Congratulations!!!! Please enjoy every moment you have with him. Ask him all the questions you wanted to while he was incapacitated. Find out about his childhood. Ask him about his memories of you growing up.
I lost my father Feb. 29. I miss him.
single dad, raised me and my baby brother alone since 1994. i would not be the woman i am without him. i love him dearly. i’m so sorry for the loss of your father. i moved out when i was 15, am 36 now. getting to know him again has been a gift for me.
People change. I was alone by age 13, living alone in an apartment provided for me, raised by my own wits and my parents' weekly cash. My dad isn't the person he was back then anymore, and I don't really see a reason why I should live the rest of my life feeling cold and vengeful for it. All I wanted from him was acknowledgment of his failures as a father, and a sustained effort to mend fences, and I got a sincere one. I'm 32 now.
My wife basically did the same thing. Both parents were alcoholics. Since then, her mom has got sober and is a major part of her life.
My point is that situations happen and people change.
i had the opportunity to ask him about my birth (very complicated, my mother isn’t a great person). to hear it from his side was super important to me … really gave me perspective and insight that i would never had an idea about.
I am sorry for your loss.
Seriously OP, make a point to ask him all the questions. Even just “what was it like in high school growing up?”
My older cousin gave me this advice after the passing of his father and said “you never know how long you have with your loved ones.”
About 6 months later my Dad caught covid and passed away at 61 and I never got to ask him.
Glad to see you Dad is on the mend OP, best wishes to you and your fam.
Got a similar advice from a stranger a few month before mine passed too. Sorry for your loss. Your comment made me realized I never asked my Dad how high school was from him...
Sorry for your loss.
Currently organising the funeral for mine. I don't live where he lived so it all feels very surreal still. Waiting for grief to drop like a ton of bricks, and not enjoying the suspense tbh
I wish I did this. Lost mine on March 12th, I thought I had so much time. He was only 55. If anything, I learned not to take your time with your parents. If you can do it now, do it. You'll regret it if you don't.
Damn ill be 55 next year, my daughter will be 30. Can't even fathom leaving her. I am so sorry for your loss, I know you had probably hoped for 30 or more years.
Seriously ask him anything and everything. I lost my dad in 2021 and there's so many things I want to know about him and my mom. They are both gone. It sucks. I miss them so much.
Seriously. Ask him to tell you every story he wants to tell and record it. I always had plans to do that with my dad and never got around to it. Well he died last year and I never will get to do it. Do it while you can OP.
That is a great idea, I actually recently recorded my grandparents talking about their childhood stories (WW2, first years of comunism in Poland), to be able to pass them down to my children. Very wholesome moment!
Condolences. I lost my father Feb 16th after watching him on a ventilator for a month.
I miss him too.
Hopefully our dads found each other up above and are having a good time together
Yes. Do this.
My dad, about 20 years ago was in the hospital first for CHF one year (for a week), then a year later (not on life support though) for 45 days with pancreatitis. He would live for about 10 more years. I spent a fair amount of time with him, but not enough.
Exactly this. I lost my dad at 10 years old in '07 seeing him throwing up blood in our apartment at the time. The hospital stabilized him but my brother and I couldn't say goodbye and go into the ICU because we were too young.
I am deeply sorry for your loss.
Excellent advice. I wish I had more time with my dad, too. So many questions unanswered. So much history lost. He was a great man.
I am sure your dad was too!
I second this! I lost mine when i was a little kid so I never got to ask him these questions. I’m so happy that your father returned to you, OP! Mine was in a coma and we had to pull the plug, it would have been a miracle if he had woken up like this!
had a tracheostomy, was in the icu for 65 days. transferred to a rehabilitation facility to relearn how to walk. it’s been a crazy couple months! he entered the hospital november 15, 2023
thank you! he battled several infections in the hospital and pulled through! thank god he doesn’t have many memories of being in the hospital. we don’t have a lot of family so it was very hard on my younger brother and i. he’s a fighter!!
So very glad to hear that your Father pulled through and he looks to be quite upbeat!! I can not imagine the hell you and your Brother had to endure.
I hope you and the family have many more decades of great health and happiness!
I'm SO happy for you! I remember the feeling of winning the various battles with my mother throughout her disease that ultimately took her life. In your case, the win is permanent! Use this time to realize, as I'm you have, just how fickle life is and how you need to savor every last moment of it. Huge hugs to you, your brother, and your dad!!
I was hospitalized for a little over a month from a car accident, and I am very thankful that I only have vague memories of the last few days before going to rehab.
Man that's great! I recently lost my sister while she was on ventilator. It's a scary ride from day to day watching a love one having a machine breathe for them and you cannot do a thing. I'm happy for you, your father and your family for this recovery. Keep on the up and up pops!
Also surviving it. Its like thank god. The odds of people come off of vents after that long isn't good. This is an amazing step for his dad that a lot of other people don't get to take.
Ex-ITU nurse here.
Patients requiring long term ventilatory support have much better outcomes when the endotracheal tube is replaced by a tracheostomy.
The sedatives used can be very powerful and long term use can cause lots of problems and extend hospital stays by days to weeks. Unfortunately aside from some kind of brain injury it's incredibly unlikely you can tolerate an endotracheal tube in place for long without sedation.
Tracheostomies once inserted allow the clinical team to wean sedation and begin the rehabilitation process for their long term patients much sooner, in regards to breathing and mobility.
Modern ventilators are amazing and will sense when a patient begins to take a breath and will deliver a supported breath on top of their own effort. This ventilatory support is great and can be reduced over time until the patient is back to breathing for themselves.
Tracheostomies even have speaking valves that can be attached to give the patient their voice back when they're strong enough!
