He couldn’t stop thinking about the time on the couch.
Chris’s whole family was in the room; his grandmother standing behind his seated mother, his sister standing beside her father, and himself leaning against the sink. They all sat in silence of the ventilator as they waited for the neurologist. She arrived right on time.
“How is everyone doing today?” the specialist began. “I read the reports from the last twelve hours, and there seems to be no changes.”
The family sat quiet. Mae liked this doctor best of all the ones she had come in contact with since this unfortunate incident. She was the most willing to talk to them, taking the time to explain everything. But most of all, her eyes conveyed understanding and compassion.
“So let us recap,” the doctor began. “Several MRI’s ruled out any seizure activity, as was initially suspected, and showed that John in fact sustained a Pons Stroke. Both MRI’s confirm that the stroke was hemorrhagic as well as ischemic. This means that the blood flow to the affected region was both cut off and produced a small brain bleed. We have had him sedated and intubated to ensure that he remains breathing and can rest.”
Tears silently rolled down Mae’s cheeks. One of the rarest of all strokes, the Pons Stroke. Even if he had had a classic stroke, she was scared that she would have not recognized it. But at least it wouldn’t have left him paralyzed from the bridge of the nose down. They made the decision to sedate John, so he would not waste his strength worrying about his family. The tube assisting his breathing came next, from concern that the drive to breath might become compromised from the damage to the Pons region. But everyone kept saying he was so strong…
“Optimistically, we were hoping to see some positive changes in the first three to four days. But, regrettably, the mortality rate for this kind of stroke is very high. The region affected is very complex and deep in a critical area. Now, I am not saying we are totally out of options, but unfortunately, as a family, you have some tough decisions ahead.”
The doctor left and tears began to flow. Chris stared blankly at the floor. His concentration pulled in every direction. John continued to sleep.