the managers and members at BrainInjurySupport@msn.com so please make a note of both. I received this message in response to the post I posted for you under our section on COMA. I will be posting it in a minute, but I wanted to be sure that you had first hand opportunity to receive it personally. It's from Michael Guyver at our Brother site. He and I both have first hand COMA experience. Here's his reply: ----- Original Message ----- Sent: Friday, May 20, 2005 8:23 AM Subject: A posting for your site, if you approve.
Dear Melissa, I was involved in a MVA four years ago. I was in a coma for 21 days. I really can't tell you anything specific regarding the coma though. My memory has been erased for a solid week before the accident, and partially for up to 3 months. I have no memory of the fire in my house or the so-called accident where I removed my seat belt and drove into a solid concrete wall at 80 MPH. I know I was there for the fire because my fire extinguisher put it out and my hand was burnt. No one, not even my next door neighbor, knew about the fire. I evidently flashed back on my Father's death, a plane crash/fire, and decided to go join him. It sounds like I had a pretty fail-safe plan, doesn't it? I learned that God evidently had other plans for me here on Earth. I have always enjoyed helping others. Well, now that I have taken my "Crash Course" in TBI 101, I can help others with TBI, who really need my help and support. I run a TBI Support site myself, my site is a brother site to ImaLady's Brain Injury Support site. Ima runs a nice support site here, based on references and peer to peer support Survivors', Caregivers, Family Members, siblings, and friends referrals. My site, is based more on information about TBI. I ask that you check out my site, but PLEASE, stay with this site too because like I said, ImaLady's Brain Injury Support Group is a very good peer to peer support and chat site with three chat rooms. My web site can be found at www.tbisupport.com In ImaLady's site, you will find in the RESOURCES section under LINKS, other rooms where you will find even more support and information under the "Looney's Buttons" link, so check it out. Looney's Buttons! The key at ImaLady's site is Melissa, for you to come in, relax, meet an greet, and enjoy yourself. Kick back, relax and enjoy! If you are looking for anything specific, please feel free to email ImaLady directly at BrainInjurySupport@groups.msn.com she will be happy to hear from you. May God Bless You and may you find the answers and support you are looking for. Michael Morse Thanks Mike, hugs Bro'! Judi ____________________________________________________________________________________________ MEMBER COMA STORIES: Members new and old, please put your experience stories with coma in this section. Thank you! Please send them to the email address for the site. BrainInjurySupport@Groups.msn.com or BrainInjurySupport@msn.com Thank you!  hugs and  all the love in the world for you. ____________________________________________________________________________________________ |