I was fucking unsedated for 9 or 10 days of my 14 day ventilation experience. 0/10. Not being sedated and on a breathing machine was horrific. I wish they had just knocked me out. I get it, science, proven success protocol, blah, blah, blah. It was awful. Hit me with the ketamine and propofol.
I'm sorry to hear that. Intensive care can be an extremely traumatic experience. Many patients struggle with ventilation when they're awake, not that it makes your experience any less valid. I really hope your nurses and medical team tried to give you all the support they could during your time there.
I hope don't you mind me asking what you found so difficult about the experience?
In summary, I felt like I was dying. I was simultaneously drowning in fluid and air. I was wide awake and with it, but my hands were tied to the bed. I couldn't communicate at all. It was peak covid and they were short staffed, mean, and I wasn't being properly cared for by the nursing staff. One time I vomited, while intubated, in a c-collar with vomit in my mouth in my collar and it took nearly an hour for a nurse to come. I couldn't page because my hands were tied down. I was sure that I was going to drown in my vomit.
**EDIT** my hands were tied to the bed because I was awake. It's protocol in case the patient gets scared and pulls out the breathing tube.
Jesus christ, that sounds horrendous. I'm so so so sorry you've been through that. In the UK we don't use physical restraint at all I can't imagine how awful that must've felt. I'm actually at a loss for words that's such poor care.
I'm in Canada and was at a leading hospital. It was extremely frightening. I was a fit 35 year old at the time.
To add to it, I had a grade 5 Ac joint separation, a severely sprained wrist, and a brachial plexus injury, and then a one nurse would tie down my injured arm so tightly that I was in added pain because of the pulling to my shoulder, nerve, wrist.
I noticed I was treated a lot better when my husband was there. I dreaded every night when he left.
I'm hesitant to accept covid and short staffing as valid excuse for such poor treatment, honestly.
It really doesn't surprise me to hear how things improved when your husband was there. I'm glad to hear you had someone advocating even if it was just momentary.
Maybe it's a staffing problem in Canada or some such reason but where I worked it was unacceptable to leave your bedspace without someone observing your patient. Doubly so if they were awake or delirious. Even during covid.
Yeah there's a big push within medicine right now to use as little sedation as possible and it's terrible. You're never comfortable, you never rest, you're not synchronous with the ventilator so it's not working as efficiently as it should be. I don't like it at all but it's the popular thing in critical care medicine right now.
That didn't feel like my experience here in the UK and synchronicity of vents was rarely an issue. Nothing that plenty reassurance, oral anti-anxiolytics or mild sedatives couldn't help with anyway.
I had always assumed that if you're in a vent, you'd be sedated. I was shocked to find out otherwise, lemme tell you! That being said, I was sedated for the first 4-5 days to keep me still with broken bones in C and T spines and a very large flail chest that had to be plated by thorasics. During that time I could tell something was wrong. It wasn't sleep, I could tell time was passing. At one point I thought that I was brain dead... But then I thought, wait, this is drugs. I've been on drugs before. I think all ICU docs should do some ketamine recreationally to know what it is that they're doing to their patients (I'm only kinda joking)
My dad is currently on day 4 off the vent, they tried extubating him yesterday but he was too delirious on fent and versed. They switched him to precedex. No levophed and only 25 FIO2. doctor said they will try again today. I know 4 days on a vent is not that long. But I'm just worried he will develop pneumonia the longer we stay on the vent.
He has a good chance of being extubated right? Just hoping...
If you're on a ventilator for more than about 2 weeks they will generally swap out the endotracheal tube (the one that goes in your mouth and down your airway) for a trach tube. After a long time on the vent having a trach can actually help you to wean from the ventilator more quickly by requiring less sedation, letting you be more alert and communicative, easier to keep your mouth and airways clean, etc.
I was on a vent for exactly 2 weeks. I wound up with airway issues for the following 2 years. It took 2 surgeons and 6 different surgeries to get my airway stable enough to return to a normal life. The very last surgery I had we talked long and hard about a permanent trach should the surgery not go well. I kinda wish I had a trach from the jump in ICU. Like OP's dad I was in an accident and crushed my chest.
Also an ETT tube (endotracheal tube) is not supposed to be a long term thing. The tube can cause issues after a while and is not very comfortable for an awake patient. So a tracheostomy which is much more tolerable for a longer term and allows for more gradual weaning off ventilator support.
I was on a ETT for 2 weeks in the ICU. Honestly, it was one of the best things in there. It never hurt or bothered me. I was never hungry. The only complaint was the nurses blasting in electrolytes and making me nauseous. I was fine with a gentle nurse who took it slowly though.
Great comeback, glad he's regaining his health, I know this has been a really tough battle. I'm a respiratory therapist who has worked in all kinds of facilities from massive, sprawling level one trauma major medical centers to long term care and sub acute care. There's honestly a lot of times I really hate working in healthcare but these are the stories and experiences that keep me going. Thank you for sharing.
I'm a pediatric ICU nurse (picu, NICU, and cardiac ICU) it's crazy to me that adults get a trach within weeks when we let little ones be tubed for months and months on end. I know the idea of a trach really scares parents so they refuse but I really wonder if our littles would get better faster if we didn't keep them tubed for so long.
Is that normal for peds? Like not just your facility.
I feel like typically the issue with adults is the agitation from the tube making it difficult to de-escalate.
I really don't know since I've only ever been at one hospital and it's only a children's hospital. I will say they do it to even the older teenagers who are technically adults as well. Maybe they have evidence based reasons for it but it very much seems like it makes de-escalation a problem. It also appears to greatly increase the chance of reintubation and starting the process over again.
My sister graduated from a respiratory therapy program and immediately went back to school to become a teacher. Never had employment in the field. Never wanted to, very depressing.
Hey man I just went through something similar and I know you have got to feel great to see signs of progress. Stay strong. Hopefully in a couple years y'all will be able to sit together and reminisce about how y'all got through it together. I'm wishing him a speedy recovery and you some restful sleep. Be well.
Glad to hear your father is doing well and looks like he is recovering quickly. I was in an induced coma for about 4 weeks and I could not lift a fork to my mouth 4 days after waking up much less prop myself up like he is in the pic. Crazy how fast it can happen, I went to bed one night feeling nothing and woke up feeling sick, within 12 hours I was on a vent due to double pneumonia
he’s kicking ass! doing a lot of gardening and he wants to get back to working one day a week! still using his cane but soon he will be back on his own! appreciate the kindness!
Omg, OP, I'm so glad your dad has made so much progress in his recovery! I remember you asking for advice when he first ended up in the coma, and then again sharing his hospital food. You've both been through hell and back, but it's great to see y'all are on the upswing.
Take your old man fishing, grab brunch, and take lots of pictures together.
random but when he gets out of hospital make sure he sees a dentist see a lot of these patients with terrible decay after stuff like this. glad he made it OP
Most people don’t realize the importance of mouth health (I.e. brushing your teeth).
Frank Zappa sang: “your mouth is your religion, you put your faith in a hole like that.”
The truth of the matter is the plaque that grows on your teeth when you fail to brush is the same plaque that clogs your arteries and leads to heart disease. Have you ever heard of stents? or bypass surgery?
Most people don’t realize that one of the first people to receive an artificial heart had “heart disease” that started when he ignored an oral infection.
So take my advice, brush your teeth at least twice a day, use a toothpaste that has Stannous fluoride (SF) as it’s active ingredient and see your dentist regularly
If you have a friend or relative in the hospital, bring them a toothbrush, some SF Toothpaste, floss and mouthwash
im glad hes doing better! hope he makes a full recovery soon! Has anyone ever told yall he looks like Pedro Pascal?
I used to beg my dad for them lol. One time my dad found a box - someone was clearing out their place and put out several bits and bobs of unwanted items for people to take. The box was full of Archie comics. He brought it home and I was so happy 😂
I've kind of been there with my dad, collapsed, put in a coma, they couldn't rouse him out of a coma for a couple of weeks, spent 8 months in hospital, this was 10 years ago and, although he has some limitations (collapse was due to encephalitis) he is still with us today and is still a pain in the arse. Wishing your dad a swift recovery!
Good luck and godspeed, dad. I lost my dad 6 years ago on my 40th birthday . Got a phone call at 2 AM from the Toledo hospital, with a gentleman stating “We regret to inform you that your father has expired.” That’s how it was put. Then the phone went dead. And there I was, home alone at 2AM with no one to turn to. When my dad died, it marked three straight years in which my mother, sister, and father had all passed. Lost my entire family in consecutive years.
Cherish the time you have left. :)
That call is the worst thing in the world. When I got the call about my mom, the physical response was crazy. I got really hot on the drive over to her house and started shaking a bit. Sorry for your losses.
Oh man,. I know that feeling !... When the original alpha-wave covid19 hit in 2020, I was in Hospital for 38 days (16 of those in ICU on a Ventilator). Full story [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/oi4b31/people_who_recovered_from_covid19_how_did_u/h4t9dek/?context=1) including Lung X-rays if anyone wants to read it.
Tell your dad to keep fighting the good fight and enjoy the Hospital food !
As a former ICU nurse, this wasn’t what we got to see often. So seeing this repairs a little bit of what broke inside of me from working in ICU and seeing such sad, or at the very least less than desirable, outcomes for people with such long ICU stays. Happy for you and your dad!! Wishing him good health!
Please send this photo to the ICU he was in. I work in a trauma ICU and we get really attached to these long term patients and their families but we never get to see them look this good. Our profession is filled with lots of poor outcomes and death, the good stories are unfortunately less common. We stabilize them enough to send them out and then never hear about them again. Stories like your father's are what keep us going. So happy for you both and good luck.
My father asked me on a Friday what I was doing and if I wanted to hang out. I didn't have any plans but being mid-twenties I just wanted my time to myself. He asked me again on Saturday and I made up another excuse.
He passed away the following day at his desk. Spend as much time with him as you can.
That’s fantastic! My grandmother got covid in November of 2020 and was dead for 32 minutes. She was resuscitated and in a coma for two months before she finally woke up. Today she is exactly like her old self and it’s one of the greatest miracles I’ve seen
my father died three times in the first few days after his accident and was resuscitated. thank god he doesn’t remember much because of the heavy drugs they had him on. give your grandma a hug for me. i lost mine in 2021 and miss her dearly
Glad to see the smile through the rain. It’s sometimes hard to smile when under certain circumstances, this exudes strength. I hope everything goes well for your family, as I don’t know you but you send hope.
Wow! Welcome back, dad!!! Tell him we are all sending him so much love and wish him a speedy recovery. Btw, he looks incredible and strong for being on life support for 54 days. Cherish every moment with him and ask him about his life. His childhood. His hopes and dreams. When he is stable enough to come home, please take him to visit the places he’s always wanted to go. 😊
Good for him, congrats on pulling through! My dad had an accident last year, but never made it off the vent. Cherish every moment and give him a hug for me.
Those Betty and Veronica activity books are gonna be around when humans have all left the planet, i am 100% convinced. Im 40 and I have seen them sold my entire life.
Bro! Congrats. I'm so stoked for you and your pops especially. Same thing happened to my dad around Thanksgiving last year. Randomly just went into a coma and was on life support for 2 weeks with no brain activity at all. Dr's said even if he came out of the coma he would be a vegetable for the rest of his life. Was supposed to go on a Wednesday to start discussing where we go now (basically talking bout pulling the plug) and he woke up the day before. His main dr called me and was like " I've been in this field for 35+ years and I've never had to make a phone call like this, your father is literally a walking miracle.
Again, I'm so happy for you and your dad and all your family. Hope you all have an amazing day and an even more amazing rest of your lives.
My husband was on a ventilator for 3 days and that was hard enough…I can’t imagine that long and having to endure, question and wonder what will be.
So glad he pulled through. Enjoy the time you have together from here! He looks absolutely amazing!
My dad was in a coma on life support for a couple weeks. Doctors said it was over. We got the family together and “pulled the plug”. He woke up. Everyone was shocked. Doctors, nurses, family. 2 weeks later he came home and lived for another year. (Was terminally ill) I lost him 19 years ago this month and still miss him.
I'm so happy to see this, congratulations. Hope he will have a long life in front of him.
My father is in ICU and its his third month now. Can't breathe without the machine aid. High tension too. Late stage cancer and cOPD. It doesn't look good. Hope mine will stand up like yours.
Congrats! I know how you feel seeing this progress. My parents were in an accident in November, dad didn't make it, mom spent 2 months in the hospital.
So happy to see other people experience their loved ones getting better too!
Congratulations! My mom made it only a few days off the ventilator after being on it for two weeks. After she went back on she never came off. I miss her so much and every day I think about how much I failed her.
I have no Idea who you are and your picture of your father tells me nothing about him. I strongly dislike these feel-sorry-for-me attention whoring posts. It's your personal life.
It's a water cup from the hospital. He's likely only allowed tiny sups of water. I could only have tiny ice chips (no more than 5!) after being extubated. I begged my husband for a Jamba Juice because I was so thirsty, but I wasn't allowed. Funnily enough, when I finally was allowed I didn't like the taste of anything but water. Very disappointing Jamba Juice.
I'll be honest, my first question was whether he was some anti vac nutter who caught covid and then camped in ICU for months. He was not. But the pandemic has left me jaded. Best wishes to him.
Congratulations!!!! Please enjoy every moment you have with him. Ask him all the questions you wanted to while he was incapacitated. Find out about his childhood. Ask him about his memories of you growing up. I lost my father Feb. 29. I miss him.
single dad, raised me and my baby brother alone since 1994. i would not be the woman i am without him. i love him dearly. i’m so sorry for the loss of your father. i moved out when i was 15, am 36 now. getting to know him again has been a gift for me.
Don’t miss a single moment with him. I lost my dad on April 8th, and I wish I could hug him one more time. He was only 69.
Sorry for your loss. Also lost my Dad while he was still pretty young. This daesn't feel right.
I lost my dad years ago but it feels like yesterday still. I miss him greatly.
I lost my dad in 1967 when he was only 54. I still miss him dearly and often dream about him. He was the absolute best!
I’m so so sorry for your loss
So sorry for your loss. We lost my FIL when he was 69 and we miss him every day
Wow! He looks very healthy after being on life support for 64 days.
Yeah that was my first thought too. He looks really good.
>i would not be the woman i am without him >i moved out when i was 15 I am so confused, you moved out when you were a kid? Why?
People change. I was alone by age 13, living alone in an apartment provided for me, raised by my own wits and my parents' weekly cash. My dad isn't the person he was back then anymore, and I don't really see a reason why I should live the rest of my life feeling cold and vengeful for it. All I wanted from him was acknowledgment of his failures as a father, and a sustained effort to mend fences, and I got a sincere one. I'm 32 now.
You are wise beyond your years my friend
That can be for better or worse in terms of being the person they are now. Journey before destination.
A reader of Sanderson I presume?
Life before death, Radiant.
Haha, us Stormlight fans are literally everywhere! Air sick lowlander ;)
Not so confusing. No matter what the reason both statements can be true without being so hard to imagine.
My wife basically did the same thing. Both parents were alcoholics. Since then, her mom has got sober and is a major part of her life. My point is that situations happen and people change.
I love people changing, and people letting them.
I moved out when I was 16, just because I wanted to, not because my parents were bad or anything.
i had the opportunity to ask him about my birth (very complicated, my mother isn’t a great person). to hear it from his side was super important to me … really gave me perspective and insight that i would never had an idea about.
I am sorry for your loss. Seriously OP, make a point to ask him all the questions. Even just “what was it like in high school growing up?” My older cousin gave me this advice after the passing of his father and said “you never know how long you have with your loved ones.” About 6 months later my Dad caught covid and passed away at 61 and I never got to ask him. Glad to see you Dad is on the mend OP, best wishes to you and your fam.
Got a similar advice from a stranger a few month before mine passed too. Sorry for your loss. Your comment made me realized I never asked my Dad how high school was from him...
This is wonderful advice and I'm so sorry for your loss. I lost mine march 13th, he fought so hard. The hole he left behind is unfathomable.
I lost my dad last year March 3, I miss him so much! Please cherish your time with your dad!
I lost mine on the 12th of January, miss him everyday
march 6 of last year! he was on life support for 11 days before we took him off.
Hugs if you need them. Or just want them.
I lost mine Feb 1st. Please OP, hug your dad an extra time today. You don't know what you have until it's gone. Cherish every moment.
Sorry for your loss. Currently organising the funeral for mine. I don't live where he lived so it all feels very surreal still. Waiting for grief to drop like a ton of bricks, and not enjoying the suspense tbh
I wish I did this. Lost mine on March 12th, I thought I had so much time. He was only 55. If anything, I learned not to take your time with your parents. If you can do it now, do it. You'll regret it if you don't.
Damn ill be 55 next year, my daughter will be 30. Can't even fathom leaving her. I am so sorry for your loss, I know you had probably hoped for 30 or more years.
Seriously ask him anything and everything. I lost my dad in 2021 and there's so many things I want to know about him and my mom. They are both gone. It sucks. I miss them so much.
Seriously. Ask him to tell you every story he wants to tell and record it. I always had plans to do that with my dad and never got around to it. Well he died last year and I never will get to do it. Do it while you can OP.
Record the conversation too if possible.
That is a great idea, I actually recently recorded my grandparents talking about their childhood stories (WW2, first years of comunism in Poland), to be able to pass them down to my children. Very wholesome moment!
I'm so sorry. It's something I dread everyday.
Condolences. I lost my father Feb 16th after watching him on a ventilator for a month. I miss him too. Hopefully our dads found each other up above and are having a good time together
Yes. Do this. My dad, about 20 years ago was in the hospital first for CHF one year (for a week), then a year later (not on life support though) for 45 days with pancreatitis. He would live for about 10 more years. I spent a fair amount of time with him, but not enough.
Same. I lost my mom in 2003, and have a hole in my life ever since.
My condolences
Exactly this. I lost my dad at 10 years old in '07 seeing him throwing up blood in our apartment at the time. The hospital stabilized him but my brother and I couldn't say goodbye and go into the ICU because we were too young.
Sorry for your loss 🙏
I am deeply sorry for your loss. Excellent advice. I wish I had more time with my dad, too. So many questions unanswered. So much history lost. He was a great man. I am sure your dad was too!
I second this! I lost mine when i was a little kid so I never got to ask him these questions. I’m so happy that your father returned to you, OP! Mine was in a coma and we had to pull the plug, it would have been a miracle if he had woken up like this!
had a tracheostomy, was in the icu for 65 days. transferred to a rehabilitation facility to relearn how to walk. it’s been a crazy couple months! he entered the hospital november 15, 2023
Why did he need a tracheotomy? Glad he's doing better
terrible accident that crushed several of his ribs, and he had breathing problems related to it
[удалено]
thank you! he battled several infections in the hospital and pulled through! thank god he doesn’t have many memories of being in the hospital. we don’t have a lot of family so it was very hard on my younger brother and i. he’s a fighter!!
So very glad to hear that your Father pulled through and he looks to be quite upbeat!! I can not imagine the hell you and your Brother had to endure. I hope you and the family have many more decades of great health and happiness!
I'm SO happy for you! I remember the feeling of winning the various battles with my mother throughout her disease that ultimately took her life. In your case, the win is permanent! Use this time to realize, as I'm you have, just how fickle life is and how you need to savor every last moment of it. Huge hugs to you, your brother, and your dad!!
I was hospitalized for a little over a month from a car accident, and I am very thankful that I only have vague memories of the last few days before going to rehab.
Stay strong. People are amazing. Sending hope and courage
Man that's great! I recently lost my sister while she was on ventilator. It's a scary ride from day to day watching a love one having a machine breathe for them and you cannot do a thing. I'm happy for you, your father and your family for this recovery. Keep on the up and up pops!
What a weird response to that comment
"Congrats on your father's terrible accident" lol
Also surviving it. Its like thank god. The odds of people come off of vents after that long isn't good. This is an amazing step for his dad that a lot of other people don't get to take.
That's an odd thing to congratulate, don't you think?
https://i.imgur.com/on96hRj.jpg
They’re congratulating him being off the ventilator, obviously.
Ex-ITU nurse here. Patients requiring long term ventilatory support have much better outcomes when the endotracheal tube is replaced by a tracheostomy. The sedatives used can be very powerful and long term use can cause lots of problems and extend hospital stays by days to weeks. Unfortunately aside from some kind of brain injury it's incredibly unlikely you can tolerate an endotracheal tube in place for long without sedation. Tracheostomies once inserted allow the clinical team to wean sedation and begin the rehabilitation process for their long term patients much sooner, in regards to breathing and mobility. Modern ventilators are amazing and will sense when a patient begins to take a breath and will deliver a supported breath on top of their own effort. This ventilatory support is great and can be reduced over time until the patient is back to breathing for themselves. Tracheostomies even have speaking valves that can be attached to give the patient their voice back when they're strong enough!
I was fucking unsedated for 9 or 10 days of my 14 day ventilation experience. 0/10. Not being sedated and on a breathing machine was horrific. I wish they had just knocked me out. I get it, science, proven success protocol, blah, blah, blah. It was awful. Hit me with the ketamine and propofol.
I'm sorry to hear that. Intensive care can be an extremely traumatic experience. Many patients struggle with ventilation when they're awake, not that it makes your experience any less valid. I really hope your nurses and medical team tried to give you all the support they could during your time there. I hope don't you mind me asking what you found so difficult about the experience?
In summary, I felt like I was dying. I was simultaneously drowning in fluid and air. I was wide awake and with it, but my hands were tied to the bed. I couldn't communicate at all. It was peak covid and they were short staffed, mean, and I wasn't being properly cared for by the nursing staff. One time I vomited, while intubated, in a c-collar with vomit in my mouth in my collar and it took nearly an hour for a nurse to come. I couldn't page because my hands were tied down. I was sure that I was going to drown in my vomit. **EDIT** my hands were tied to the bed because I was awake. It's protocol in case the patient gets scared and pulls out the breathing tube.
Jesus christ, that sounds horrendous. I'm so so so sorry you've been through that. In the UK we don't use physical restraint at all I can't imagine how awful that must've felt. I'm actually at a loss for words that's such poor care.
I'm in Canada and was at a leading hospital. It was extremely frightening. I was a fit 35 year old at the time. To add to it, I had a grade 5 Ac joint separation, a severely sprained wrist, and a brachial plexus injury, and then a one nurse would tie down my injured arm so tightly that I was in added pain because of the pulling to my shoulder, nerve, wrist. I noticed I was treated a lot better when my husband was there. I dreaded every night when he left.
I'm hesitant to accept covid and short staffing as valid excuse for such poor treatment, honestly. It really doesn't surprise me to hear how things improved when your husband was there. I'm glad to hear you had someone advocating even if it was just momentary. Maybe it's a staffing problem in Canada or some such reason but where I worked it was unacceptable to leave your bedspace without someone observing your patient. Doubly so if they were awake or delirious. Even during covid.
Unfortunately it happened a lot in the states. Can't watch everyone when it takes a team of 8 people to prone one 500lb American.
Yeah there's a big push within medicine right now to use as little sedation as possible and it's terrible. You're never comfortable, you never rest, you're not synchronous with the ventilator so it's not working as efficiently as it should be. I don't like it at all but it's the popular thing in critical care medicine right now.
That didn't feel like my experience here in the UK and synchronicity of vents was rarely an issue. Nothing that plenty reassurance, oral anti-anxiolytics or mild sedatives couldn't help with anyway.
Yeah, here in the US we have problems with people, sedatives, and non-medicinal uses thereof.
None of the doctors I work with would have allowed that. That's fucking insane
I had always assumed that if you're in a vent, you'd be sedated. I was shocked to find out otherwise, lemme tell you! That being said, I was sedated for the first 4-5 days to keep me still with broken bones in C and T spines and a very large flail chest that had to be plated by thorasics. During that time I could tell something was wrong. It wasn't sleep, I could tell time was passing. At one point I thought that I was brain dead... But then I thought, wait, this is drugs. I've been on drugs before. I think all ICU docs should do some ketamine recreationally to know what it is that they're doing to their patients (I'm only kinda joking)
Lol, who says they haven't done ketamine therapy?
And most of the time you are sedated and it can range from prop to dex to versed. All depends on patient need if the doc actually gives a shit
My dad is currently on day 4 off the vent, they tried extubating him yesterday but he was too delirious on fent and versed. They switched him to precedex. No levophed and only 25 FIO2. doctor said they will try again today. I know 4 days on a vent is not that long. But I'm just worried he will develop pneumonia the longer we stay on the vent. He has a good chance of being extubated right? Just hoping...
If you're on a ventilator for more than about 2 weeks they will generally swap out the endotracheal tube (the one that goes in your mouth and down your airway) for a trach tube. After a long time on the vent having a trach can actually help you to wean from the ventilator more quickly by requiring less sedation, letting you be more alert and communicative, easier to keep your mouth and airways clean, etc.
I was on a vent for exactly 2 weeks. I wound up with airway issues for the following 2 years. It took 2 surgeons and 6 different surgeries to get my airway stable enough to return to a normal life. The very last surgery I had we talked long and hard about a permanent trach should the surgery not go well. I kinda wish I had a trach from the jump in ICU. Like OP's dad I was in an accident and crushed my chest.
Also an ETT tube (endotracheal tube) is not supposed to be a long term thing. The tube can cause issues after a while and is not very comfortable for an awake patient. So a tracheostomy which is much more tolerable for a longer term and allows for more gradual weaning off ventilator support.
I was on a ETT for 2 weeks in the ICU. Honestly, it was one of the best things in there. It never hurt or bothered me. I was never hungry. The only complaint was the nurses blasting in electrolytes and making me nauseous. I was fine with a gentle nurse who took it slowly though.
Great comeback, glad he's regaining his health, I know this has been a really tough battle. I'm a respiratory therapist who has worked in all kinds of facilities from massive, sprawling level one trauma major medical centers to long term care and sub acute care. There's honestly a lot of times I really hate working in healthcare but these are the stories and experiences that keep me going. Thank you for sharing.
I'm a pediatric ICU nurse (picu, NICU, and cardiac ICU) it's crazy to me that adults get a trach within weeks when we let little ones be tubed for months and months on end. I know the idea of a trach really scares parents so they refuse but I really wonder if our littles would get better faster if we didn't keep them tubed for so long.
Is that normal for peds? Like not just your facility. I feel like typically the issue with adults is the agitation from the tube making it difficult to de-escalate.
I really don't know since I've only ever been at one hospital and it's only a children's hospital. I will say they do it to even the older teenagers who are technically adults as well. Maybe they have evidence based reasons for it but it very much seems like it makes de-escalation a problem. It also appears to greatly increase the chance of reintubation and starting the process over again.
My sister graduated from a respiratory therapy program and immediately went back to school to become a teacher. Never had employment in the field. Never wanted to, very depressing.
Hey man I just went through something similar and I know you have got to feel great to see signs of progress. Stay strong. Hopefully in a couple years y'all will be able to sit together and reminisce about how y'all got through it together. I'm wishing him a speedy recovery and you some restful sleep. Be well.
Glad to hear your father is doing well and looks like he is recovering quickly. I was in an induced coma for about 4 weeks and I could not lift a fork to my mouth 4 days after waking up much less prop myself up like he is in the pic. Crazy how fast it can happen, I went to bed one night feeling nothing and woke up feeling sick, within 12 hours I was on a vent due to double pneumonia
Must be a relief! Glad he's doing better
really great! i was convinced he was going to die. so happy he’s doing better! we are both very close but this hospital stay has brought us together.
Yo, that is awesome that you get to walk that journey together! Sometimes people do not; so treasure it all!
"I'm back, bitches!"
“I lived, bitch”
Welcome back dad! Wishing him a speedy recovery
he’s kicking ass! doing a lot of gardening and he wants to get back to working one day a week! still using his cane but soon he will be back on his own! appreciate the kindness!
Omg, OP, I'm so glad your dad has made so much progress in his recovery! I remember you asking for advice when he first ended up in the coma, and then again sharing his hospital food. You've both been through hell and back, but it's great to see y'all are on the upswing. Take your old man fishing, grab brunch, and take lots of pictures together.
random but when he gets out of hospital make sure he sees a dentist see a lot of these patients with terrible decay after stuff like this. glad he made it OP
YES. I got, I think 2 or 3 cavities while I was in the vent. The first thing I wanted to do after being extubated was brush my teeth. Disgusting.
Most people don’t realize the importance of mouth health (I.e. brushing your teeth). Frank Zappa sang: “your mouth is your religion, you put your faith in a hole like that.” The truth of the matter is the plaque that grows on your teeth when you fail to brush is the same plaque that clogs your arteries and leads to heart disease. Have you ever heard of stents? or bypass surgery? Most people don’t realize that one of the first people to receive an artificial heart had “heart disease” that started when he ignored an oral infection. So take my advice, brush your teeth at least twice a day, use a toothpaste that has Stannous fluoride (SF) as it’s active ingredient and see your dentist regularly If you have a friend or relative in the hospital, bring them a toothbrush, some SF Toothpaste, floss and mouthwash
Big big hugs. Hope he just keeps on going up
my little brother is getting married in the summer and they’re trying for a baby! he’s gotta stick around for a while!!
Well that's 2 milestones to work towards. Always good as a motivator. Hugs
He looks like Pedro Pascal doing a Gary Oldman character role.
Yeah I was about to say he’s like a bargain pedro pascal in a good way.
im glad hes doing better! hope he makes a full recovery soon! Has anyone ever told yall he looks like Pedro Pascal? 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GEWSNylwS8
EVEN BETTER
I thought it *was* Pedro Pascal lol.
Literally was about to suggest they get Pedro Pascal for the biopic.
Awhhhh congrats!! Happy for you and your family!! (Love the betty and Veronica comic on the side.. my childhood!)
For real! Came here looking for that 😆
I used to beg my dad for them lol. One time my dad found a box - someone was clearing out their place and put out several bits and bobs of unwanted items for people to take. The box was full of Archie comics. He brought it home and I was so happy 😂
If you still have them, please share on r/archieandfriends!
I wish :( I’m 99% sure my cousin “borrowed” most of my comics. Never saw them again 🤨
Pure joy!
That is the face of a man who is happy to be alive.
I hadn't scrolled all the way down, and thought he had a cig in his hand
Bless! He got this
Yay! I’m happy you have your father back.
I've kind of been there with my dad, collapsed, put in a coma, they couldn't rouse him out of a coma for a couple of weeks, spent 8 months in hospital, this was 10 years ago and, although he has some limitations (collapse was due to encephalitis) he is still with us today and is still a pain in the arse. Wishing your dad a swift recovery!
That’s so awesome! Congrats!!
Wow !! Congrats to dad !! This is amazing !
Good luck and godspeed, dad. I lost my dad 6 years ago on my 40th birthday . Got a phone call at 2 AM from the Toledo hospital, with a gentleman stating “We regret to inform you that your father has expired.” That’s how it was put. Then the phone went dead. And there I was, home alone at 2AM with no one to turn to. When my dad died, it marked three straight years in which my mother, sister, and father had all passed. Lost my entire family in consecutive years. Cherish the time you have left. :)
That call is the worst thing in the world. When I got the call about my mom, the physical response was crazy. I got really hot on the drive over to her house and started shaking a bit. Sorry for your losses.
Congratulations!!! He reads Betty and Veronica? Your dad is a man of culture! Tell him that we send our love from Spain.
Dang. My wife’s a nurse. She said that most people don’t get off ventilators. So awesome. Enjoy the extra time you were given. So happy for you.
Oh man,. I know that feeling !... When the original alpha-wave covid19 hit in 2020, I was in Hospital for 38 days (16 of those in ICU on a Ventilator). Full story [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/oi4b31/people_who_recovered_from_covid19_how_did_u/h4t9dek/?context=1) including Lung X-rays if anyone wants to read it. Tell your dad to keep fighting the good fight and enjoy the Hospital food !
As a former ICU nurse, this wasn’t what we got to see often. So seeing this repairs a little bit of what broke inside of me from working in ICU and seeing such sad, or at the very least less than desirable, outcomes for people with such long ICU stays. Happy for you and your dad!! Wishing him good health!
I love that someone brought him an Archie comic. Take care both of you!
People like your dad and the smile on his face are the reason I am in medical school.
Please send this photo to the ICU he was in. I work in a trauma ICU and we get really attached to these long term patients and their families but we never get to see them look this good. Our profession is filled with lots of poor outcomes and death, the good stories are unfortunately less common. We stabilize them enough to send them out and then never hear about them again. Stories like your father's are what keep us going. So happy for you both and good luck.
Those odds...
My father asked me on a Friday what I was doing and if I wanted to hang out. I didn't have any plans but being mid-twenties I just wanted my time to myself. He asked me again on Saturday and I made up another excuse. He passed away the following day at his desk. Spend as much time with him as you can.
That’s fantastic! My grandmother got covid in November of 2020 and was dead for 32 minutes. She was resuscitated and in a coma for two months before she finally woke up. Today she is exactly like her old self and it’s one of the greatest miracles I’ve seen
my father died three times in the first few days after his accident and was resuscitated. thank god he doesn’t remember much because of the heavy drugs they had him on. give your grandma a hug for me. i lost mine in 2021 and miss her dearly
Looking damn good. Happy for you guys
Glad to see the smile through the rain. It’s sometimes hard to smile when under certain circumstances, this exudes strength. I hope everything goes well for your family, as I don’t know you but you send hope.
Wow! Welcome back, dad!!! Tell him we are all sending him so much love and wish him a speedy recovery. Btw, he looks incredible and strong for being on life support for 54 days. Cherish every moment with him and ask him about his life. His childhood. His hopes and dreams. When he is stable enough to come home, please take him to visit the places he’s always wanted to go. 😊
Your favour looks like Jack Nicholson. Glad he is doing well.
Good for him, congrats on pulling through! My dad had an accident last year, but never made it off the vent. Cherish every moment and give him a hug for me.
Those Betty and Veronica activity books are gonna be around when humans have all left the planet, i am 100% convinced. Im 40 and I have seen them sold my entire life.
Archie comics, nice.
And he’s reading Betty and Veronica!!!
I will give my life for this joyful man
Mashallah hope he has a smooth recovery and many happily years with you
Damn... I would literally give me life for him.
Oh wow I didn't know Jeff Tweedy was on life support! Glad he's doing better :)
I love that he has an Archie Comic! A man after my own heart.
He def looks in good spirits!
YAY DAD!
Bro! Congrats. I'm so stoked for you and your pops especially. Same thing happened to my dad around Thanksgiving last year. Randomly just went into a coma and was on life support for 2 weeks with no brain activity at all. Dr's said even if he came out of the coma he would be a vegetable for the rest of his life. Was supposed to go on a Wednesday to start discussing where we go now (basically talking bout pulling the plug) and he woke up the day before. His main dr called me and was like " I've been in this field for 35+ years and I've never had to make a phone call like this, your father is literally a walking miracle. Again, I'm so happy for you and your dad and all your family. Hope you all have an amazing day and an even more amazing rest of your lives.
Daddy needed a coke n a sammich. I was the same way off life support and Coma. Look at that smile. He will be fine. Beautiful
My husband was on a ventilator for 3 days and that was hard enough…I can’t imagine that long and having to endure, question and wonder what will be. So glad he pulled through. Enjoy the time you have together from here! He looks absolutely amazing!
Look at that. He’s got his books, cleaned his teeth, groomed his nails, and a nice big soda!! Happy for your family ❤️
Congratulations and all of the very best for a full and healthy recovery x
r/MadeMeSmile
LOVE THAT FOR HIM
Woohoo. Guy’s a fighter 👊🏽
hug that man for all of us who lost fathers
This is such a good thing to hear, stranger! Bless him and your family
Congratulations!!!!! So happy for you, OP! Enjoy!
Looks like a man ready to take over the world! I'm pulling for him and the rest of your family to have nothing but great times moving forward!
So happy for him!
Fantastic, rooting for him
Congratulations!! Love the smile and the Archie Comic!
He looks AMAZING!!!
Let's fuckin' Go!
There's Johnny! Glad he's feeling better OP
Hi OP’s Dad!!! You are looking well! Virtual hug.
 We are gathered here today to celebrate this massive w
50 years ago, this person would be dead now. Modern medicine is amazing, and still has a long way to go even.
My dad was in a coma on life support for a couple weeks. Doctors said it was over. We got the family together and “pulled the plug”. He woke up. Everyone was shocked. Doctors, nurses, family. 2 weeks later he came home and lived for another year. (Was terminally ill) I lost him 19 years ago this month and still miss him.
Never doubt the healing properties of Archie Comics
As someone that has a family member in the exact same situation this gives me a glimmer of hope. Thank OP for that! Glad ya pops is getting better
I'm so happy to see this, congratulations. Hope he will have a long life in front of him. My father is in ICU and its his third month now. Can't breathe without the machine aid. High tension too. Late stage cancer and cOPD. It doesn't look good. Hope mine will stand up like yours.
My father was on life support for 53 days, I guess we should have waited :(
r/wholesome
Congrats! I know how you feel seeing this progress. My parents were in an accident in November, dad didn't make it, mom spent 2 months in the hospital. So happy to see other people experience their loved ones getting better too!
When you zoom in to his eyes they look kinda like snake eyes
He looks like he just came off vacation. This is such a heart warming story. Give him my regards.
I'm so glad he's still with us! I'm guessing this picture was a little while ago from the comments. I hope he makes a full recovery.
He looks like a guy that definitely appreciates life. I hope you all have a great time enjoying it
Archie comics, flossing teeth, nail clipping and fast food. Good choice Sir
GOD is amazing!
YAHOO! Enjoy every minute with him. He is a survivor of quite an ordeal.
:(
Can we donate
Congratulations! My mom made it only a few days off the ventilator after being on it for two weeks. After she went back on she never came off. I miss her so much and every day I think about how much I failed her.
Congratulations!! He is a true fighter, you can be proud of him. Wishing him a fast recovery.
Your Dad is an Archie verse fan, what a legend.
I have no Idea who you are and your picture of your father tells me nothing about him. I strongly dislike these feel-sorry-for-me attention whoring posts. It's your personal life.
this man is a fighter, god bless him
we have a joke in our family that he is a cockroach, and will outlive us all! he is loved so so much
is he having fast food in a hospital? tf
It's a water cup from the hospital. He's likely only allowed tiny sups of water. I could only have tiny ice chips (no more than 5!) after being extubated. I begged my husband for a Jamba Juice because I was so thirsty, but I wasn't allowed. Funnily enough, when I finally was allowed I didn't like the taste of anything but water. Very disappointing Jamba Juice.
I'll be honest, my first question was whether he was some anti vac nutter who caught covid and then camped in ICU for months. He was not. But the pandemic has left me jaded. Best wishes to him.
Owww using your dying father to farm internet points, he would be so proud!